Riverdale Perk Cafe

In keeping with their Central Perk reference (the café in Friends), this place is reminiscent of that same iconic hangout.
Take away the urban feel, add soccer mom vibe, subtract squarefootage by half, and you have Riverdale Perk.
Setting is most ideal for people with stable lives who have happy families, work in the arts, and would like to do a little reading/​writing while enjoying cafeine or a light bite.

The coffee is ok, a little on the weak side, and there are no refills. The muffins are consistently excellent so I will probably still come gere on the way to the withrow park farmers market

Since I live in the neighborhood, I have been there several times. The environment was great, but the food is eh… Disappointing.
I had hot chocolate. Good!
Cookie. Average.
The cupcakes and bars. I don’t like it!

So much lost potential, I am not one to write off a café because of prices, I am willing to give anything a chance. But Buyer Beware at the Riverdale Perk. The staff in general takes its cues from the owner, a tall overly bitter, mean girl. The owner, will in an empty café, keep you waiting for up to five minutes at the counter. Even when one says ahem, hello she will say I will be right there, as she continues to wipe the floor with a filthy mop. I have tried this place on and off since it has opened but let’s face it if one wants to be abused and ignored might as well go home for dinner … joking of course. But the reality is the staff and mainly the owner will ignore you, be rude to you honestly the young girls that work there work hard but they do not have a clue about the menu or how to multi task. Again they take their cue for their boss, a woman that is always in a vile mood. Give it a skip and go hit a chain or even a multitude of other coffee shops within walking distance. Seriously NOT WORTH YOUR MONEY

Haven’t been here yet but it’s def on the old bucket list. The reference is from Friends the tv show, which is gold.

Just down the street from my house, I go here for coffee almost every morning. They get their coffee beans from Te Aro on Queen. Can’t say no to delicious, locally roasted coffee. They also have loose-​leaf tea which is nice for mornings where less caffeine is needed.
Lunch is good too — innovative sandwiches, homemade soup and salads. Everything is made in-​house. Favourites: tea-​flavoured cupcakes, spicy kale caesar salad, blueberry-​mint lemonade!
Recently, they changed their Brunch menu — it now features a french toast with a basil cream, bacon, and blueberries. It’s SO good. Other things include eggs florentine, Benedict, and yogurt/​berries.

Have not eaten here but the coffee is great, the people serving are genuinely nice and friendly and the atmosphere of the café is warm and inviting.

What’s a Allonge?
The staff at cash looked at me and said I don’t know, let me go ask someone
It is an Americano with extra hot water.
Hmm, I guess I am not going to order that and crossing my fingers hoping she is not the one that making my cappuccino.
I do love the friendly and laid back vibe of Riverdale Perk Café. The patio is amazing overlooking a quiet neighbourhood street. There are also different seating option inside and of course I like to chill out on the coach.
Their cupcakes are all made in house and looks just delicious, I will try that next time.
Te Aro beans used in all their espresso drinks. which is always my favourite!

VIBE
Not to be confused with Central Perk from famed hit show, Friends (whaa whaa), this Perk does feel like it could be transplanted from a TV show if it were set in Brooklyn. But the Riverdale nabe is lucky to call it their own.
Service isn’t exactly urgent but it’s laid back. Clientele is the type that like to get to know their neighbours. Nice little patio in the summer. A great place to catch up on your favourite book.
I ATE
The last time I was here I had a sandwich and salad. It was hearty, healthy and delicious. Plus, I can tap away at the lap top and look at pretty art work on the wall for an afternoon. Chairs aren’t exactly made for sitting there all afternoon but if you’re in the middle of a leafy, green neighbourhood with not much proximity to much else (especially if you’re car-​less) then you make do. Coffee and tea selections aren’t anything to sing home about. That said, it seems that they have a nice selection of sweets.
OBLIGATORY CATCHY REMARK
So perky. As cliché as it sounds, it truly is a gem. I hope it stays around for a while.

The Perk has been my neighbourhood spot for years. They offer delicious, seasonal homemade yummies (soups, sandwiches, cupcakes, cookies, salads, etc) and delicious coffee from Te Aro.
Great to kick back and relax in with a friend, or throw open the laptop to do some work. There’s usually a rush of moms around lunchtime, which usually means noisy babies and kids, but they don’t often linger long.
Great patio for the warm months, and always cozy and snug inside when it gets cold. Would definitely recommend the Perk (and not just because I’ve come to love the owner!) :)

Riverdale Perk is a great morning stop for coffee and a bite. Don’t let the sea of strollers scare you away — there are usually a few seats outside you can escape to that are tranquil and serene.
The lattes are deep and frothy, and the bagels are lightly toasted with just the right amount of cream cheese.
The staff is also extremely friendly and courteous. If you ask for water, they’ll bring you a carafe w/​cranberries floating on top. It doesn’t get much classier than that!

I’ll echo the sentiments that this café alone makes me want to move to this neighbourhood. Tucked away in Riverdale, this place is a nice break from so many other coffee shops in Toronto that seem cut from the same cloth. The crowd is diverse: families, 30 somethings on laptops, a few teenagers thrown into the mix. The music is awesome, but light enough to function as background music.
This place has a really nice relaxed vibe, reminiscent of a smaller city. I highly recommend it if you’re ever in the area.

Still a really cute café, but the coffees and lattes are much too weak. Despite its proximity to where I was staying during my Toronto sojourn, I found myself skipping this place for other cafes for a caffeine buzz.

Additional to Will L. I would like to say not only was the server very nice but when I was heading out the door I overheard a customer saying he didn’t mind waiting behind the crowd of ( Unilocals) since the server was overwhelmed by us somewhat.
Nice & friendly neighbourhood so that’s why I second the motion for Shari M. to move to the neighbourhood. Although when Adeel O. went to the Logan/​Riverdale corner Convenient Shop, the staff didn’t know where the shop was but the customer KNEW!
I got a Latte to start my day and even though it took me until the next stop of the crawl to finish it, it was definitely good to the last drop. It’s like I didn’t want to let it go.
I wanted a teaspoon and there was two containers of metal teaspoons with faded labels of «clean» or dirty” on the other, I THINK! Anyways, I figure it’s ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ probability of getting a dirty spoon and if I was awake I could probably see which were actually dirty.
BTW, I would like to thank Adeel O. (THE planner) for getting me to Riverdale Perk, nice guy. Also Kat F. for the overflowing schwags. Susan C. I did get ONE passionfruit chapstick!

I am in love with this spot. I would move to this neighbourhood just to be near this place. I feel bad writing this review cause I don’t want more people to know about it! I want to keep it all to myself!
This was my first stop on the Easter (minus bunny) java jaunt. The coffee I had was mighty tasty and all the pastries and treats looked delish. Sarah L mentioned she had a roast beef wrap recently and was quite pleased.
I will be back very soon!

Checked out Riverdale Perk as part of the East End Coffee Crawl Pt. II — their name says it all. Very cute, quaint, and nestled in the heart of Riverdale, out of the way from the hustle and bustle of the city.
Riverdale Perk is that secret spot only the Riverdale locals know about. until us Unilocalers found out about it. and wanted to spread the word about this charming spot ;)
By this time, I had my second Americano. this time a single. caffeine buzz was kicking in and I had to clean my palate… they serve Te Aro Big Bro espresso beans and boy was it tasty.
They servers were really nice, despite a flood of Unilocalers visiting their establishment.
I had a great time here, despite the short visit.

I LOVE the Perk.
I love that it’s off the main drag and a bit of a hidden gem usually only frequented by locals in the know. It’s quaint, friendly and charming. Now, the caveat… you have to like children to appreciate this place (most times). There are usually many at-​home moms and their kids here or, as Jimi notes, some breast-​feeding action going on (I am one of them). This volume of kids means that there could sometimes be stroller traffic and a higher volume of little voices that some may appreciate.
The food is surprisingly delicious. The Sunday brunch is quite gourmet with the eggs Florentine stealing my heart. Great quesadillas and grilled cheese too. Coffee is tasty as is the large selection of desserts all very reasonably priced. Their muffins and soups du jour are always great. The service is decent given it’s usually 1 person out front and 1 prepping the food in back so it’s not amazingly fast but respectable.
My only beef is the fact that it’s cash only which sometimes catches you off guard and give that it’s in the middle of Riverdale and not on the Danforth, proximity to a bank machine is not good (Convenience store next door has an ATM… and is usually open).
I am happy to live in a neighborhood with a unique and lovely little place like this :)

the perk is that its cuddled within main streets and a hop skip from withrow park. this place was very relaxed when i passed by before five pm on a friday, with a couple of ladies sitting on their white couch, one of them breastfeeding (hey you notice these things — boobs are boobs man.)
i wanted to sit down and get a cappuccino right away but had no time and so after a little photo session with my battery-​eating hunk-​a-​junk i call a camera and the perks inner sanctum i called it quits and came back a few hours later when it was not only still chill, but romantic.
this place gets 6 stars for ambiance — there were chandeliers tuned with the lights held low and candles flickering as gaelen, the barista silently played as i walked inside. it was just me and him and it was a great opportunity to afford me time to get to know the place and the kind of folks that run it. well, gaelen was clearly an interested and intelligent guy and a breeze to shoot the breeze with. he gave me a little background about the history of the place (originally owned by another, reclaimed by the current owner to great effect).
i ordered a double shot cappuccino that arrived in the same size takeout cup that would feature a latte. as per gaelen the size of cup is not what matters but what you put in to it. in other words, there are different combinations of foam, milk and espresso that go into a cappuccino versus a latte. so this place has its own take. the coffee was fine, nothing too rich, but enjoyable.
what floored me, in addition to their soothing locale was one of their desserts… or late lunches… which happened to be in the form of a blueberry coffee cake. it was like a mini loaf of bread filled with a little coffee, blueberry and love. it was made there and was worth the 3 bucks i spent on it.
in terms of price, this place is not cheap. the cappuccino was about 4 bucks which is expensive considering i can get an organic one on queen for 3 and a quarter. though this place feels like a place id prefer relaxing in.
so its an ever bobbing scale as all coffee shops are. its good to know that its close by, near a wonderful park and also a place for a seemingly good and relatively inexpensive lunch and brunch, one day soon to be devoured.