I love this place. I like the people, I like the quaint, rustic atmosphere, I love the quality. To be fair, I’ve only been to one location of this chain – Tapped & Packed No. 114, which is near Euston, and though I would definitely try another location, that is my go-to. For one, they actually listen to what I want and make it to perfection.
Take something simple like a hot chocolate. I happen to like my hot chocolate extra hot. EXTRA hot. As in really really hot. Boiling. It annoys me when people respond by saying the milk with burn or it won’t taste good. Yes it will taste good, no it won’t burn, and even if it burns, great – the hotter the better. Literally. This is my preference. I try to drill this down as much as possible during the ordering process because otherwise, if you give me a drink at normal “hot” temperature, I am going to return it and make you make it again and again. Still, no one listens. These people listen.
One in about ten times, someone actually makes the drink extra hot and actually believes that I know what I want better than they know what I want. This place makes it extra extra hot. From the first go, Olga assured me it would be extra hot. I’ve been assured that many times, to no avail. She didn’t let me down. And then the next time she remembered and made it just the same way. Their hot chocolate is delicious, extra hot or not. It is dark chocolate, not sweet, not too thick, but still rich. They have semi-skimmed, whole, and soy options.
Their coffee is great quality, they have killer looking brownies, which I haven’t tried, but am going to. It’s not often when I look at a brownie and am positive it will be delicious – perfect texture, gooeyness, density, color. You order at the counter, take a seat, and they bring you the coffee, which is a nice touch (though not necessary for such a casual place). During peak times, it can be hard to find a table, but we’ve somehow always had luck with that, though I’ve seen others waiting.
Only cons: no bathroom and they leave the door open even if it is cold outside.
Bottom line is: you’ve got to go.
