Gama Cafe

Hey everyone! I can't believe it's already May... the days are going by so quickly! It was only in my previous post that I was just greeting you all a Happy April too. Anyways, I am excited to announce that I have just recently completed another year of university! I tried my best to update the blog during my winter semester, and although I only made a few posts, it's still more effort than the fall semester! I'm looking forward to spending a lot more time on my blog this summer too. 

With all that being said, let's move on and talk about this one-of-its-kind cafe in Edmonton: Gama Cafe! Previously known as Gama Store tucked away near 104 Street and Whyte Ave, Gama Cafe is a newly revamped and relocated place to grab Asian snack foods and drinks. The relocated Gama Cafe is still on Whyte Ave, but it's closer to 109 Street in the same building as Impressions Dental Clinic. It is also in between RBC and Pizza Hut on the same side of the street, while Cafe Mosaics is across from it too. 

Fancy interior!

I first heard that they were open for business on Friday Jan. 16, so I planned my visit here on the following Monday (I know, I was excited. This is also proof that I'm behind with posting lol!). They didn't open until 4:00 PM at the time, so CJ and I got there a bit early and had to wait at the entrance until it was okay to go in. Although I wanted to sit on the gorgeous-looking red seats closer to the window, we ended up sitting at a two person table. There are tons of seating available, from the two person tables to the cozy booths in the centre, to a larger area towards the back behind the arches. Oh, for your information - the servers wear maid aprons!!! I felt like I was in an anime... specifically, Kaichou wa Maid-Sama! (The President is a Maid!) where the protagonist secretly works in a maid cafe while also being the student council president. It's a hilarious and super cute anime... I would recommend it to anyone who loves shoujo/romantic comedies. 

The menu.

The menu at Gama Cafe is smaller, with an emphasis on drinks and snack foods. They also have some hot, savoury dishes available too. I didn't have a chance to visit the old Gama Store at their former location, but based on a few Instagram posts it seems that the Green Cap Milk Tea and Taiwanese Pancakes are their specialty. Since I'm a lover of sweets, I decided on their waffles, toast, and a smoothie for my afternoon snack. 

The water.

Also, can we take a moment to acknowledge the size of the water glasses here? These are probably around 4 inches tall and the water is filled up to only half! CJ and I had a good laugh at how ridiculously small the water was, but in all seriousness, why the cheaping out on the water, Gama Cafe? 

Summer Dance Smoothie.

The first to arrive at our table was the Summer Dance ($5.29). This is a mango smoothie with sliced mangoes, strawberries, and kiwis served on top. I loved the bright colours and fresh fruits on top - definitely reminded me of summer! Taste wise, it was decent - just your typical mango smoothie. It was also a bit hard to drink because some of the smoothie would run down the sides of the glass so I had to keep wiping it down. 

Burned Marshmallow Thick Toast.

Next up was the Burned Marshmallow Thick Toast ($6.29). This treat was actually the reason why I wanted to check out Gama Cafe since I had seen a picture of it on Instagram over the weekend. Nine marshmallows cover a super thick piece of toast, with some chocolate drizzle and a mint leaf garnish on top. The marshmallows weren't 'burned' by any means but were more lightly toasted. I would say the name of this treat could be tweaked a little bit haha. Now how about the taste? The soft marshmallow with the warm, crunchy toast was SO GOOD! I really enjoyed the contrasting combination. The toast wasn't too hard to cut into and it added a nice balance to the sweetness of the marshmallow and chocolate. Since eating this, I couldn't stop raving about it to CJ. 

Chicocolate Waffles.

Last but not least are the Chicocolate Waffles ($10.49). These actually took a long time to arrive - I was already close to finishing the marshmallow toast! Our server also ensured us that it would be arriving momentarily too. I wonder why it took so long. These waffles are served with chocolate ice cream, chocolate sauce, strawberries, bananas, custard, and dipping sauce. Alone, the waffles were a little dry, but with the sauce and ice cream, it made for a nice sweet treat! While the fresh strawberries and bananas were a great addition, I would've been okay without the custard though... it was oddly tasteless. 

More Burned Marshmallow Thick Toast! Looking more burnt this time...

I was so obsessed with the marshmallow toast that I convinced CJ to return later that week! This time however, my toast wasn't as quick to come out. The marshmallows were also more burnt looking instead of being lightly toasted. The toast itself was also way too hard and crunchy. I was so disappointed that the toast wasn't as good this time around. 

Strawberriffle Waffles.

CJ also got the Strawberriffle Waffles ($10.49) to share with our friend. These waffles only came with ice cream, custard, and fresh strawberries. Unless you're a fan of only strawberries, I would recommend the Chicocolate Waffles instead because you get a bit more things on your plate for the same price. The wait for these waffles was also very long... almost 45 minutes! While it tasted decent, it just wasn't worth the wait. 

The verdict on Gama Cafe? I feel like their snack foods can be improved taste wise and also with the time it took to come out. It shouldn't be taking over 30 minutes to make a single waffle! Service was also a bit slow but understandable since they had just recently opened. I would love to return here to try their Tommi Toast, which is stacked toast cubes with cream and ice cream! Definitely a few kinks to work out, but overall a nice business to have in Edmonton. Make sure to check their updated menu on Facebook featuring more items and pictures this time around! They also extended their hours from 12:00 PM to 10:00 PM instead of opening at 4:00 PM. If you're ever craving for something sweet or want a nice drink, I would give Gama Cafe a try!