My wife and I tried Velvet Vine Cafe after seeing several positive reviews and being intrigued by the idea of “comfort food tapas,” which sounded like a great concept since we love comfort food. Unfortunately, the experience ended up being extremely disappointing, and after the meal we realized the negative reviews we had overlooked were completely accurate.
To start with the positives: the decor and overall vibe of the place are cute and inviting. However, it was freezing inside. It was so cold that I had to put my winter coat back on while eating, which made the experience uncomfortable from the start.
The drinks were not great and also took a very long time to arrive, so long that we had already started eating before they showed up.
The Winter Sangria tasted watered down and lacked any real flavor.
The Winter Margarita was advertised as having vanilla and cinnamon. I specifically asked for it without the vanilla and cinnamon, but it arrived with a full cinnamon rim and a cinnamon stick on top anyway.
For food, we ordered several tapas and were shocked by both the quality and the prices.
Stuffed Peppadews – These actually tasted good, but the portion was tiny: 6 very small peppers for $16. The plate was piled with arugula to make it look like more food than it actually was.
Mac n Cheese Tease – This is supposed to be a flight of four different mac and cheeses. I was excited for this since mac and cheese is usually a safe comfort-food favorite. Unfortunately, it was probably the worst mac and cheese I’ve ever had. The sauce was incredibly watery and almost completely flavorless. Every bite mostly tasted like plain noodles straight out of boiling water with no detectable cheese flavor. The worst of the four had dried rosemary sprinkled on top as garnish. Dried rosemary is a terrible garnish for something like this because the pieces are hard and pointy. It literally feels like chewing on twigs and they poke the roof of your mouth. Every bite involved picking rosemary pieces out. This cost $20 for very small portions.
Steak Daddy Sliders – Three sliders that were supposed to include cheese and horseradish sauce. The buns tasted stale and dry, and the meat itself was also dry and almost completely lacking flavor. They were so bad we actually left one on the plate, despite the $24 price.
By the time we finished, we had spent over $96 before tip and were still hungry. Normally at a tapas restaurant, if we’re still hungry we’d happily order another dish. But given the very high prices and the poor food quality, we decided to leave and eat somewhere else instead.
Tiny portions, extremely high prices, and food that ranged from mediocre to genuinely bad. It’s a shame because the concept and atmosphere could have been great, but the execution was simply not there.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 3
Private Private
Super cozy lounge vibes! The drinks are great and the assorted dessert board 😍So pretty!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Carly Blais
Awesome atmosphere! Best espresso martini's around and had the best filet dinner for valentines day! Can't wait to get back!! Kudos to two hard working girls doing everything right!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ashley King
It’s beautifully decorated and the food is great.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rings Around the Posie
Came for dinner with friends, love the atmosphere! Such a dark cozy spot. Something that you’d find in the city. They have amazing espresso martinis and even won an award. ( saw the trophy hung up) we orders a bunch of small plates and flatbreads. Everything came out perfect. The caramel cheesecake was so delicious I am still thinking about it. Will def be back and want to try the brunch next !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Daisy
This place gives off amazing vibes, delicious drinks and fantastic food. And a wonderful staff. Thank me later. 🫶🏼
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Shaelyn Beaudoin
Such a cute spot with a calming, cool atmosphere. The food was great! We had some of the best tater tots I think I have ever had. And, the service was excellent. Perfect for a girl’s night!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Coline Blanc
The worst breakfast place you can go, please save your time and money. Everything is bad, the food, the service, the price. We were the only customers in the place and still receive an horrible service. The food is terrible, cold and dry with no taste at all. The saddest part is that the owner were there and since no effort was made. I had to go at the bar and ask for everything. I’m not surprised that this place is not crowded on a Sunday morning…
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
M Smith
I really wanted to like this place it looked very cool online however my time there was not good. To start with the place has a musty damp smell to it, the smell was definitely not the smell of gourmet food or espresso. But the most painful part was how cold it was in there. We were there an hour and my toes were so cold I couldn't feel them, my nose was cold, my hands were cold and when are food came out it almost immediately became cold. I mentioned to the waitress how cold it was and really got no response except for oh you're cold? I ordered the mushroom flatbread, the dough was barely cooked, it was white and floury. There was a ton of cooked canned mushrooms, some oil and piled high with arugula. The martinis were OK. Because we were so cold we asked if they had any hot drinks and they suggested a hot cocoa with a shot of vodka. What we got was packaged cocoa and a shot of bottom shelf vodka for $15 per cocoa! Most things were overpriced but the instant lukewarm cocoa with a shot of bottom shelf vodka was just too much. Also it was a Friday night in there were less than 10 people in the place. I know there are small business owner trying to make it but in order to do that they really need to step up the atmosphere and the quality. There are nicer restaurants in the area, unfortunately I could not recommend this place
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 3
Sara Levine
The drinks are phenomenal. Really thoughtful recipes. Fun and inventive. The sweet ones are sweet but not too sweet. Espresso martinis are fabulous. Food is wonderful. I love small plates because I can mix it up each time. Owners and staff are wonderful and take huge pride in their place. Really love this place.
We ate the food too quickly to take pictures but the place is amazing. Great vibe, delicious food. Kind staff.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rose Krastanov
Excellent for brunch and great wine + specialty coffee
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Pritam Dutta
Find your way over here for a meal. Food was great and the flavors were awesome. Drinks were really great. It’s a small, quirky place that sits at the end of a small strip mall so you might miss it.
Two tips 1. Make sure to tell your server to bring food out as it’s competed. This ensures that hot plates are served hot.
2. They might hand you 3-4 menus with different things on it. Find the Tapas menu and the drinks menu and you’ll be set for the night.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Leanne Espindle
Very moody relaxing vibe. Food was absolutely delicious. Lots of fun and unique cocktails. Excited to go back and try breakfast!!
My wife and I tried Velvet Vine Cafe after seeing several positive reviews and being intrigued by the idea of “comfort food tapas,” which sounded like a great concept since we love comfort food. Unfortunately, the experience ended up being extremely disappointing, and after the meal we realized the negative reviews we had overlooked were completely accurate.
To start with the positives: the decor and overall vibe of the place are cute and inviting. However, it was freezing inside. It was so cold that I had to put my winter coat back on while eating, which made the experience uncomfortable from the start.
The drinks were not great and also took a very long time to arrive, so long that we had already started eating before they showed up.
The Winter Sangria tasted watered down and lacked any real flavor.
The Winter Margarita was advertised as having vanilla and cinnamon. I specifically asked for it without the vanilla and cinnamon, but it arrived with a full cinnamon rim and a cinnamon stick on top anyway.
For food, we ordered several tapas and were shocked by both the quality and the prices.
Stuffed Peppadews – These actually tasted good, but the portion was tiny: 6 very small peppers for $16. The plate was piled with arugula to make it look like more food than it actually was.
Mac n Cheese Tease – This is supposed to be a flight of four different mac and cheeses. I was excited for this since mac and cheese is usually a safe comfort-food favorite. Unfortunately, it was probably the worst mac and cheese I’ve ever had. The sauce was incredibly watery and almost completely flavorless. Every bite mostly tasted like plain noodles straight out of boiling water with no detectable cheese flavor. The worst of the four had dried rosemary sprinkled on top as garnish. Dried rosemary is a terrible garnish for something like this because the pieces are hard and pointy. It literally feels like chewing on twigs and they poke the roof of your mouth. Every bite involved picking rosemary pieces out. This cost $20 for very small portions.
Steak Daddy Sliders – Three sliders that were supposed to include cheese and horseradish sauce. The buns tasted stale and dry, and the meat itself was also dry and almost completely lacking flavor. They were so bad we actually left one on the plate, despite the $24 price.
By the time we finished, we had spent over $96 before tip and were still hungry. Normally at a tapas restaurant, if we’re still hungry we’d happily order another dish. But given the very high prices and the poor food quality, we decided to leave and eat somewhere else instead.
Tiny portions, extremely high prices, and food that ranged from mediocre to genuinely bad. It’s a shame because the concept and atmosphere could have been great, but the execution was simply not there.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 3
Super cozy lounge vibes! The drinks are great and the assorted dessert board 😍So pretty!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Awesome atmosphere! Best espresso martini's around and had the best filet dinner for valentines day! Can't wait to get back!! Kudos to two hard working girls doing everything right!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
It’s beautifully decorated and the food is great.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Came for dinner with friends, love the atmosphere! Such a dark cozy spot. Something that you’d find in the city. They have amazing espresso martinis and even won an award. ( saw the trophy hung up) we orders a bunch of small plates and flatbreads. Everything came out perfect. The caramel cheesecake was so delicious I am still thinking about it. Will def be back and want to try the brunch next !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place gives off amazing vibes, delicious drinks and fantastic food. And a wonderful staff. Thank me later. 🫶🏼
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Such a cute spot with a calming, cool atmosphere. The food was great! We had some of the best tater tots I think I have ever had. And, the service was excellent. Perfect for a girl’s night!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The worst breakfast place you can go, please save your time and money. Everything is bad, the food, the service, the price. We were the only customers in the place and still receive an horrible service. The food is terrible, cold and dry with no taste at all. The saddest part is that the owner were there and since no effort was made. I had to go at the bar and ask for everything. I’m not surprised that this place is not crowded on a Sunday morning…
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
I really wanted to like this place it looked very cool online however my time there was not good. To start with the place has a musty damp smell to it, the smell was definitely not the smell of gourmet food or espresso. But the most painful part was how cold it was in there. We were there an hour and my toes were so cold I couldn't feel them, my nose was cold, my hands were cold and when are food came out it almost immediately became cold. I mentioned to the waitress how cold it was and really got no response except for oh you're cold?
I ordered the mushroom flatbread, the dough was barely cooked, it was white and floury. There was a ton of cooked canned mushrooms, some oil and piled high with arugula. The martinis were OK. Because we were so cold we asked if they had any hot drinks and they suggested a hot cocoa with a shot of vodka. What we got was packaged cocoa and a shot of bottom shelf vodka for $15 per cocoa! Most things were overpriced but the instant lukewarm cocoa with a shot of bottom shelf vodka was just too much. Also it was a Friday night in there were less than 10 people in the place. I know there are small business owner trying to make it but in order to do that they really need to step up the atmosphere and the quality. There are nicer restaurants in the area, unfortunately I could not recommend this place
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 3
The drinks are phenomenal. Really thoughtful recipes. Fun and inventive. The sweet ones are sweet but not too sweet. Espresso martinis are fabulous. Food is wonderful. I love small plates because I can mix it up each time. Owners and staff are wonderful and take huge pride in their place. Really love this place.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
We ate the food too quickly to take pictures but the place is amazing. Great vibe, delicious food. Kind staff.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Excellent for brunch and great wine + specialty coffee
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Find your way over here for a meal. Food was great and the flavors were awesome. Drinks were really great. It’s a small, quirky place that sits at the end of a small strip mall so you might miss it.
Two tips
1. Make sure to tell your server to bring food out as it’s competed. This ensures that hot plates are served hot.
2. They might hand you 3-4 menus with different things on it. Find the Tapas menu and the drinks menu and you’ll be set for the night.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very moody relaxing vibe. Food was absolutely delicious. Lots of fun and unique cocktails. Excited to go back and try breakfast!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best girly place in Acton!! Hands down!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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