Saturday brunch isn’t completely unheard of. It goes against the norm for me, since brunch is a term I usually reserved for Sundays. But going against the norm is right up Coca Cafe’s alley. Nestled in Lawrenceville, their eclectic, laid back style was just what you’d expect from a place bending the brunch rules of polite society. Though the mixmatched tables and chairs may look like this was a theme haphazardly thrown together from someone’s dream-state, the space is clean, relaxing, and fitting for a lazy morning breakfast with friends.

The menu items all looked very tempting and at first I had trouble deciding what to try. I decided to go with their special of the day: Manchego grits, with homemade salsa, apple smoked bacon, and two poached eggs.

The only issue I had, is that I’m a creamy grits person. After sitting for a while grits can become stiff, and if they are made thick to begin with they just get thicker. It wasn’t a problem with the flavor at all, I just wished they were a bit thinner. The bowl and portion where so generous I had trouble eating it all quickly and my grits thicken the longer it took me to eat. But hey, for all I know, Manchego means thick and delicious. Again, not really a terrible life-crushing thing and it certainly wouldn’t thwart me from having the special again. Actually, I’m looking forward to it. I give Coca Cafe, 4 out of 5 menus.

I had heard great things about Coca’s—both from print reviews and friends. So, on a cold, blustery fall afternoon I visited with a group of friends for an early lunch. We had quite a wait outside in the rain, as there really isn’t room inside to do so. Once seated, the service was quite spotty…several of my friends ordered juice that didn’t show up till near the end of the meal. As for the food…it was just okay, to me. I had the almond french toast, and it really wasn’t anything to write home about—the idea of it I created in my mind was much better than what I actually received. Two things I DID completely enjoy: the fresh squeezed oj, and the side of bacon—yum! Other than that, I really felt the price paid out did not equal what was received in either food or service. May give it another chance in the future, on a less busy day.