Seattle Coffee Shop Reviews,Seattle Food Wars Posts

Our Seattle Coffee Shop Thoughts

posted on : December 14, 2017 posted by : seattleunexplored@gmail.com 0 Comment

1/19/20- NOTE: This blog post has been updated with more information HERE

As you know Seattlites have the stereotype of being coffee drinking fools. This is no stereotype, we take our coffee seriously. And if you ask 20 different locals what their favorite coffee place is, you’ll most likely get 20 different answers. According to Bustle, there are close to 1700 coffee shops in Seattle and ranked #1 for coffee fanatics:

Coffee Fanatics

We wanted to provide some context on what we value in a coffee shop and our recommendations. The below are not hard and fast rules, but I think it provides a pretty accurate picture of what we enjoy about our favorite coffee shops. First of all, in Seattle when it comes to price and quality of coffee, in our opinion there’s not much differentiation. The quality of coffee in all the places we mention is great. I don’t think a coffee shop could survive in Seattle if it just had average coffee. So how we choose our favorite coffee places is really based on the following in this order:

Atmosphere-There are two types of coffee places in our opinion:

The cozy coffee shops typically have mismatched comfy chairs and sofas, warm lighting and areas set up for conversation. You normally see friends catching up, people reading books or surfing the net. These places are normally buzzing with chatter. The walls are normally plastered with upcoming event posters, concert posters and community announcements.

Favorites: Café Allegro(University District), 7 Coffee Roasters (Ravenna), Zoka(Tangletown), Cloud City(Maple Leaf)

And

The modern minimalist coffee shops with huge windows to let in the sunlight and/or bright lights condusive to working/studying. It usually has expensive looking chairs and tables, which aren’t always the most comfortable, and has tons of electrical outlets for laptops. It’s normally very quiet and might have a few works of abstract art on the walls . Their main clientele are students and people working remotely.

Favorites: Broadcast Coffee(Roosevelt), Milstead & Co.(Fremont), Slate(Pioneer Square)

Customer Service-If you go there often enough they remember your name and drink. They’re cheerful and attempt to make genuine small talk. And say things like, “Thanks for coming in” as you leave. One of the stereotypes of a barista from popular coffee shops is that they are coffee snobs, snooty, work at their own pace and look down their nose at drinkers who order complicated concoctions. If we come across this breed of barista, of course their shop is disqualified from our list of coffee shops we frequent.

Food options-We like places with a variety of food options. Most places will have pastries, but I really appreciate it if they have something savory too.

Speed-We understand that good coffee takes time and not about just pressing a button(sorry Starbucks), but be cognizant when there is a line out the door and maybe just pretend to show a sense of urgency.

Coffee Shop Superlatives:

Favorite Coffee Shop(Overall): Mr West Café Bar. It’s a mix of cozy and modern. They have great food options, both sweet-doughnuts, cookies, pastries and savory-avacado toast and sandwiches. They have this Apple Fagotinni that is Uh May Zing. The layout of the furniture is set up for both private working/studying along their front window, meetings for groups with some bench seatings, seating at the bar to watch the baristas and food prep and secluded areas to catch up with friends. They have music playing in which I’m always pulling Shazam out to see what obscure band it is. They also serve both beer and wine if it’s too late in the evening for coffee.

Favorite Cozy Coffee Shop: Cloud City Coffee(Maple Leaf) – When I think of a neighborhood coffee shop, this is what I picture. Their motto is “Community and Café” and it’s very much a gathering place for Maple Leaf. Expansive breakfast/lunch menu. I love their cinnamon rolls. A warning, this place is always packed. There are multiple tables that seat six, but you’ll most likely be sharing. They have a small outdoor seating area and when weather permits they have garage style doors that are opened facing south and east. There’s a small couched area with toys and books for kids and they also have a pay-on-your-honor section for coffee refills and day old pastries.

Favorite Modern Coffee Shop: Broadcast Coffee(Roosevelt) – If I want to get work done or need a place to read while enjoying quality coffee, this is my place. It has a business-like vibe. It has ample seating, tons of outlets and bright due to their huge windows. They take pride in their coffee. I once had a barista here remake my espresso 3 times because somebody left the door open as they were leaving and she felt it affected the taste of the espresso. I probably couldn’t tell but I appreciate her commitment to her craft. They even have a Coffee Roasting 101 class where they teach you how to roast coffee at home.

Favorite Coffee Drink: 1) Brazillian Latte at Kitanda Expresso(Green Lake). I’m normally a dopio espresso lover and not a real big fan of sweets in general, but for some reason I really love the Brazilian Latte. It’s a regular latte with sweet condensed milk and a cinnamon stick. It kind of reminds me of the traditional Vietnamese iced coffees that use the phin, but a hot stronger espresso version.

Turkish Coffee at Cafe Turko

2) This is a bit of a cheat, because this coffee is not from a coffee shop but from Cafe Turko in Fremont. It’s their Turkish Coffee. Turkish coffee is unfiltered and has the coffee grounds freely floating around in the coffee. You’re supposed to periodically swirl your coffee so the grounds don’t settle at the bottom of the cup. Regardless, you’ll still have a layer of coffee grounds that look like mud when you finish. Because the it’s so finely ground, it’s hard to replicate at home. Check out the cool coffee presentation!

Coffee Shops that Impresses Our Out of Towners: Storyville Coffee Co in Pike Place Market and Café Allegro in the University District. Both these places would never be found if we hadn’t taken our visitors since they are both “hidden”. I think it makes our visitors feel they’re in on a little local secret. 7 Roasters also falls into this category because although it’s not hidden, it has a very local feel to it. Like a general store that you’d find in a small town in the middle of a neighborhood.

Note: I think the new La Marzocco Café and Showroom located in the Seattle Center will become a favorite of out of towners. It’s located in very touristed area, it’s huge with lots of seating, has really cool displays of all the La Marzoccos for coffee nerds, has a record shop and attached to a radio station, our beloved KEXP, a non-profit radio station kept alive by donors and supporters.