Off campus cuisine:

Location and coziness make Coquitlam’s Cornerstone Café a keeper

By Kyle Wallis

Does cafeteria food fail to cater to your
taste buds? Not digging the Dougout?
Then grab your finest bib and try to
avoid drooling on the person next

to you, because we’re here to offer
salvation for you students looking to
humble your hunger, without having to
wear out your shoes getting there.

aving driven past it multiple
H«= on my way to the David

Lam campus, I finally got the
chance to pop in and sample the fare
offered at the Cornerstone Café this
week. The Cornerstone Café is situated
at the intersection of Burlington Drive
and Pinetree Way in Coquitlam, next to
the Coquitlam police station (location
location location). It’s about four
blocks south of the David Lam Campus
on Pinetree Way, so it’s a great place to
grab a quick pick-me-up while you’re
on the way to the school.

Upon arrival, I noticed there was

plenty of seating outside. Being a

sunny and somewhat brisk November
afternoon, there were already

quite a few people sitting outside
socializing —a good sign. Inside,

the front counter is opposite of the
entrance, with two-person tables placed
up against huge windows. The café is

student of the David Lam campus, I am
already somewhat accustomed to this
type of interruption.

So the location is good and so
is the aura (when not being rudely
interrupted by emergency vehicles).
What about the food? I ordered a maple

“All of the food is homemade at the Cornerstone Café, which provides
a nice change from plastic-wrapped sandwiches (hello Starbucks!).”

exceptionally well lit with natural light,
a comfort that is hard to find during our
grey November winters. The far left
side of the café has a nice seating area
scattered with big leather armchairs
and coffee tables. This corner of the
establishment (of which I assume the
Comerstone Café garnered its name)
faces directly onto Pinetree Way. The
location is somewhat inconvenient
however, because siren-clad vehicles
wail down Pinetree Way almost every
five minutes. Don’t they know I’m
having my lunch? However, being a

spice latte and a ham, capicolla, and
smoked mozzarella panini. The panini
was good and filling, with lots of
veggies and exceptional ham, giving it
an almost sweet flavor. All of the food
is homemade at the Cornerstone Café,
which provides a nice change from
plastic-wrapped sandwiches (hello
Starbucks!). In addition to the paninis,
there is the usual lineup of breakfast
sandwiches, wraps, and other coffee
shop-staple pastries.

The coffee was a bit too burnt °
tasting for my liking. It had the

bitterness of over-roasted coffee beans,
which was masked by a maple sugar
syrup. It wasn’t quite my taste, but

I’m also not a lover of strong coffee.
I’m sure their other beverages are of a
higher quality and more consistency, as
this one was a daily special. There is an
extensive coffee menu to choose from,
as well as a separate menu for “fogs”
(London fog is an Earl Grey Tea Latte,
for those who aren’t savvy on their café
lingo).

The prices are pretty reasonable
for coffee, with the most expensive
beverage on the menu being a café
mocha for $4.60. Not bad considering
the much higher prices available at
similar establishments. The food is a
little bit pricier, but that’s just what you
have to pay for homemade.

Overall, the Comerstone Café is a
nice little place that allows you to sit down
to some nice eats and engage in a bout of
people-watching —that is, when fire engines

_ and police cars aren’t spoiling it.

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