Cafe 86

I’ve been coming here since the restaurant first opened but I haven’t written a review because this place is a hit or miss. I usually get the green milk tea/​jasmine milk tea and sometimes it’s either perfect or too milky.
This time it was too milky and I can no longer see myself paying for a large cup of milk. Why pay $ 5 more or less when I can get 1 gallon of milk for $ 2.50 at SAMS Club? I really wanted to like this place even though my wife dislikes it. I’ll stick with Sharetea in Chino Hills from now on.

The first time I walked in, it was cozy really nice place, but food wise not a fan, I tried the longganisa grilled cheese, but I can’t taste the longganisa in it, the looks was not that appetizing at all.
Well I can say the use monster shake is good, not to sweet, which I find it interesting and I like.

So dinner last Monday (?) with a friend, I was stopped from ordering a drink at Tatsunoya Ramen in Pasadena because apparently there was this mind blowing spot that serves some taro shake or something… It was the right decision.
The shake wasn’t taro, it was Ube (a filipino purple yam) and I had my signature «bomb ass taste» reaction (like I just saw Jesus) after my first sip. I dont like drinks that are overly sweet and the Ube Monster was not sweet at all, yet super rich and creamy. You know a drink is good when you are constantly checking to see how much you have left, and while you try to save more for your drive home, you just can’t stop drinking it… That was exactly the case with the Ube Monster
Fast Forward to past Thursday, I decided to get the Ube Monster closer to home at the Chino store. Surprisingly, they actually made some of their signature Ube Flan Cupcakes that day (normally only wed and sat). And that day they also came out with their brand new Truffle Ube Flan Cupcakes (outside oreo chocolate inside ube).
Needless to say, I lost my mind after the first bite… Rich and creamy but not super sweet and complements so well with the flan on top. To be honest I can’t even describe how good those cupcakes were, they were just too ridiculous. However, the truffle version are definitely a lot better tho…
I don’t even really eat cupcakes, my cupcake world will never be the same…

Pastry and drinks good
Regular cook food (longanisa) smelled weird and tasted weird. Induces nausea to a certain extent.

I love flan. And… I love cupcakes. Flan on a cupcake?
Café 86 is only a block down from The Shoppes. The actual inside is very very small but is super cozy and rustic!
With a check-​in, you can get a free Hibiscus cooler! Tastes like a passionfruit tea from Starbucks. I made sure to come on a Saturday to try the famous cupcakes. They’re pretty pricy, ringing in at $ 3.61 per cupcake. I also tried the churrochi — churro and mochi hybrid.
The cupcake was very dense and moist in texture. It didn’t have any ube flavor in my opinion. The flan was sweet and caramel-​y like most!
Wasn’t a fan of the churrochi. My friend described it as a «super chewy Wetzel Pretzel.» These also take longer to make and they come out super fresh and piping hot!

Located near the BAPS, this Café 86 location is located in a plaza that just kind of seems to overwhelm you. There are so many signs and the stores just seem too close together. Eventually, located it below the Century 21 Insurance sign where if you enter from the first parking lot entrance as you’re driving in from the right hand side, it’s literally right there!
Warning if you go in too early, they don’t seem to have a lot of the food prep done just yet as arrived right before it opened and I could still see workers barely clocking in for their shifts.
I guess their menu changes often times depending on what they have that day because when I asked them what I wanted based off the menu, they informed me that it wasn’t ready yet or they didn’t have them that day.
Inside the store sends a very inviting vibe as the them is very student lounge area setting. About 4 – 5 tables with another area to the insides of the store with a couple couches, a sitting chair and two small stump like tables. just overall very comfortable to sit and chat for a bit.

I came here with the intention on trying their famous ube flan cupcake. Sadly, they ran out so I decided to get their ube truffle. I wasn’t expecting too much of it because I was disappointed I missed the chance of getting an ube flan, but after taking the first bite I was immediately surprised. It’s moist and the ube and oreo flavors go very well together! The truffle is sweet so it’s good that it’s small otherwise my blood sugar level will shoot wayy up. I checked in on Unilocal & got the free hibiscus cooler, which is refreshing to drink when you’re eating something sweet. Without the cooler, the truffle might have been too overwhelming.
I wish Café 86 had more seating and that they would make more ube flan cupcakes. If its so popular and only sells it on Wednesdays and Saturdays, wouldn’t you know to make a large amount of cupcakes? Or maybe everybody simply buys it in bulk… Other than that I like the overall concept of how its a hip, Filipino-​style bakery/​café and I hope to come back here when they do have the cupcakes!

I would like to retract my previous review. Over the past year my bf and I have frequented this café and I appreciate how they constantly update their items and try new things. I’ve become a huge fan of their monster drinks (shakes with Oreos) since I’m a HUGE Oreo fan. My top drinks are the Thai Tea Monster and Monkey Monster (which is off their menu, but it’s offered). A few weeks ago I tried their Jasmine Calamansi tea again on a hot day and I must say that it has been improved somehow since I first tried it.
Tips: Follow their instagram to see what new and exciting items they have daily!

At first Café 86 is kind of difficult to find especially if you are unfamiliar with the area. The coffeeshop bakery is small and quaint and doesn’t have much seating so I would guess most people only come for pick-​up/​to-​go. They seem to have a steady stream of customers and do check in for a Hibiscus drink special. Drink is good, not what I would come back for, though.
On the other hand, the ube flan cupcake is only available on Wednesdays and Saturdays so I came on a Wednesday afternoon. I thought this would probably be the only time I was in the area on a Wednesday so I figured I might come try. I bought 3 and didn’t regret it. The cupcake is sweet and syrupy from the flan on top. The inside of the cupcake is moist. Ube is a pinoy yam that’s been rising in popularity in donuts, cake, ice cream, etc. I would definitely recommend coming if just to try this cupcake. Step aside Sprinkles, the ube flan cupcake is by far the best cupcake I’ve ever had in my life. It’s worth every calorie.

I came here on a Saturday for the ube flan cupcakes and ube truffles. Cupcake was good but the truffle was the WINNER. I loved it… it was perfectly ube, not to sweet, and the oreo coating made it super good.
Other than Ube Nerds food, they have drinks and café items (sandwiches and what not). Staff was friendly and place was small but cute. The prices for the ube sweets were a little over what I would have liked (about $ 4 a cupcake, $ 3 for the truffle), but whatever… indulge a little!

Cute cozy café with nice staff to serve you
—Hibiscus calamansi: got it with aloe which was the perfect combo! love that they sell aloe, very refreshing
—tiger milk tea: my friends got it with boba and they said it tasted like it should
–Matcha green tea ice cream sandwich: tasted mostly like vanilla but I enjoyed this one more since it was less sweet
–ube ice cream sandwich: a bit sweet for me but also unique
In plaza at end with joghurt and past the shoppes

Upon pulling up to Café 86, I imagined a coffee shop (not like the GG, Bolsa Coffee shop tsk tsk), where people could just chill and talk. Well, there were people chilling on their 1 couch and couple chairs and table, but that was all there really was. not a lot of space inside.
The area where you place your order is literally like 8 feet in after you enter, as if they purposely made it that close to the entrance so then a line can form out the door to make it look crazy busy. Maybe I’m just being too critical. Whateveeeez.
Ube cupcake: 3.5÷5 Good to try once. It literally was just flan on top of the cupcake. The cupcake was moist but quite dense. Too much food coloring dye and minimal ube flavor. The flan itself was rich and flavorful. Bit pricey as well $ 3+
Monster milkshake: ³⁄₅ Once again, lacked the strong presence of ube flavor I was craving. It was too milky for me, especially the aftertaste. I did like the crumbled Oreo cookies on the bottom and top of the drink…
Hibiscus tea: ⁵⁄₅ For being free with a Unilocal Check-​In, this was actually my favorite thing here. It was light, refreshing, and was overly sweet. Good drink that I’d order again.
Customer service was okay here — stood around the front waiting for a cashier to ring me up and then was finally acknowledged. Café 86 is good, but not good enough for me to drive back here from the OC.

Mmmm ube flan cupcakes! The drinks here are also good, I’ve had the ube latte, iced milk tea with and without boba, and a green tea latte. I enjoy the ambiance of this place and definitely enjoy each visit; the staff is friendly.
Make sure to come in on Wednesdays or Saturdays for the Ube cupcakes, they are a must have!

UBE UBE UBE UBE UBE madness!
This place definitely has that real ube taste! I cant even tell you guys enough. I’ve been to so many dessert spots, tried every ube dessert I can get my hands on, but Café 86 has THAT ube taste I’ve been longing for.
I’m from Vegas so I obviously cant come all the time. So sad. When I do, I get my ube on!
I’ve had their Ube ice cream sandwich, ube flan cupcake, ube cheesecake, ube latte, and ube milkshake. All were superb!
My favorite was definitely the ube latte. Hooked quick. You can tell the barista mixes that ube well, from what we saw. She was good. lol. Anyway, try it out! The ube flan was super super sweet, but it was very good! Only thing is, it’s made on certain days. Look out for instagram and see if they made it that morning or call ahead. That’s def the popular item there!
The café has its rustic look, but it was definitely cute. Love the atmosphere!

I usually dislike Filipino desserts. They’re usually too sweet and I can’t finish anything. Lo and behold, Café 86 came into my life through the introduction of a dear friend. She gave me a ube leche flan cupcake and I was hooked. I bought a dozen for myself (just kidding); I just wanted to share this novel dessert with my friends and family.
Ube Leche Flan Cupcakes — I think it’s pretty straightforward; there’s a small leche flan on top of an ube cupcake. Whoever thought of this is a straight up genius and should be awarded some kind of Filipino Cuisine award. It’s just the right amount of sweet for each component. I’m telling you the creator was a genius. ‘
To order a dozen you must complete the following:
1) Go to their website and click order online OR go directly to the link
2) Make an account with leapset to place your order
3) You can order several items, however, some items may not be available on certain days.
I’m going to grab another dozen in the future to bring to my family in NorCal. They’ll love this stuff especially since it’s not too sweet. My only complaint is that it’s so far from the OC; oh well! I’ll travel for food.

4pm on a Saturday and this place is fully occupied. We didn’t want to sit outside since it was a tad bit chilly. Granted it’s a very very cozy café, so we took everything to go.
I am here solely for their leche flan ube cupcake. I did browse at their menu board but nothing else jumped at me except for what i was here for. I did, however, order their cookie butter latte. I mean, come on now. Had to. Just had to. Very much comparable to Evan Angelo’s in Carson, I am definitely sold on their cookie butter latte. Thank you very much!
So six orders of these much desired cupcakes. Let’s see what you got. Well it certainly beats Baked Dessert Bar’s version by appearance alone. The leche flan looks fresh not like BDB day 1 or 2 old looking ones. The light simple syrup coated on top of the flan barely drizzling down the side of the cupcake is perfect and not overly sweet. However, the flan is missing the taste of vanilla which is distinctive of flans. But i did like the consistency and the appearance of it very much.
The cake was definitely moist and light, perfect ratio of airy and density, and indeed ube me all the way tasty! I was a fan almost instantly after the first bite! I was so happy finally a cupcake that satisfied me with the first taste and eventually pleased me after I was completely done devouring the rest of that first cupcake while inside my locked vehicle. I refused to leave the parking lot until I was done enjoying every bit of the first batch of six!
And seriously what more than to accompany it with their cookie butter latte! Oh yes!
I can’t wait to visit, again. And again. Yo, Café 86. Don’t ever change. Stay sweet and tasty for Chel!
#simple#pleasures#makes#me#happy

So came here for the leche flan ube cupcake — which are only served on Wednesdays and Saturdays, take note! Got there on a Wednesday afternoon and they still had plenty of cupcakes left, which apparently is weird because they always sell out. I got a cupcake, a large Peach Mango Tea w/​boba, and a Hibiscus Cooler w/​the Unilocal check in! Pretty standard prices. First, the tea, wasn’t my favorite, and I’ve had better boba. Probably won’t get the drink again. Second, the cupcake, delicious! You can really tell that the cupcake is supposed to be ube. The cupcake was surprisingly moist, even sticky-​ish, which I personally really enjoy. The flan adds a nice touch and it tends to fall off when you bite into it all. Third, the Hibiscus Cooler, I’m not a fan of hibiscus at all so I gave it to my friend and she said it was really good, so I’ll take her word for it.
Would recommend to give this place a try, and the next time I stop by, I’ll have the try the «monsters» since that’s what all people behind me ordered.
— Tried the ube truffle and it wasn’t as good as I thought it would be. It was definitely too mushy/​moist for my tasting. The cupcake is still the best!

Before wikipedia … the only people who knew anything about ube were filipinos or if you were from the Philippines or if you knew a filipino from the Philippines or you had a filipino friend or relative that worked at Red Ribbon or if you knew a someone that lived in West Covina, Cerritos or Carson that was most likely Filipino or if you had halo-​halo before and asked what that purple stuff was …
But thanks to delicious treats like ube crack pie, ube leche flan cupcakes and my new found love the ube monster shake, people are starting to ask ‘wtf is ube?!‘
But if you’re still not curious about this purple yam type substance, Café 86 has some other coffee inspired drinks, boba for all you lover or balls and other breakfast type items to indulge in.
Thank goodness for Café 86 … now ube is about as well known as J Cole or your favorite b-​list celebrity. If you don’t know who J Cole is and don’t get my reference to one of his lyrics, at least you know about Ube.
You’re welcome.

*** IMPORTANT: Ube leche flan cupcakes are only available on Wednesday and Saturday ***
This small café offers Filipino-​inspired baked goods (e.g. ube leche flan cupcakes) as well as Filipino-​inspired drinks (e.g. Ube Monster Milkshake). There’s actually a second Café 86 location in Pasadena.
I didn’t use the Unilocal check-​in offer (1 free Hibiscus Cooler with a purchase of any baked good) and that was proven to be a mistake because I actually paid for the Hibiscus drink. Sigh … I know it is not anyone’s fault, but the staff could have warned and told me to use the Unilocal deal. With that extra $ 3 saving, that will get me one Powerball ticket ($ 2) and one SuperLotto Plus ticket ($ 1).
***
Ube Leche Flan Cupcakes ($ 3.61): Ube (purple yam) + Leche Flan? Pretty interesting idea! However, the sticky cupcake tasted slightly too sweet and I thought both cupcake & leche flan were so-​so.
Hibiscus Calamansi Iced Tea (aka Hibiscus Cooler, $ 2.99 + boba $ 0.50): Tasted like less sweeter version of fruit punch and it was pretty average, but boba were actually pretty good — slightly sweet and chewy.
***
Café 86 might not be an ideal place for large groups because It can get crowded easily due to its small space. Overall it is really hard for me to justify a 4-​star without its Unilocal check-​in deal. Would I come back to Café 86 again? Maybe and if I do go back, I will be going to Pasadena’s location instead.

Well worth the hype!
Finally made it here on a Saturday to get the übe cupcakes with leche flan. Since they had a bunch I got half a dozen. Plus they had a free hibiscus drink for checking in. Score!
The only downside is the cupcakes are offered on Tuesdays and Saturdays but it is worth it!