Bo’s Coffee is a homegrown (meaning a true-blue citizen of the Queen City of the South) coffee shop established way back on June 28, 1996. It puts the spotlight on Philippine Coffee, which is evident in the places where they source their coffee from. These places include Sagada, Benguet, Mt. Apo, Mt. Kitanglad, and Mt. Matatum. The company basically aims to create a social impact through the empowerment of social enterprises. Basically, the company was established to provide high-quality coffee to their patrons using homegrown ingredients and incomparable hospitality.
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The first branch actually opened its doors in one of the major malls in Cebu. But, I opted to make a review of this branch since it is one of the branches I frequent the most. This is particularly true when I need to work until the sun comes out in the morning.
The internet connection of the Cebu Doctor’s Hospital branch of Bo’s Coffee is not fast enough for some of the projects I work on. Due to this, I would normally come here when I work on projects that do not require a fast internet connection. The not-so-fast internet connection is understandable due to the number of people using the network. But, one thing OFWs should take into account when they want to use the internet connection at the Cebu Doctors branch of Bo’s Coffee is the two-hour time limit for internet usage. This limitation is currently being implemented in a good number of branches of this coffee shop franchise. While most of the branches of the franchise limit internet usage to two hours for each password they provide, you can simply order something else to get another password from the counter.
There are also some instances when the internet connection gets interrupted, which would make you lose precious minutes of internet usage. But, some of the baristas at the place deserve two thumbs up since they would readily provide another password in case the internet connection gets interrupted for more than a few minutes. In general, the internet connection may not be suitable enough for OFWs who require a consistent connection while they are working. But, it should also be taken into account that it is a coffee shop after all, and not a co-working zone. The internet connection was meant for the convenience of the customers of the coffee shop and not designed to provide a consistent connection for online work.
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In terms of location, the Cebu Doctor’s Hospital branch of Bo’s Coffee is right in front of . . . (drum roll, please) . . . Cebu Doctor’s Hospital. It is also convenient for people living within the Queen City of the South since a good number of jeepneys pass in front or close to the place. For people living outside the Metro, it may be necessary to take two rides to get here. Its accessibility causes the place to get filled up easily. In fact, there were a number of instances when I could hardly find a free table, even late in the evening. Many of the patrons are doctors, nurses and interns of Cebu Doctor’s Hospital along with some businessmen. During the time I normally work here, a good number of its patrons are students or interns.
Similar to the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, the food choices at Bo’s Coffee is also impressive. It has a good mix of sandwiches, pasta and desserts that goes well with their coffee and tea-based drinks. While I normally take my dinner before I go there, there are some instances when I would take my dinner at the place. I normally order the Big Breakfast Club Plate or the Beef Stroganoff Pasta. I would pair it with the Mango-flavored Antarcteaca, a tea-based fruit drink, or any available hot tea. There are also some instances when I would order Café Mocha or a simple Café Americano when I feed the need for caffeine in my bloodstream.
Since the Big Breakfast Club Plate includes the basic essentials of breakfast, including bacon, eggs, more bacon, ham, additional bacon, bread, and bacon, it is priced at P325. While this is quite expensive, it does fill my stomach to the brim. On the other hand, the Beef Stroganoff Pasta is cheaper by a hundred bucks at P225. The sandwiches are priced at P160 while their coffee-based and tea-based drinks have prices ranging from P90 to P185. Bo’s Coffee also offers desserts so decadent, you feel like the tsar of Russia sitting in the middle of the sweltering heat . . . .oops I’m getting ahead of myself. Their desserts are quite appetizing especially the Blueberry Cheesecake, which is priced at P120. The dessert menu of the coffee shop is priced between P35 for the Chocolate Chunk Cookie and P140 for the Chocolate Mousse or New York Cheesecake. Similar to CBTL, Bo’s Coffee is mainly aimed at the middle to upper class markets, which explains the pricing.
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Customer service at the Cebu Doctor’s branch of Bo’s Coffee is exceptional. This is particularly true when it comes to the lady baristas of the place. In fact, one of these baristas immediately offered to refill my tea with hot water when she saw it was nearly out of water. I didn’t even realize it did not have any hot water in it until she offered to refill it. But, as always, there are some instances when customer service would not be as good as what I would expect. Since the place has its regulars, I noted that some baristas would have a ready smile for them compared to people who do not visit the place nearly every day (which includes me). While this is understandable since return customers are the most important clients in any business, it would definitely help the business if it can increase its market by turning walk-ins into return customers.
The Cebu Doctor’s branch of Bo’s Coffee has a two-hour limit for its internet connection, which is similar to most of the branches of the coffee chain. However, there is one way for you to get around this limit. Since the password is given for every purchase, you can actually make separate purchases to get several passwords from the counter. For instance, once you walk in, you can purchase coffee or tea and get a password. After an hour, you can go back to the counter and purchase a cookie or cake and get another password. Even though you can use the internet connection for a number of hours through this method, it can get a bit costly. But, if you are earning a good amount for each hour of work, you will not end up in the red after you are done working for the day. It is also good for you to know the location of the electrical outlet since the place only has a limited number of these essential tools for OFWs. I think there are three working outlets in the place. There are actually around two more outlets in the place, but I am not sure if these are functional. Due to this, it would be good for you to position yourself near these outlets, which means you have to go there early in the evening (if you want to work at night).
The Cebu Doctor’s branch of Bo’s Coffee is a good place to work in if you do not need a consistent internet connection. This is mainly applicable to OFWs who have project-based jobs and not hourly jobs, the latter of which require constantly being connected to the internet. Since the place is mainly for the middle to upper class market, expect to spend a good amount if you want to work here the whole day or night. As a whole, the food choices are impressive, the drinks are excellent and the customer service is admirable, which speaks well of the aim of the company of providing high-quality products to their patrons using homegrown ingredients and incomparable hospitality.
Disclaimer: This review is based on my personal experience. If you have any comments, suggestions and not-so-violent reactions, please sit down and gather your thoughts before writing them down and editing them on the comment box below. Rocks, rocks in the heavens, whoever gets angry will have Mr. Murphy to deal with.
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