McCafe

Affogato. What more do I need to say? :)
Since McCafé opened inside the York Concourse at Union Station, I have had the McCafé Affogato several times now. (It’s only available at two McCafés in Toronto.) Oreo cookie crumbs with a scoop of vanilla soft serve, served with a shot of espresso. Mmm…
This location is also testing out McDonald’s new self-​order stations, which are very user-​friendly. You can check out the entire menu, make changes, and enter coupon codes before paying for your order.

Located right in Union station, and you can be sure this place is extremely busy during rush period. However, in spite of its small size, they’re staffed with about as many as a conventional McD’s, so things keep moving.
As the name indicates, they sell the McCafe side of things, and not burgers and fries. They do however have have a couple of sandwiches and breakfast sandwiches too.
For me, McCafe’s food and drink quality is somewhere above Tim’s and below Starbucks (for the most part). However, their prices are firmly alongside Tim’s. All three are also located within the station. Tim’s is naturally ruled out, so for me McCafe is a solid option if I want to spare a couple of bucks over going to Starbucks if I’m in a frugal mood — or spare a couple minutes if I’m in a rush since they’re faster too.
There’s a small seating area with phone chargers which is nice if your phone’s about to die before getting on your ride home.
The quality of the food and drink is about a 3, but price and convenience bring it up to a 4.

Very conveniently located for a nice cup of coffee while waiting for the GO train. I had the Apple Brie Honey Croissant and it was delish! Next time I come here I want to try the affogato. WIFI signal was so-​so but they have charging cables for your iPhone/​android in case you are running low.

Stopped by McCafe for a McFlurry tonight. Unfortunately seven of us customers stood around waiting for anything to come through the pass. Two of the staff were huddled around an iPhone giggling. Presumably there was something else they could have been doing.
While standing around, I got to observe a staff with one glove cracking open eggs with both hands. She proceeded to take the glove off and put a new one on. She then began handling English breakfast muffins with her gloved hand, and cheese slices with her right (which had just previously been cracking eggs). Salmonella anyone?
I realize this is McDonalds. But this McDonald’s with a reduced menu, at an off-​peak time, with more staff than customers. A McFlurry in under 9 minutes is all I ask.

With talk of McDonald’s revenue going downhill, I think this was a really smart idea to branch out into a different market. McCafe is definitely the swanky, trendy, more sophisticated older brother to the original McDonalds. With items like quinoa and apple brie croissants, it’s really great to see some variety to the McDonalds menu while they keep the classic breakfast items intact. I actually first came into contact with a standalone McCafe overseas in Asia and thought it was a great idea so I’m really glad they’re testing it out here.
I don’t remember if this is the case for McDonalds, but all the teas are the same price, which I think is a very smart move. For food, I’ve only tried some of their pastries and bagels, but they’re quite good. They won’t blow you away, but it’s about the same quality as a Tim’s and cheaper too.
They also have self-​serving kiosks that accept only debit/​credit. They’re really great at saving time in the morning during rush hour when everyone just wants a coffee. McDonalds has also invested quite a bit in staff training as well. Everyone there has been very professional and friendly. There are always one or two employees out front directing people into the line or the kiosk and teaching people how to use the machines. This really helped to keep things moving.

For those who frequent Union Station, the loss of the McDonalds was palpable. For months, the hoarding was up in the York Concourse and people waiting for the GO Trains were limited in food options. I was more curious about the fact that they offer all day breakfast sandwiches. So how does McCafe measure up?
All day breakfast sandwiches. Check. Coffee. Check. Hashbrowns? Nope.
Two out of three ain’t bad but it won’t replace a breakfast from McDonalds. It isn’t striving for that, though. Here, you’ll find prepared sandwiches, muffins and other baked goods and the same coffee options that you would find at their other locations. There are no burgers or fries to be found here.
Ordering is pretty straight forward but sometimes the screen wouldn’t register my finger taps. The kiosk next to me didn’t print out a receipt so the guy next to me was delayed as well. While this was going on, the two employees at the cash register were free so maybe this self-​serve kiosk thing might not save you any time.
Upon ordering on the kiosk, you have options to choose ½ decaf, add a shot of vanilla syrup, add sugar, milk, cream or Splenda. You can even request for the condiments on the side.
I didn’t try any of their pastries or sandwiches today but they do have a pre-​prepared selection for pick-​up.
Maybe Hashbrowns are too déclassé for a McDonalds coffee shop but I can’t have an Egg McMuffin without it.