Cafe Rico
Many visitors praise Cafe Rico for its delicious food, especially breakfast and cakes, and find the staff friendly and accommodating, even with dogs. However, some recent reviews express disappointment with a perceived decrease in food quality, describing dishes as tasting like cheap ready-made food, while others mention issues with strict seating policies and rude owner behavior.
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via Stay22About this place Cafe Rico
Cafe Rico, on the corner of Rudolfplatz in Cologne, is a low-key coffee shop for LGBTQ+ travelers. It's the kind of place you can duck into for a quick espresso or spend an hour with a book.
The vibe is modern, cozy, and just comfortable. They do good coffee and cake, which is really all you need sometimes, right?
Sure, the drink menu goes beyond just coffee. And the prices won't make you wince. But the real selling point here is the heated outdoor seating. Even when Cologne gets chilly, you can sit outside and watch the street, which feels like a genuine neighborhood perk.
It's an easy spot to meet someone, or just be alone with a decent cup of coffee.
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Sorry, it's a shame that a café with what is actually a lovely atmosphere has been dragged down by the owner's "rules" into a place one no longer wants to visit. Even outside "my living room" (see the owner's extremely condescending response to a negative review!), I expect reasonable manners from café staff! When I politely asked if two people (!) could sit at a table for four, marked "only for three or more people," I received a curt rebuff that culminated in the words, "Well, that's just how it is!" Good manners apply not only to guests but especially to the staff, who depend on paying customers! It's also worth mentioning that the service has sometimes seemed disorganized in the past, and one often has to wait a long time to place an order. It's a real shame; this used to be a place where one was happy to spend money. Many of my friends and I will be looking for somewhere else...
11€ for an Aperol Spritz?! Yeah, right 😂 and then it wasn't even that good... oh man, it's sad when you have to charge 20-30€ for just two Aperol Spritzes.
The café has a pleasant atmosphere with a large window front and a terrace. However, the Kölsch was only served from the bottle, which is somewhat disappointing in Cologne. Furthermore, the bottle was simply placed on the table without being poured. The service was consistently inattentive: empty cups and glasses were left unattended for a long time without anyone asking if we needed anything else – which isn't particularly smart from a business perspective. Had it not been for the long wait times, we both would have ordered more. At times, the tone of the service was unfortunately quite brusque. After we finally managed to get someone's attention – the search for an employee, who otherwise just kept walking past, constantly interrupted conversations – we were met with the curt question, "Do you want anything?" We found this rather abrupt. In conclusion: pleasant ambiance, but the service definitely needs improvement.
Very disappointing experience. We waited for service while several tables around us, who arrived after us, were attended to and served. Despite trying to get the staff’s attention, we were repeatedly overlooked. The difference in treatment left us feeling unwelcome and concerned that we were being treated differently. I hope management ensures that all customers are treated equally and respectfully.
Nice bistro with delicious cakes and a great selection of spirits.
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Last updated on 3 August 2026