Top Coffee Roasters in San Diego
Talitha Coffee
1622 National Ave, San Diego, CA 92113, United States
Coffee snob I am not, but a friend of mine is a die-hard coffee fanatic and member of the industry. On his behest, we travelled to the gentrifying Barrio Logan neighborhood and sampled a small selection of their offerings. We were greeted by a friendly staff, a warm and well-lit atmosphere, and all of the sights and sounds of a proper coffee shop. In addition to standard coffee and small pastry eats, they offer whole and ground coffee for sale, a variety of brewing equipment, other coffee paraphernalia and a short collection of swag. On site roasting lends to extremely fresh coffee, and their facility is also a SDCTI member and SCA certified facility specializing in training for baristas and roasters.Ok enough plugging: How was the coffee? Unreal. Their seasonal offerings included a blackberry mocha. I cant pass on the unusual, ordered it and was rewarded with an amazing concoction. What do you judge on? The quality of the roast, the balance of the flavor, was the hot drink served properly hot, how pretty the tulip pour was achieved? Honestly I couldnt find a fault. As I said, Im no expert but I enjoy flavor. My friends pour over coffee was hot, bold, and equally delicious.TL;DR: Parking is street only and that kinda sucks, but the coffee and experience are more than worth it. One try and Im sold.
Parabola Coffee
4041 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104, United States
Parabola is a really wonderful addition to the North Park coffee establishments. The owners (who you often find working behind the counter themselves, though they recently added two new employees) are incredibly knowledgeable about their products and have made great recommendations for which style of their roasted beans would be a good fit for me and my partner. And the coffees and espresso drinks are delicious and have some of the best prices in the neighborhood. They're located inside Second Chance Brewing, so they typically open those garage-style doors, which makes for plenty of socially distanced indoor/outdoor space to study or work (great WiFi, in my experience!). They even offer bean delivery via scooter if you aren't comfortable coming into the shop itself yet because of COVID concerns! Highly recommend giving this place a try.
Hob Coffee East Village
1068 K St, San Diego, CA 92101, United States
Excellent coffee, but a poorly managed business. On the Monday morning I went to Hob Coffee there was only one barista working. Since the coffee shop prepares food, takes online orders, and makes coffee, it was impossible for her to keep up with the demand. It took an average of 20-30 minutes to get a drink because the barista had to do everything. Our food order (an avocado and prosciutto toast) took a hour, although she warned me that the order would likely take a half hour to make. Unfortunately, I was told this after paying for my order.There wasn't an extraordinary line, although there were multiple food orders she had to prepare. One of our lattes was supposed to be made with whole milk, but appeared with oat milk. I didn't want to correct the order for fear of it taking another 20 minutes to get it right.I felt sorry for the employee that got stuck with dozens of people waiting around to get their drinks. What kind of a company let's their employee take the brunt of indignation from its customers because of inadequate staffing and planning? It occurred to me that the barista could've gotten stuck their by herself because someone quit or called in sick, but it seemed unfortunate for all the customers who had to wait a long time for their fix with no cavalry on the way to help. I can't imagine that any employee would or should put up with such poor management for very long. And customers won't return if they can't get their orders in a reasonable amount of time, even if the food quality is very good.If you plan to visit this coffee shop in the future, make sure that there's enough staff to get your coffee in a reasonable amount of time. Several people bailed in line because they didn't have enough time to waste waiting around.I also thought the shop was quite dirty. Tables were not wiped off, milk containers not returned to the refrigerator, jugs of cleaning solution laying around under the sink, a dirty food prep area, and no public bathroom. The bathroom said ‘Employees Only.' Given the homeless population around this area of town, it's little wonder that there's no public bathroom, but no bathroom in an establishment selling food and drinks? I wonder how often this business is inspected for cleanliness. Coming from a food service background, I suspect that it's cleaned only when it's inspected.It's unfortunate that such good coffee and food is being run by such poor management. I only post reviews of good places I frequent so that people have the benefit of going to a great place, but in this case I'm posting a warning to customers to beware of bad service due to poor management practices. Hopefully, Hob Coffee will improve their business because they have a great product to work with.
Hob Coffee Sabre Springs
11385 Poway Rd UNIT 110, San Diego, CA 92128, United States
You know what, I have tried several coffee shops that act like they know what a cortado (spanish origin) is or what Italian coffee is, and they just never know. Its not that I think Italian coffee is superior, its just that I think its different and you should honor that, its also a lot of fun to explore the different flavor of the brewing methods. I was impressed with their cortado and macchiato, they tasted different! The cortado was more acidic and the mach was creamier and less intense acidically. They kind of looked the same, but I blame that on having to get them in to go cups instead of sitting down and enjoying them in an in-house cup. The macchiato and the cortado definitely tasted different, and I was impressed with the cortado. Its my favorite. I noticed that they sell their own beans as well, and they have beans from different continents, which is exciting. I think it really says something when you have a variety of beans instead of just focusing on one part of the world. I really like that they have so many different options for brewing your coffee, and their prices are reasonable for the quality and variety that they provide. I was worried from some of the reviews on here that they were just another dessert coffee shop with special syrups and hyped up beans, but I was impressed that they were able to make a simple espresso drink taste lovely instead of like a nasty espresso shot with milk. Im exciting to come back again next week and try some more coffee! ***Please dont judge me for being a Karen lol ?
Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii
9878 Carmel Mountain Rd Suite C, San Diego, CA 92129, United States
I was there for three hours studying, and yes it is a great place to study, and the customer service was okay as well. However, their coffee seemed diluted. I ordered an iced Americano, and for a second I thought they had given me decaf Espresso shots. So I ordered another two shots of espresso to see if there was a difference and there was not.I was wondering why they had so many good ratings on google maps? In the three hrs I was there I also noticed that about 90% of their customers had ordered an iced blended drink, which of course, for the most part, those are filled with sugar with low levels of good quality coffee.If you are seeking a sugar rush than try them out, but if you want to enjoy a good cup of coffee or espresso shots, I would not recommend this place.I was also a barista for serval yrs. I know that when an espresso shot is being made, there's a specific timeframe where it is good. If it drips too slow or too fast their good quality espresso is not as good, maybe this place is good but today was not their day. I will try it again in the future and see if it has changed.Giving them a 2/5 because they had excellent customer service and is also a nice place to study. However, their coffee is not living up to their name. It is not ”badass” coffee.
Coffee & Tea Collective
2911 El Cajon Blvd, San Diego, CA 92104, United States
The coffee is wonderful. The shop has a good ambiance. Coffee is always Full bodied and Strong. Service is always friendly. Bought a whole bean bag for home ☕️ too.Last time we went here for a coffee I got a cappuccino and my wife got a latte. Some places (ahem Starbucks) don't make strong and tasty coffee. This place does. The cappuccino was bold and perfectly frothed. Got me wired for the day ahead!The pastry ? we had was a handmade toaster strudel (egg and bacon). They don't make the pastries but get them from some A+ shops. This particular prime piece of pastry perfection was from the bakery pop up Freshman Year. Why is the pastry selection important? Because anyone who has a coffee shop of quality knows that the coffee must be paired with a little bite for maximum impact. These shopkeepers / baristas know this, and hit the mark on their delicious coffee and their simple yet superb pastry offerings.Great coffee, service, pastries, and ambiance. Keep up the great work!
Peets Coffee
350 University Ave Suite D, San Diego, CA 92103, United States
I was there today, 9/17/2021 at 1:45 PM. My order was one Caramel Frappuccino and one dark chocolate almond milk mocha size large. The person at the register was nice at first however took the time to cancel my order when I asked for coconut syrup to be added. In doing this he/they also changed the milk to 2%. upon realizing this, I took said coffee and gave it away to the receptionist at my doctors office and returned to purchase a new mocha with the correct milk as I am lactose intolerant. Upon going in to order a second time with the same Super Skinny Barista, I spoke up as to clearly say I would like, AN ICED DARK CHOCOLATE MOCHA MADE WITH ALMOND MILK NO WHIP CREME AND 4 PUMPS OF COCONUT SYRUP. to which he replied are you sure?, you know theres a bunch of simple syrup and chocolate in there already? I asked him to please take out the simple syrup.I normally would not have a problem but they way his tone was and how he looked at me was unacceptable. Yes, I am a heavy person, but Im still a customer, The way he looked at me and how he asked if i was sure, just made it seem like he was calling me fat.I have never felt as low as that person made me feel over a coffee... please teach your employees to be nicer. thats all i ask. I paid for my second coffee in full not mentioning that the first was incorrect. I did not yell or make a scene but the way i felt after leaving was not how i wanted to feel.
Mixed Grounds Coffee
2920 Imperial Ave, San Diego, CA 92102, United States
I really want to like this place. It's so rare to see a coffee shop in Logan Heights, and I love that they clearly put effort into making the building an inviting and engaging place for the community.Unfortunately the coffee drinks are not very good and the service is always so slow. I've never gotten a proper cappuccino there, and on my last visit the one drink I thought I could count on from this place - the Azteca Mocha - tasted like a lukewarm hot cocoa. Be prepared to wait a LONG time for your drinks. It's not due to being busy, the staff just has no sense of urgency at all. They'll have two or three people in the back absentmindedly wiping down counters while customer orders back up.As someone who lives in the area, I've visited many times over the last couple of years. But unfortunately, I'm at the point of giving up and making the longer drive to South Park or Golden Hill for my coffee.
MOE COFFEE LITTLE ITALY
2542 State St, San Diego, CA 92101, United States
Pros: Nice outdoor coffee shop, it is walking distance from where I live. They have another shop in North Park and I cannot wait for the new National City location, since I work close by. Most of the staff is pretty friendly and helpful. They have some fun coffee flavors…I am obsessed with their lavender white mocha and vegan blueberry banana muffin!Cons: If you want grab and go coffee on your way to work, this may not the place for you. Service can be slow and there is frequently some line/wait time. They do have an online pre-ordering system. I wish they were open a bit later too.
Peets Coffee
955 Catalina Blvd Suite 103, San Diego, CA 92106, United States
It was my second time at Peets since moving back to California. Upon the first visit with my wife (which was the location in Hillcrest, I believe) we had a great experience. I was informed about the app and mobile orders and what not, which I was already used to from one of their competitors, so I decided to download it. Fast forward to todays visit. I saw there was a BOGO promotion in effect for iced beverages, so I decided to give a app a test drive. No issues with it ?. Went in, asked where the mobile pick up section was, waited maybe five minutes and the barista made the drop, and I made the pick up. Done deal! Folks, here is some advice. If you are a coffee person and want to make the experience more enjoyable (especially being a pick up guy like myself, please just get the app, load money in it, and order from it. You can customize your drinks (syrup and shots and whipped cream, yada yada yada, check out on it and have it made it your desired location. Pretty much a no brainer. I hate standing in line and I hate crowds so mobile order pickup is my method of madness. Back to the Peets Catalina Ave experience. Again, fairly busy inside but I whisked away from the order in store line to my mobile app section (party of one, namely me) and cooled out until the drop. Overall great experience.