Aesthetically pleasing but disappointing food at CO/OP

Monday, January 19, 2015

Whenever something new mushrooms near my hood, I get excited. So you can imagine my glee when I found out about this lifestyle store and café in San Juan. Its hipster interiors are very now but there’s more to CO/OP than that.

 
The store has a very strong design aesthetic and is cohesive with everything inside it. The industrial finish is something that is currently on trend.
 
 
 
 
 
 
CO/OP is a placed filled with trinkets for your home. Some you need, some you just want. If you’re the type looking for quirky finds, you’ll love CO/OP.
 
The artworks on display are also for sale.
 
I loved that the glass walls allowed natural light to fill in the space.  With interiors this nice, I expected the food to impress me. Unfortunately it didn’t.
 
Caramelized Onion, Shrimp and 4 Cheese Spanakopitas (P235)
There are 2 types of Spanakopitas you can choose from. This savory pastry is made of filo. It was piping hot when it arrived which I appreciated. These triangles of filo reminded me of pizza. You can clearly taste the cheese and onions but the shrimp was nowhere to be tasted or felt.
 
Smoked Salmon with Anchovies Pasta (P370)
A rich and creamy tomato pasta that was unfortunately disappointing. When you have a dish that has anchovies, you know there’s bound to be a kick somewhere. Our pasta dish had no saltiness and did not taste like it had any anchovies at all. I asked the server about the anchovies and she explained that it was coated onto the pasta. Hhhhhmmmm…It truly wasn’t there. The only time my taste buds were happy was when I ate the salmon. Even the asparagus in the dish was bland.
 
CO/OP Iced Tea (P80)
Think of legit iced tea (brewed tea) and turn it into a slushy – that’s CO/OP’s version of the drink and I thoroughly enjoyed this jar of iced tea.

The Spanakopitas were full of flavor but the pasta dish was so sad, I can’t forgive it. I’m honestly on the fence if CO/OP deserves another chance. Maybe they serve amazing coffee and dessert but I didn’t have any? The lackluster performance of the pasta and the prices don’t sit well with me.
 
On a Saturday, CO/OP had space. It actually has the perfect ambiance for a good catching up session with friends. If only the food blew me away. I hope they can improve their food because if they do, I wouldn’t mind coming back. I must commend the team behind CO/OP because service was good. The servers looked put together and were pleasant. People have been raving about this nugget in San Juan but I do not understand it. It would take something big or brilliant for me to give them a second chance.


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CO/OP
189 A. Mabini Street, San Juan
02-9255885



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Rica of Ang Kaladkarin

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