Top Coffee Shop in San Jose
Co Ba Dessert, Tea & Coffee
3730 N First St #110, San Jose, CA 95134, United States
Came here at 7pm on Wednesday with my mom for dessert after dinner. The store is clean. Youre met with a beautiful mural on the wall and the interior is thoughtfully decorated in a green and red theme.The staff was super friendly and helpfully answered any questions I had about the menu. I went to the digital ordering kiosk because I wanted to see photos of all the items. Theres a wide variety of desserts and drinks. It costs around $7 for drinks and $10 for desserts which is a bit much but it seems to be on par with the likes of Meet Fresh and local boba shops. Boba is included in the drink price too!I got a Jasmine Blossom and a Saigon Pearl. I asked for sweetness recommendations and while the cashier said to do regular since its not that sweet, it was pretty sweet for me so Id recommend going less sweet.The Jasmine Blossom was a good, creamy Jasmine milk tea. If you like creamy, this is nice although I waited for my ice to melt since I like it less dense.The Saigon Pearl is similar to my preferred drink at Bambu. Its quite sweet as well so we added more ice at home. I dont like sweet beans like mung beans so get this if youre like me. The texture of everything made it easy to drink with a straw or spoon. The lid had a crack when we received it though.We got the Hoi An Imperial to share which is a warm chè and the wait is around 10 minutes since its made fresh to order. It was hot! Wait or blow a bit before eating the grass jelly. My mom noted how fragrant the jelly was. The textures all worked so well together. We ate it at a table inside.Many people were trickling in throughout our time there. Id totally come back when Im in the area!
Aloha Coffee & Pure Water
1179 Branham Ln, San Jose, CA 95118, United States
Ive been coming here for years. Had one of those shower thoughts/dishwashing thoughts. Theyve helped me sustain my family and I with clean drinking water. We dont have a water softner, and depend on Aloha Pure Water for our needs. Im filling up anywhere from 20-40 gallons at a time. Knowing their Aloha time schedule, I built my routine of water fill ups around it. I appreciate John and Leilani. Always a pleasure to be there in the shop. The spirit of Aloha is indeed here at this place!
Roys Station Coffee & Tea
197 Jackson St, San Jose, CA 95112, United States
THOSE WITH SEVERE FOOD ALLERGIES: BE CAREFUL HEREI have witnessed two instances of staff not paying attention to a very real food allergy.I live nearby and really like this place most of the time. Sadly, twice now I've ordered items and asked for oat milk in place of regular milk. Both times I received regular milk. The first time I immediately caught the issue. They changed it for me (made a new one with oat milk instead of regular milk). I always say “with oat milk” automatically, and I explicitly recall looking for it on the menu before ordering.The second time, unfortunately, I did not catch the problem. My partner found that the item had milk—the way in which this was discovered involved a day of pain and suffering due to the allergy itself. Milk allergies are real, horrible, and exposure to lactose-containing products can induce serious, sometimes life-threatening problems.Thinking of both times this happened, I should have been more careful, especially considering the vibe of the employees. Both times, place had three people working in the middle of the day. The second time, there was only one other customer there, and the staff was not paying close attention to me when I ordered. Instead they were more interested in their own conversations with each other. While I have no complaints about that in and of itself, when it's at the expense of customer HEALTH, it's a problem for human life.Roy's Station Coffee & Tea staff, please pay more attention to what is being ordered and listen for modifications — add them to the ticket so other staff do not make a mistake. Do whatever it takes to make it so we don't suffer the horrific effects of significant food/milk allergies. Please, please, please.
Philz Coffee
118 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose, CA 95112, United States
Edit: Jan/24Philz is back, service and drinks have been astounding the past two months.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Replace, not remove.This was my beloved coffee shop, I came here 3 times a week (years ago) when I went to SJSU, but something happened and the magic isnt there anymore.My experience before:The moment I walk in I'd smell the soothing sensation of coffee beans shuffling around the store. The baristas would joyfully welcome me in and gladly offer suggestions on what to try that day. Staff would hum along to my favorite hip-hop and R&B artist being played in the speakers while my favorite drink was being made. Lastly my favorite quote, “Try this and let me know if it needs any adjustments.” as the barista confidently waited for my obvious approval.I didn't come to this store to get coffee, I came to this store to find moments of peace, joy, safety, laughter, and community from my chaotic school life.Now:The atmosphere is stressful and uncomfortableStaff do not feel passionate or happy working thereBaristas won't look in your direction when they call your nameDrinks taste more like flavor water than coffeeMint Mojitos uses half the amount of mint as it did beforeAvocado toast (delicious) is no longer on the menuThe prices rose in exchange for less flavor and less serviceMaybe social distancing removed their charmMaybe Covid supply chain issues removed their qualityMaybe the removal of Fire/Police Department patchesalso removed the feeling of peace, community, and unityI hope management will find creative solutions to recreate the charming culture Philz once had.Don't remove, replace.
Academic Coffee
499 S Second St, San Jose, CA 95113, United States
Academic is a nice treat for me just a short distance from home.I stick to plain coffee with half-and-half. Ive tried Ethiopian, Nicaraguan, and Costa Rican to date. I think the best and most consistent of the bunch has been the Nicaraguan. I do find that the flavors and acidity on the brewed coffee fluctuate between visits, so some days are better than others, overall its solid.Main negative critiques comes from my partner whom has only tried two drinks. Decaf Breve Latte and Decaf Americano. Breve used too much half-and-half, and not enough coffee, and foam was lacking. The Decaf Americano we could tell the beans had good flavor, but the drink itself was brewed really weak. It was quite busy, so your mileage may vary. I might try a chai or vanilla latte one of these days and update my review.As for food and pastries....Miso Banana Bread is a top contender for my favorites. Not quite had a banana bread like it in taste and texture, the crispy rice I think is what makes it for me.Chocolate Chip Cookie and Brownie are absolutely awesome, and are worthy of a 5-10 second zap in the microwave for melty bliss. The cookie edges over the brownie slightly just because of the added salt.Orange Sugar Bun is really good, fluffy and moist, the candied orange peel and sugar pearls add a nice touch of flavor and sweetness without going overboard.Cinnamon Roll and Cinnamon Apple Danish take their cinnamon seriously. The roll had some flavor notes possibly cardamom or maybe just a not so typical variety of cinnamon, either way it was very unique and for any die hard lover of cinnamon youd be doing yourself a disservice not to give it a try.Miso Cookie is subtly savory and more on the sweet side. Its a very interesting cookie. Slightly crispy edges and chewy center. Goes really well with their coffee.Ham & Chesse Croissant if it was offered everyday would probably be my go-to. Croissant is crispy and buttery. The ham and cheese on point.Seasonal Lox Bagel and Smoke Trout Bagel were some menu items I decided to give a try since it was available. Both were awesome, the Lox Bagel was hands down way better. All the ingredients were high quality, and super tasty on their own.
Voltaire Coffee Roasters
360 S Market St #80, San Jose, CA 95113, United States
Voltaire has a modern, office-building style feel with tall windows and lots of natural lighting. Here, they offer (specialty) coffee at a steeper price-point..which makes me a bit hesitant to frequent here.Still, for our first visit here, we ended up getting some coffee to share over a room-temperature liege waffle -- and then more coffee to-go afterwards...Food & Drinks:- Iced Americano: Flavorful, non-bitter taste. Iced. Pretty good! Could still taste the coffee flavor over ice.- Matcha latte: This really hit the spot! I love anything matcha, and despite being mixed with milk, there were still hints of matcha flavor -- a perfect blend of both milk + matcha flavors.- Cold Brews: On the way out we decided to grab coffee to-go, it was an opportunity to try out some more of their coffee. These were iced, and the list of cold brew using different beans varied in price tag. The two flavors we got were distinct in its own flavors, and surpassed my expectations of the cold brews Im used to getting from chain coffee shops.- Liege Waffle: Wow, this was disappointing. Small in size, room-temperature, stale texture... There wasnt really anything special about this at all. Its entirely hype! Save your money. I wasnt even offered a plate. Dont get me wrong, it tasted good, but its not as good as it looks, nor does it meet up to any sort of expectations.Service:- Pretty good, though Ive had better service elsewhere. The staff behind the counter wasnt all that warm, and I cant even really remember if she offered help with the menu.Environment: Clean, empty, quiet, modern.Final thoughts: Would be back... rarely. Good coffee, but still overpriced despite being specialty. Liege waffle not worth the money.
Rollos Donuts
602 N 13th St, San Jose, CA 95112, United States
I just want to say that I have been going there for so many years and enjoy their donuts. Lately Ive noticed they dont have enough donuts and they always assume you will buy the same thing all the time. As soon as you walk in sometimes they say hi and they make a face when you say no to what they want to prepare. Also they dont mention there is a price difference in ordering a dozen donuts when they run out on small size. I experienced this one morning which they only had big size donuts and I ordered a dozen . Of course price wasnt mentioned and found out a big difference upon paying. I asked to only get half a dozen and apologized for not knowing . The owner made a face and it seemed she never accepted my apology and I didnt feel the same customer service I used to receive. I feel they only care about selling and not about customer service. The owner and her employees act the same way. If they dont hear a yes on to what they offer their face immediately changes.
Chromatic Coffee Co.
460 Lincoln Ave #10, San Jose, CA 95126, United States
Chromatic Coffee is open during COVID everybody, so stop in and get your craft coffee fix. I recommend their flat white (I prefer oat milk with my espresso, a flavor I enjoy that also happens to be the new in thing) but have also had, at their other location (now Paper Moon Coffee) the Bonus Cup (which is like liquid crack and highly recommended if youre in NEED of waking up or focusing on boring textbooks) and their Dark Coconut Mocha (a delicate and decadent dessert drink).This location is slightly off our beaten path, but, happens to be by my wifes work, so, we stopped for an afternoon pick-me-up. They had some confusing taped arrows but it was fairly empty, since we came about thirty minutes before closing... Thats the other weird thing, they have some short hours. Probably because theyre targeting the morning crowd since theres not really anywhere to hangout outside at this place. However, for those not looking to hangout, they have a quick system and we saw someone else who ordered online ahead of time even.Service wasnt the most friendly, but, again, we did come right before closing and they were cleaning up and clearly needed some of their own coffee. After asking after the business, the barista lightened up quite a bit though, which was nice.
Crema Coffee Roasting Company.
238 Race St, San Jose, CA 95126, United States
My girlfriend and I came in to grab some coffee and food before heading out to work. Saw a lot of great reviews so thought we'd give it a try. Coffee was not good - it just tasted burnt. Whatever - no big deal. However, we also ordered a breakfast burrito, and that's why I'm writing this review. It was taking awhile for them to make it, so I went up to check for an update. Well…it took a long time because the manager was too busy talking to a friend of hers that was in town. When I came up to her to ask her nicely if our burrito was ready, she gave me a dirty look as if I was an annoyance. My bad - so sorry that your little friend was in town and that you didn't take the day off to hang with her. Anyways, she made the burrito - and burnt it by the way, and just threw it on the tray with that same dirty look. I didn't even bother saying anything…wasn't worth it since she obviously cares more about talking to her friend than running a business. Definitely won't be coming back.Shoutout and props to the poor kid working the register AND making the coffee while the manager was hanging with her friend instead of working. Hey manager, next time take the day off next time so you don't have to ruin other peoples day!
MoonBeans Coffee
6219 Santa Teresa Blvd, San Jose, CA 95119, United States
Came because of the good reviews, left... confused. Had an iced latte ($3+, small) and a Will Turner breakfast sandwich (without eggs, $5+). Dining partner had a soy latte ($5+, large) and a Joe Montana breakfast sandwich ($5+). The breakfast sandwiches are good but so very tiny, not worth the price... not very satisfying. Also the avocado is more like a guacamole than sliced avocados which wasnt bad, but for the price I was thinking itd be fresh sliced.As for the coffee, the ice coffee with regular whole milk and no sweeteners was extremely milky and sweet (from the milk???). It was much more like milk with a smidge of coffee than coffee with milk, ratio was definitely odd. It was not pleasant to drink. The soy milk they use is also incredibly sweet and had the same issue with huge ratio of cream to coffee. Got the Ethiopian Sidamo (1lb for $16) for home pour-over coffee and that was okay, nothing special.The employees were nice and informative so that was a plus. The set-up of the cafe makes it a little difficult to look at the menu without seeming like youre in line, or getting past people who are looking at the menu. There is an okay pastry selection including donuts which are very average, a few gluten/wheat-free options which was nice to see. There was a neighborhood-type atmosphere so it feels like people like this place maybe for the vibe or social connection, but the actual coffee, food, and prices for the portions of the food... I wasnt amazed by.Sadly it didnt live up to the reviews, a very average place.