Francesca’s Dessert Caffe

My wife and I tried this place for the first time we just got coffee and gelato I didn’t know they served sandwiches and pizza the barista was very helpful and the other desserts looked great the only negative was when I was making my coffee at the coffee table a roach ran across the table. I may give them another shot. Maybe

Smallest most expensive and most disappointing piece of cake in town. Foster’s cakes are 4 times as big as this thing.

Staff is very nice. Got the Café Francesca and it was not as good as I thought it was going to be. A little too much milk.

Stopped here after dinner tonight. I tried a few Gelato flavors. The cucumber one was intriguing but I didn’t think the Gelato was creamy (almost icy) so I decided on a pastry type dessert instead. I got the caramel pot de crème which was amazing. We took home the raspberry cream pie and raspberry chocolate mousse cake which were both delicious tho super sweet. Prices for desserts was amazingly cheap so it’s a good place to stop for a bite. My kids woukd love it. Very interesting art on the walls too.

Almond raspberry cookie was delicious and only a buck. Chocolate chip cookie wasn’t nearly so amazing.

Best place to hole up and watch the Women’s World Cup! The employees are always friendly and go out of their way to help find the right channel to watch the game. There is a TON of space and lots of nooks and crannies to get work done, and they have Wifi. They also have great coffee!

TV is probably the best thing about this place. My main complaint is the lattes are weak and served at room temperature.

They have a lot of options including coffee, tea, paninis, baked goods and gelato. Good if you’re meeting up with someone or like studying with ambient noise. I’ve been to a community meeting hosted here as well. They will recommend the tiramisu but I haven’t been a huge fan either time I tried it. The caramel pudding though is absolutely delicious. The art is cool and there are several different kinds of spaces depending on what you’re feeling.

I love Francescas. The desserts and gelato are great. The same pastry chef has been there for many years. Also, they offer an awesome lunch at a reasonable price. I love their soups and salad with grape leaves. My boyfriend often gets the chicken and cheese panini, which is a great deal. The coffee is also good — it is organic and is locally roasted (Counter Culture). It is also a great place to study or meet up with friends (there are tons of outlets and free internet). Finally, the owner, who is often behind the counter, is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. He makes the place special. Be sure to ask him about his background and the many languages that he speaks!

The coffee and tea are good, there’s plenty of space for studying, and the hours fit with a grad student’s study schedule. The wifi is strong and reliable. A few times I’ve had to wait for a table during peak hours but usually I don’t have to. I’ve heard people complain about the food but I haven’t tried it myself so I can’t comment. There are limited outlets, so to study here you either need a long outlet cord or a long-​lasting laptop battery. Also, the outlet covers are kind of falling off the wall in the back room, which makes me a little concerned about electrocution… All in all, though, this place is a solid option to get a drink and study for a while, just not the best around.

Generally underwhelming. Easily the worst gelato I’ve ever had. Gelato should be creamy– creamier than ice cream. The gelato I had at Francesca’s was icy, almost refrozen. I also tried the brown butter blackberry tart. It was pretty good, but nothing special.
I like supporting small business, but the business has to have a good product. Francesca’s really didn’t.

My review is limited to the setting and atmosphere of the place, as I have not tried any of the food items. The double espresso is good, but what what makes this place special is the relaxed and slightly hip vibe. The is a plethora of seating choices, and three different rooms. I would check in more often if I lived nearby.

Ugh frustrated Internet and pretty noisily. I don’t recommend to study here but it might be a good place for small talks or hang out with friends. I don’t know … But the internet does suck. So …

Dark atmosphere, great gelato and carrot cake. Booths have outlets. Great for a late night or an exceptionally rainy day.

I was craving gelato so I thought to stop by for some dessert. I’m only giving 2 stars because I had my hopes up and what I tasted wasn’t up to par. I chose two flavors and both were alright but wasn’t really that great. The consistency of the gelato was also more like ice cream. The server also used an ice cream scooper and had to use some force to scoop it unlike what you would expect with the softer consistency with gelato. It was a little more expensive than I expected. The environment was very welcoming. Both sides of the café were also pretty filled with groups of people. However, I almost slipped on the way out from melted gelato but managed to catch myself before I actually fell. I may try something else from the café later on but I’m not rushing to get back.

I am jaded because I have I had great ice cream. This was not great ice cream. It was icy. My girlfriend had chocolate, the flavor was not good and the texture was poor. She also had hazel nut. The flavor on that one was good and the texture was not– it was icy. Mine was not icy, the flavor was pretty good. A bit too soft.
The really sucky thing was that some drunkard was on the front area and shouted a string of profanity at us. I told the workers there. The young man working said that he talked to drunkard guy, and the drunk guy said to the employee that he was just talking to himself. My girlfriend and I felt dismissed by the staff.

Whoaaaa…
Stepped foot in here because one of my professors hosts his office hours here.
Decided to try out the delicious looking gelato sitting behind the glass showcase.
Could not resist the mocha flavored gelato.
Ended up ordering an «Affogatto» which includes a shot of espresso to go along with your scoop of gelato.
— WOW this stuff is great!
— Cashier was extremely friendly and even made for fine showmanship in his presentation as he poured the espresso into the dessert.
— Awesome atmosphere. Different section splitups: casual studying, private booths/​tables, and nice lounge by the window
…Will be back here soon!

I used to like Francesca’s.
Tonight, on a Sunday, the sign on the door said that the shop was open until 10 pm. I arrived a little before 8, got my gelato and drink, and had to maneuver around one of the employees who decided to do after-​closing mopping on the customer side of the counter. Seemed weird at the time.
There were about six or seven people in the restaurant. A small crowd came in and the guy at the counter turned them away. I figured they tried to order something that was out of stock. Then a family came in and were turned away. Okaaaay.
Then they turned off the wifi. No warning. No going to the tables with apologies and explanations, just click-​internet-​gone. It’s a few minutes after 8 at this point, not even 8:15. One of the two employees switched off the TV and the lights. I approached him and asked what was up.
«We are closing.»
«The sign says that you’re open until 10.»
«The sign says ‘Closed’»
«Okay, your hours sign says that you’re open until 10»
«The sign says ‘Closed’.»
«Why are you closing so early?»
«There aren’t any customers»
I decided it wouldn’t make a difference to tell him that there weren’t customers *because* he and his partner turned them away. The staff wanted to shut down early, and they weren’t going to let a little thing like paying customers stand in their way.
So remember this when you’re deciding whether you want to visit this restaurant: You don’t matter to them. And they won’t even be polite about it.

I joined Mr. Partner for a studyfest/​readingfiasco. Well, that was the original plan at least. Where I come from, coffee shops are an adult-​filled land: coffee-​sipping, reading, pseudo-​intellectual conversation, and so on. I presumed Durham, home of an institute of higher learning, would be home to similar splendors.
Sadly, this was a romping café. There were several children running around and screaming. Mr. Partner had headphones and was able to drown them out. I was stuck pretending to read, but perhaps my furrowed brow and angry RBF gave away my innermost thoughts.
Thank you, affagatto, for saving me. Next time, I hope parents or employees take action on the chaos.

I love the music, the décor, the vibe and people watching here. I like bringing my work and be away from the campus craze for a couple of hours. However this is also a place I come imagining delicious gelato melting in my mouth and often end up being disappointed. I tried the hazelnut and vanilla tonight again and it just was not the consistency I seek for in quality gelato (they let you try a bunch of flavors though, that’s fun). Maybe their coffee is better, but I don’t drink coffee.