Bluestone Lane Astor Place Coffee Shop

The pastries are delicious and the coffee is quite good, but I was surprised by the limited seating available. The entire upper floor is restricted to employees only for some unclear reason. Additionally, the free WiFi is overly intrusive with its data collection requirements. On the positive side, the natural light in the space is quite pleasant.

The coffee was fantastic, the customer service was exceptional, and the Vegemite on toast brought back a wonderful taste of home.

I'm disappointed to report that Bluestone Lane appears to have declined. The food feels generic and pre-packaged. They don't provide proper plates for dining in, which might be a lingering effect of COVID. The long black is just a strong Americano, lacking the standard you’d expect from an Australian café. The multigrain bread with Vegemite was decent but reminded me of something from the supermarket. On a positive note, the service at the Astor Place location was consistently excellent during my multiple visits.

I wouldn't recommend this place if you're coming from Australia. The coffee is poorly made with burnt milk, and the hot chocolate tastes like dirt! They don’t even have regular sugar; instead, they offer simple syrup for hot drinks. The only Aussie item was the Vegemite, but they didn’t provide any butter! You have to spread it on yourself, and by then the bread is cold, so the butter won't melt. The staff seemed completely clueless, and there was a woman at a table casually lounging with her feet on another stool. Save yourself the trouble and avoid this place! It used to be a great café, but it has really gone downhill.

We ordered gluten-free avocado toast through Uber Eats, but instead, they sent us two croissants. This is concerning because we have celiac disease. The labels on the croissants clearly indicate what they were meant to be.