Trying Hey, Brew! Cafe and Resto Bar located at Tarlac City (REVIEW)

 

Hey, Brew! Cafe and Resto Bar in Tarlac City

So one Thursday afternoon, my sister and I decided to try another cafe/resto place that we haven't tried yet since we will be meeting after my work and she was starving from her errands. I remember Hey, Brew! Cafe and Resto Bar is located near my work so I suggested it. And here is our experience.

PLACE (Aesthetics/Comfortability/Convenience and Location) RATING: 3.833/5

Aesthetics. (Rating:4/5) Not gonna lie, Hey, Brew Cafe and Resto Bar was so pretty. The main color of the place was brown, and the place screams #TeamKahoy with all the brown colors and wood furnitures they used.

I love the IG-worthy setup they put with their famous mirror that is usually all over the internet which is surrounded by greens (I forgot to check if the plans are real tho). It gives the ultimate Aloha vibes and it's a slayyyy.

Comfortability. (Rating: 3/5) At first, we went to the couch at the far corner near the IG-worthy mirror setup, but we transferred to a table with a direct hit of air coming from the electric fan because of the weather and another reason that I'll be talking about later. Again, the furnitures were nice but it wasn't cozy. I feel like I was dining at fast food, except that the food wasn't really fast.

Convenience and Location. (Rating: 4.5/5) Hey, Brew Cafe and Resto Bar was accessible to everyone, whether you have your own car or if you are a commuter. Initially, I believe their first place/branch in Tarlac City was behind SM City Tarlac but they changed location due to road closures going there, a great move since it's a lot more accessible now than before.

QUALITY OF SERVICE (Staff/Food Presentation/Online Presence/Cleanliness and Ventilation) RATING: 3.125/5

Staff and serving time. (Rating: 3/5) They are polite and respectful, that I'll give. Our issue is the slow response when ordering and we had to remind the staff again for the receipt (for singilan purposes since my sister paid for our bill) but it was understandable since sudden influx of customers were there during that time.

Another thing is that our food took a long time to be served, more than 30 minutes for pasta and a burger steak. 

Food presentation. (Rating: 4.5/5) The food orders were serve nicely, maybe as a suggestion add a utensils container to distribute while waiting for the food, or if the utensils are to be served with the food, having them covered in paper napkins will be nice.

Online Presence (Inquiry and posts). (Rating: 3/5) Their social media account is pretty active (for transparency I only look at their FB before going there to check if they are open). I had to check Hey, Brew! Cafe and Resto Bar FB page to check their operating time and I found out that they post regularly, but are not really responsive to messages and inquiries sent to them.

As a diner who wants to see what an establishment can offer before going there to prevent hassle, it's a no for me especially since my sister was craving for a white pasta and I have food restrictions. Since it was on the way home, we decided to give it a shot without knowing if they serve food that we want. Thankfully they have a carbonara for my sister and a burger steak for me.

Note: They did reply to my FB inquiry about mode of payments the following day.

Cleanliness and Ventilation. (Rating: 2/5) Earlier, I said that we transferred to a table with a direct hit of air coming from their electric fan because of two main reasons, the weather is one and the other one is because there are a lot of flies flying around, especially at our first spot. I initially ask for a candle to put on top of our table to shy away the flies, but the staff told us they don't have any candles and that our spot was actually 'ma-langaw' bcos of the couch or something, and then he suggested to transfer to the other side which we did.

Maybe rather than accepting that a spot was 'ma-langaw', I feel like Hey, Brew! Cafe and Resto Bar should address it or at least have Plan B like candles for it. The place only have one electric fan as well, tho the place was already airconditioned, adding more to langaw-proof and init-proof the place will be nice.

FOOD (Quality/Price) RATING: 2.75/5

Quality. (Rating: 2.75/5) The food was okay but it wasn't for us. For example, they used Penne pasta in their carbonara but we were expecting pasta noodles for it. It was tasty, but it doesn't feel real for us because of the kind of pasta that they used. 

A part of the burger steak was half done, you can still feel the mushy feel of raw meat.

The drinks was good. Especially, the strawberry frappe.

Price. (Rating: 2.75/5) It was a bit expensive. For a one-piece burger steak with some veggies on the side, it costs Php165. The veggies was well cooked, but for a price of Php165 I kinda expect to have a broccoli rather than a cauliflower.

CONNECTIVITY (Speed/Workability) RATING: 2/5

Speed. (Rating: 1.5/5) For transparency, we asked for the wifi even though we have mobile data just to test its speed. As someone who sometimes works in a cafe, an internet connection is a must. Right after I asked for the wifi, I instantly connected my iPad. Connecting to their wifi was so smooth. 

Once my iPad was connected, I instantly test their speed and we ended up trying it 3x.

In conclusion, the wifi is not stable. The download speed didn't even make it pass 10MBPS while the upload stays at 3-4MBPS.

Workability. (Rating: 2.5/5) Personally, the place is not conducive for me, but I can see the potential. With the right upgrade with their internet provider, it can be. So for the idea of possibility alone I'll give it a 2.5/5. 

PAYMENT (Mode of payments/Ease of payments) RATING: 4/5

Mode and ease of payments. (Rating: 4/5) They accept cash and gcash payments, so it's a small win. 

OVERALL RATING: 3.14/5 Hey, Brew! Cafe and Resto Bar Tarlac City is a decent place minus the inconveniences that can be improved. I don't see it as a conducive working or studying place yet because of the slow internet connection and flies that freely roam around.