Caffe Cafe

One of my favorite spots in my neighborhood is Caffe Cafe--you can count on them for a tasty panini or a delicious, refreshing Italian soda.

My friend Jen A is moving back to Bay Ridge soon (yay!), so I have been more than happy to reacquaint her with our neighborhood. We stopped to share a lunch on a sunny afternoon, nabbing an outdoor table in the shade.

In this blazing hot weather, I love to stop by every few weeks for one of their Italian sodas. Caffe Cafe has a dizzying wall o' flavors, from almond to watermelon, and they add it to soda water and a splash of cream for a very satisfying, cooling treat. My go-to is sugar-free raspberry with a splash of almond--deeeelightful! Jen opted for the chocolate. I had a sip and WOW--this is delicious.

I always order the same sandwich--the Tuscan (vegetarian with mozzarella, spinach and tomato). It has a buttery, tangy, salty, melt-in-your-mouth wonderfulness to it. Gooey but not greasy, salty but not too much. Just YUM. This is a big sandwich, so we split it (that's the HALF sandwich in this photo). This is always a winner for me.

We also opted to split a quiche, getting the broccoli and cheddar. Um.. skip this. It was still cold in the middle, not heated through completely, but it was also pretty tasteless and just not worth it. Stick with the winners.

If it's raining or cold outside, there's still plenty of space indoors.
Seating inside is generous and spread out, with kitschy displays of teapots, mugs, and other knick-knacks, all for sale.
Service can be spotty, so if you're in a rush, you might want to secure that check ASAP. However, it's nice not to be rushed, and to sit back, sip a soda, and watch the world walk by you.

Caffe Cafe
8401 3rd Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11209-4601
(718) 748-8700

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