The Bronze Café
Vegan Kale Apple Banana Blended Shot
Double Espresso on Ice
The Fruity Pebbles Treat
The Bacon Jam Scone
The Peanut Butter Snickerdoodle Cookie
The Strawberry Cookie
The Oatmeal Craisin Cookie
The Chocolate Banana Zucchini Muffin
The Loving v. Virginia – the legal marriage between a cookie and a brownie
The Banana Flax Cake
Located within the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Southern Nevada, a space more commonly referred to simply as “The Center,” Bronze Café had long been on my list of places to visit and seeking coffee plus free WiFi near downtown on Saturday I finally decided to drop in, the smiling staff greeting me warmly as I entered while several patrons sat throughout the atrium using a bank of supplied computers or looking through literature supplied in a small library toward the back of the room.
Admittedly located in a rough part of Las Vegas, the surrounding environs largely comprised of rundown housing with no shortage of panhandlers to be found on the streets, the interior of The Center seems to act as a sort of sanctuary to those in the community and with free services available ranging from HIV-testing to prevention and sex education the environment is both open and inviting, the electronic music overhead perhaps a bit of a distracter but certainly not so loud that it cannot be ignored.
Offering a selection of soups, salads, sandwiches, baked goods, and smoothies running the gamut from mundane to esoteric with options for vegetarians, vegans, and those dining gluten free in addition to several options featuring meat, it was entirely in the pastries that my investigation of the café’s goods was undertaken and treated to a vegan smoothie shot as I waited for coffee to be brewed I’ll admit I was pleasantly surprised, the apple and banana with light vanilla doing an admirable job of offsetting the bitterness oft associated with the greens.
Sipping the espresso over ice, a bold brew with a nutty finish at less than half what one would pay for Starbucks on the Strip, it was with seven items plus a gifted Fruity Pebbles Treat from owner David Mozes that the tasting took place and beginning the rainbow treat a theme of strong flavors and excellent textures quickly arose, any ‘artificalness’ associated with the commercial cereal completely lacking in a vegan strawberry cookie with a jam center that ranks amongst the best in the city with a pudding smooth mouthfeel and light creamy top-notes.
Trying best to progress light-to-rich it was next in the slightly dry oatmeal cookie that I partook and setting this aside in favor of hopefully better things a bite of the bacon-jam scone proved to be far softer than one might expect from the British tea-time staple, though the savory jam and ample use of butter was none-the-less quite delicious beneath a light sprinkling of sugar with subtle sweetness dispersed beneath.
Entirely impressed by the peanut butter riff on a Snickerdoodle with ample cinnamon and sugar helping to mellow the otherwise rich base it was with equal balance that fruits and vegetables interacted to create the ultra-moist chocolate zucchini bread with the sort of richness that spoke to high quality cocoa, the similarly soft banana-flax cake perhaps a better choice for those desiring something more subtle with a light nuttiness from the fractured seeds coming through on the finish but not a bit of oil or bitterness to be found.
At this point seeing the soundtrack transition to upbeat Spanish dance music as a large group of teens plus a young family with grandparents in-tow sat down to breakfast it was finally in “The Loving v. Virginia” that I indulged and having previously tasted no fewer than a dozen takes on the cookie-meets-brownie including Brooklyn’s famous “Brookie” from Baked I’m confident to say that the version at Bronze Café may be the very best of them all – the chocolate base reminiscing of my childhood afternoon snack while the dollop of dough at the center was just seconds short of fully set, the whole far greater than the sum of its parts and something probably best shared, or at least enjoyed with a cup of coffee, milk…or in the case of Bronze Café, perhaps some almond mylk.
FOUR STARS: Setting aside a location that some may find a bit intimidating for any number of personal misperceptions, Bronze Café is the sort of place that is likely to go overlooked by all but those who walk through the doors of The Center, but with strong sourcing, friendly service, and a menu as inclusive as the building in which it is housed it can only be said that there is a whole lot more here than meets the eye, and a whole lot of things to tantalize the tastebuds as well.
RECOMMENDED: The Loving v. Virginia, The Strawberry Cookie, The Peanut Butter Snickerdoodle Cookie.
AVOID: The Oatmeal Craisin Cookie comes off quite dry and the scone, although quite tasty, is unlikely to amuse those looking for something more traditionally textured.
TIP: Already offering low prices considering the quality of the goods, those looking for an even better deal are encouraged to check in via social media for 10% off, or to look into restaurant.com for $10 off $20 coupons.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor
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