Cafe Colonial

This is the only café where I was told that I wasn’t allowed to write. I think they should change their name from Café Colonial to Café Anti-​Intellectual.

This was my favorite restaurant in Soho, a go-​to every time I visited New York before moving here and the place I took everyone who visited me.
The food was good. Atmosphere was lovely. RIP.

Bye bye Café Colonial. Today they shut their doors due to their lease being raised.
I dined here a couple times. Their Brazilian food was OK. I was not a huge fan of their Pao De Quejo. I think I can make a better version at home. Their skirt steak was okay, but not flavored like a good piece of Brazilian steak! I tried their chocolate souflee, and that was yummy.
I wonder what is going to replace them?

Pan de Queijo!!! Soooo good!!! I didn’t know that the Brazilians also eat this chewy cheese bread! It tastes just like my favorite Ecuadorian bread «pan de almidon» (a type of pan de queso but also contains yuca)!!! You must try this $ 2.50 chewy bread, you’ll fall in love with the texture and flavor! I can have 10 of these easily! I haven’t eaten any proper food here but I recommend this place for a nice coffee break after shopping in NoHo and LES because it’s conveniently located on the corner of Houston St. and Elizabeth. Their café con leite is pretty good! The space is quaint and cute, but a bit crammed. It’s always seems to be filled with stylish hipsters, very LES. I should try their food one day!

Two words: Hurried Blandness
Though this place pretends to be a quaint Brazilian Colonial Era café, there is no way Pedro Cabral would step foot in here. In addition to authentic Portuguese and Brazilian dishes, such as Eggs Florentine, the have ingeniously disguised any such tie to Brazil, save for a small map on the wall.
While dining in the bland décor, you also have the pleasure of a fairly apathetic staff, who delivers food with the same vigor customer service vigor as the MTA employees in the station booths. Yet, when you are at all near the possibility of actually finishing your mediocre, they push to clear your plates — sometimes not even asking. This is a little irritating across all NYC restaurants but particularly acute here.
Save yourself the bother, and eat somewhere else in this great neighborhood.

I stumbled across this place while looking for a brunch alternative to my first choice which was taken out of the running due to long waits. It was a decent brunch, nothing more, nothing less. I had a fairly typical laundry list of brunch items, eggs, fruit, coffee, and toast, the details of said items left almost no lasting impression, so I’ll have to halt any further elaboration.
Diner food. Soho Prices.

Sure, the location’s nice and the place looks cute but there are a helluva lot more places in New York where you can enjoy a more satisfying brunch than at Café Colonial.
Granted, I didn’t get eggs but I got the pulled pork sandwich, and it was sloppy and bland. The accompanying guacamole made it even blander, and my side of corn provided me with no refuge. My g/f’s «simple grilled chicken sandwich» was simple and forgettable. And the bloody marys tasted like ketchup mixed with cheap schwill vodka.
We also tried their chocolate croissant bread pudding, which disappointed us the most. How do chocolate croissants and bread pudding not go well together? When the center of the bread pudding is cold, barely cooked and runny. It tasted like a runny egg with chocolate drizzle.
There may be some good dishes at Colonial but you’ll have to discover those on your own.

Stumbled into this spot to warm up before a nearby shop on Elizabeth Street opened.
Excellent café con leite (sp? Portuguese for milk).
Could have eaten 100 pan de quielo (sp? Portuguese for cheese). Amazing texture! This bread will haunt my dreams. Good thing for my thighs that I live so far from this cute little spot.
Need to go back and try more, will probably up it a star if Unilocaler reviews are right (as they usually are!)

I really enjoyed my experience at Café Colonial. I think this might be unusual, but we didn’t even have to wait on a Sunday at 11:15am! The atmosphere is very welcoming and the food very good.
I got the granola and yogurt, which was perfectly fresh and delicious. The granola has a surprising orange flavor to it that added a little kick! I also ordered a cappuccino instead of my usual black coffee since it was only 50 cents more! The real treat though was the chocolate bread pudding!!! OMG– it was heavenly! It takes about 10 minutes to get once you order it since they make it as it’s ordered… it came out so warm and gewy! My friend and I split it and agreed we would come back for just the bread pudding! I also thought everything was reasonably priced… I got granola with yogurt, a cappuccino, and bread pudding all for $ 19 (including tip).

I’ve been to this place a couple of times. The food is pretty good but Brunch for 2 people will probably run you $ 60. It’s also a small spot so get ready to feel «cozy.» It’s a cute place with pretty good eats.
My Brazilian boyfriend wasn’t impressed with the authenticity of the cuisine but we ate everything.

Isn’t it just the worst when you’re extremely hungry after a night of fun yet your Unilocal integrity won’t let you just walk into ANY restaurant?
Me and my friend found ourselves being picky one particular Thurs night. Roaming up and down the streets for a dinner spot, we wanted to try Bianca due to the Unilocal reviews but didn’t want to deal with the wait.
Then we came across Café colonial. It looked like something quaint and cute from the outside. We liked the W’burg-ish vibe it was giving so we decided to give it a try.
Since it appeared as an intimate café I was only expecting sandwiches and salads but it turns out they have amazing entrees as well.
I had the Pan roasted Tilapia with mango salsa and it totally hit the spot. But the highlight of the night was this Brazillian dished called Moqueca de peixe, a seafood stew cooked with coconut milk and cilantro. It was a symphony of flavors and I loved every bit of it !
Must get hands on recipe if you got a good one send it my way: D

celeb sighting: Anne Hathaway
I’ve been here for brunch a few times as I live down the block, and would probably come more if it weren’t for the usual absurd wait time on the weekends. This place is small but cozy and fills up quickly. Both the service and the food can be improved, but it’s worth it to sit by the window and people watch Houston Street.

Usually, I would comment on the entrees but to be honest it would be a disservice to you all because I don’t remember how good it was because the end was smothered (in a good way) — we had their Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding. Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeegit. Before we ordered it, I noticed patrons near us that had ordered their own or shared it. We decided the best thing to do is share one between two persons. It is the best BP I’ve had. The food was good don’t get me wrong, but the BP was overpowering indeed. For the first taste, I had a little spec of BP and it almost killed me! Beautiful.
We went in the evening. Surprisingly, we did not have to wait in a line. We were seated within a couple minutes. Because of that, service was great. The waitresses are beautiful and are very kind. It definitely a place that you would bring a person for a date or small grouping. It didn’t seem like there were many tables for 4.
This place sounds like it has great menu items. Enjoy the entrees first! If you are unhappy with that, don’t worry. Café Colonial will rescue you and change that right up with the Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding.

The pulled-​pork sandwich is one of the best ever.
Yes, despite the fact that the bottom half of the bread gets completely violated by the pulled-​pork juices. I think it (bread) likes it.
I, on the other hand, felt rather ambivalent about the violated bread. Pulled-​pork juices is tasty, but how the hell am I to consume the sandwich if there’s only one piece of competent bread?

Went here last summer for Sunday brunch, and there was a long wait! The food was good, although a bit bland (had to spice it up with salt/​pepper/​ketchup) it was fresh and a good size plating.
The atmosphere was relaxed, but it’s very very small, so I suggest going early, or later if you want to beat the brunch crowd.
We ended up sitting outside right in front where the street is and where people were waiting, so it was kind of weird trying to eat with hungry passerby’s and people waiting were anxiously watching us.
I say, if you don’t have to wait too long, it’s not too bad. Pricing is a bit high, but normal for manhattan, ended up being about $ 25/​pp.

Very Small Brazilian that serves typical food from the south. As mentioned in another review, this is what you would eat at a Brazilians home on any given day– Southern Brazilian–
The food was great — I had the hearts of Palm Salad and it was HUGE!
The service was fast, an the price was low (great deal).
The place is low Key, perfect for a date or lunch where you want to talk and listen. The waiters wont bother you and will leave you there as long as you want to be.
I just wish they had Diet Guarana on the menu– (they only have regular).
The Cafezinho (brazilian for little coffee) is FANTASTIC!!!

I checked out this place for lunch with a friend and did not have a great experience.
The food was overpriced and the service was horrible. My spinach salad, with a very small amount of chicken, was $ 16. Our waitress never came back to check on us, even though my water ran out before my food was even served. I asked the server for bread and he didn’t speak English or understand what I was asking (although every other table had bread on it).
The food was ok, but I will not go back to this place again.

Very good place.
I had the corm crab asparagus soup and my friend had the pulled pork sandwich which was delicous.
I’d certainly return for its solid food and good atmosphere.

This South American café serves great entrees and a mighty fine veggie breakfast. If you can grab a window seat, it’s a great place to watch the world go by!
Try their french toast-It’s to die for… made with fresh french baguettes. The Syrup that they serve is excellent.
The Price was just right for New York City standards.

I haven’t eaten here.
I sat down on a Saturday for brunch with a friend. The place was about half full. Now, they were training new staff that day (you could tell by the deer in the headlights look of the youngish looking staff) but still we waited ten minutes after they sat us to get some water. And then we ordered coffee. And sat. And sat. And sat.
We got up and left after about another 10 min of waiting for service, of any kind. Really? You can’t serve people when you’re only half full? They didn’t even notice that we’d left.
Looks like a decent enough place. Not sure if I’ll ever come back here?