Night Cap is a new dessert/coffee/bar in Charlottetown located above Hunter’s Ale House at the corner of Kent and Prince. Last night Oliver and Catherine and I, always eager to try what’s new, went there after dinner.

What’s Good

• Super-friendly and attentive staff.
• Bright, airy space with interesting views out into the city from the second floor.
• Dizzying array of beverage choices, alcoholic and non.
• Child-friendly.
• Close proximity to our house.

What’s not Good

• The black tablecloths were dirty. Very obviously. And they were wrinkled. The effect was not unlike “used bedsheets thrown on the table.”
• Dessert is expensive: expect to pay $6 or $7 for almost anything.
• No pie. They ad in The Buzz clearly says they have pie. But this came as a complete surprise to the manager. I wanted pie.
• My wine glass and Catherine’s glass coffee mug were streaked and spotted; all the glassware could use a good polish.
• Huge portion sizes — way, way too much dessert for any normal human (the manager did say they’re working on adjustments here).

The general aesthetic and layout were more “Smitty’s with dessert” than “42nd Street Lounge.” While the graphic design and brand positioning seemed to suggest an “upscale” joint, there seemed to be an odd array of characters coming in and out and milling about, perhaps due to the association with Hunter’s Ale House. It seemed perhaps that a trivia game might break out at any moment. Catherine and I looked at each other on the way out and agreed, through a simple glance, that we won’t be in a hurry to go back.