Crimson Cup Banani: A Terrible Experience

 When Crimson Cup opened its first outlet in Banani 11, I was delighted by the variety of flavors offered by this outlet. I believe it was initially a foreign franchise, and they had some really exclusive flavors like Green Tea Macha Latte, etc. They also had decent sandwiches and dessert items, too.

They would also write the customer's name upon the cups (just like in Starbucks), which was a unique touch. However, over the years, renewed competition from North End and new entrants like Second Cup has left Crimson Cup in a dilapidated state. Yesterday, we wanted to visit Yum Cha in Banani, but found out that the Banani outlet has been temporarily shut down. So we decided to visit Crimson cup, which was next to Yum Cha. We ordered a frozen latte and a Mocha, as well as 2 grilled cheese sandwiches and a red velvet cheese cake. Honestly, I have had much better Iced Coffee at Apan Coffe House, and it cost only 60 Taka. Yeah, this may sound incredible, but the Mocha and the Latte tasted exactly the same. There was hardly any caffeine kick; the drink was too sweet and too low in coffee content. Initially, I wanted to order Green Tea Macha Latte, but the guys at the counter literally fumbled with the order--2 of the guys kept discussing among themselves for more than 5 minutes, whether they had a frozen version of that coffee, and will they be able to deliver it. It was 11 PM and I just lost my patience. I told them to change the order to a Latte. The guy told me, 'ভাই লাটে কিন্তু মিষ্টি হবে না (Bro, latte won't be sweet). I was like, 'WTH!'. Do people order coffee for the sugar content? I mentioned, I know, and I prefer that they don't add sugar. But they added sugar in the drink anyway. Now about the grilled cheese sandwich. The cheese they used didn't seem fresh at all, and the food didn't taste much good, either. I maybe boasting a bit, but I can make a better grilled cheese sandwich at home using basic ingredients. The red velvet cheese cake used that same bland, not so fresh looking cheese, and that, too, wasn't anything to write home about.

The total bill came to about 1400 Taka, which is abysmal and too high. I am sure I could have gotten a much better experience at North End if I ordered Cheese Bagels and Coffee with Costarica beans out there, and that'd cost less than this. I don't think I'll be visiting Crimson cup again, anytime soon. For what is worth, the sitting area still looks cozy, but there, too, they had to put up an obnoxious sign that says '5 People or more only' against 2 sofas. As if they had a huge crowd! Most of the Gulshan/Banani restaurants had heavy rush yesterday, thanks to people's chaan raat kind of celebration. But there's was relatively empty, and I realized why--after paying the bill. I felt ripped off and disappointed.