Out & About #274 | Coffee Ripples at Initium + Papa Chang's Express

In a city where bubble tea shops reign, it's difficult to find a spot that produces caffeinated beverages decent enough to earn the title of a cafe.
Thankfully, there's Initium, which opens early enough to cater to my weekend morning cravings.

​I'll be frank: since my first visit, I've raved about their services and stable Wi-Fi to several of my friends, whether they be Markham locals or not. A drastic departure from last year's stack of loosely-tied textured cardstock, their menu has since undergone massive development and taken the final form of a double-sided laminated sheet pairing pink and white text with a black background.

It's important to note that Initium isn't known for being particularly budget-friendly. A single slice of mille crepe cake and cotton candy latte will ring you in at about $16; the cake itself is a whopping $9.95. Despite this, the volume of customers remains consistent at this establishment. (The lady in the adjacent seat had taken to ordering a Japanese Naan Pizza (or was it the Signature Toast?) and a Green Tea Latte first thing in the morning. Her bill would have likely averaged at twenty dollars following the inclusion of tips.

For my purposes, I was merely interested in trying out their Coffee Ripples machine. As the newest addition to their already impressive lineup of brewing equipment, the machine was described to form images on the surface of beverages by extracting the pigments from the bottom layers to the milk foam surface above. In order to utilize the machine though, one was first required to download the corresponding smartphone application: Coffee Ripples. The process was straightforward; a stable Wi-Fi connection ensured that the operation would not take a toll on customers' data plans. 

​Three options were presented on the main page of the app, allowing one to either draw their own design, use an existing photo from the Coffee Ripples library, or select a photo from one's photo gallery.
In celebration of their recent comeback with "Hard Carry", I opted for one of my favourite group shots of GOT7. This was then cropped and electronically sent to the machine in the cafe, somewhat like email. 

​The results were a tad faint on my Chai Latte, though a second try on a Mocha yielded much more distinctive results. Throughout the entire process, the barista was extremely patient and friendly, even offering to adjust the brightness and contrast levels for a second attempt since the first Mocha had produced unfavourable results.

The machine is a fun tool to customize morning (or afternoon) pick-me-ups, and, [thankfully] enough, doesn't induce any additional charges to the already hefty price tags.

View the full Initium album HERE !

​The remainder of the day was spent at Pacific Mall. Happy Lemon, a bubble tea joint hailing from China (instead of Taiwan) has now joined the lineup after a successful venture into downtown Toronto. Several photos on my feed had proved positivity in their creations, though I wasn't about to steer myself directly into their best-selling salted cheese topping after my traumatizing experience with Chatime's Tea Mousse.

Moving on to the beauty aisle, I made my regular stops at Tony Moly, Missha, Multi Brand, and It'S SKIN. The last stop caught my eye with the arrival of their GOT7 x It'S SKIN Thailand face masks. It was massive disappointment that Jackson's solo version was sold out, so I immediately grabbed several of the group versions to compensate for this unexpected loss. In reality, the sealed product was identical across packaging variations. But who can say no to GOT7??

Lunchtime had arrived while I was goggling over my newly-obtained K-Pop/k-beauty merchandise. We headed upstairs to Papa Chang's Express. I had only tasted their Skewer Fish previously, but the trio of crispy battered goodness had convinced me to return for their bento lunch boxes.

Since their grand opening, the prices have undoubtedly succumbed to inflation. It's no longer as cost-effective as it once was, though I'm glad the quality of the skewers has remained consistent.

​Along with ordering a Fish Skewer Bento, we also took an interest in a side order of Skewer Chicken. The lunch box consisted of a large portion of white rice topped with two skewers of battered fish and its accompanying sauces, two pieces of marinated tofu, squeaky string beans, and potato chunks that were lightly coated in an unidentifiable sweet-savoury sauce.

​I enjoyed it for the most part, though found the chicken to be several times greasier than its seaborne counterpart. The portioned container could have also been a tad more structured to prevent spillage in the case of drops/bumps. Papa Chang's Express' dining area was separate from that of the food court, ensuring that diners would be able to enjoy their purchase before returning to their exploration of the shopping centre. I found this aspect to be quite appealing, as it is always an immense challenge to locate seating in the Food Court. The only downside, I noticed, was that the countertop was unbearably sticky - an indication of the unsanitary habits of the previous diners and the lack of maintenance from the stall owners.

​Papa Chang's bento boxes remain less superior to their Skewer Fish, but make great options for those adamant about proper levels of rice consumption. (Personally, I'll just stick with the flaky, flavourful skewers.)

​I suggested one final stop before journeying back to English-speaking civilization: CoCo at Metro Square.

​CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice has been expanding at a rather alarming rate over the past few months; its most recent outpost is situated in the spot once occupied by Serissa Cate.

Striding into the shop, I was pleased to observe the various design elements of the interior: along with the standard colourful plastic table and chairs were a brick wall, rectangular wooden table, and an unexpected garden patio setup for two. But these first impressions were shattered in a matter of seconds upon making my way over to the cashier. It didn't take long to realize that this location didn't comprise of the same selection as Mississauga, Hamilton, and Markham (New Kennedy). On top of that, I was informed that Vicinity points would not be distributed on promotional (including Grand Opening) items, and rather rudely at that.

When I demanded an explanation as to why this was the case when all other locations participated in the points reward program regardless, the girl at the cashier immediately interrupted with hideous attitude laced with a heavy, ear-rupturing accent. She continued to argue her way even though it was obvious she lost herself in her lack of knowledge in the English language partway, rendering the rest of her phrases to be muffled gibberish.
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Shockingly enough, she still had the decency to snatch the bills from our hand and process the order as we threatened to depart for a location that would adhere to the Vicinity program. If you had thought that Chinese diners were unacceptable, then CoCo Metro Square is bound to revoke those conclusions.

The Caramel Milk Tea was of average quality, but the Mango Sago Green Tea had evidently been left brewing for an extended period of time, leaving behind an astringent aftertaste with each sip. Our cups were also strangely tall, unlike the ones used at the regular locations. I should also mention that the singular bathroom stall was dusty, unkept, and void of hooks.

​This marked our first, and guaranteed LAST, visit at CoCo Metro Square.

​Ending the post on a more positive note though, here are my glorious purchases of the day: 

​Seriously, I need Mr. Wang to complete the collection, and possibly Jinyoung and Youngjae too...

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