San Francisco Bay Coffeeshops
Ritual Coffee Roasters
San Francisco
- Caffe Puccini
***½
411 Columbus Ave, North Beach, San Francisco.
Excellent Latte in the neighborhood. And if you are a fan of Italian
opera, you won't be disappointed by the music. Stylish seating, with nice
North Beach people watching.
- Caffe Greco
***
1414 Grant Ave, North Beach, San Francisco.
Even though I am not particularly crazy about Illy's coffee, Caffe Greco
has more than enough to make up for serving this brand. Nice ambience,
large windows, spacious seating, pretty decor, and to top it all,
excellent tiramisu.
- Dolores Park Cafe
***½
501 Dolores St (at 18th), Mission District, San Francisco.
Their espresso, at $1.75 a shot, must be an expensive habit for regulars,
but the potent flavor of this little cup is difficult to resist. A must
try for true coffee lovers. The surroundings are quite pleasant, with a
pretty view of Dolores Park.
- Ritual Coffee Roasters
***½
1026 Valencia St (at 21st), Mission District, San Francisco.
There are now lots of places to get coffee in the Mission,
and Ritual Coffee Roasters positions itself as the most sophisticated new
addition. Here they take coffee seriously (tbe shop has a logo which appears
on the cups and everything), and they do things right, all the way to the espresso art.
The seating space is large, with tables, stools, and leather couches all
around. The crowd is a good mix of local yuppies, punks, and occasional
visitors, and in the Mission noone feels out of place.
10/2006
- Cafe International
**½
508 Haight St, Lower Haight, San Francisco.
A funky coffeeshop in the Lower Haight. They have a live band playing in the
evenings. It is a very relaxed place during the day.
- Bean There Cafe
**½
201 Steiner St, Lower Haight, San Francisco.
A popular neighborhood place for the Lower Haight locals, it provides a
nice, mostly quiet setting for reading or studying. Highly valued by
the gay community for the reportedly attractive staff.
- One World Cafe
**½
1799 McAllister St (at Baker), Upper Haight, San Francisco.
A small and very pleasant coffeeshop, with lots of light, tasteful
decorations, and a relaxing couchy-pillowy deck.
- Martha and Bros. Coffee Company
**½
3868 24th St, Noe Valley, San Francisco.
Good coffee in the middle of Noe Valley. Unfortunately the shop has
very scarce seating, and unless you grab a seat at the bar by the
window, you might be better off enjoying your cup out on 24th Street,
browsing the stores in the neighborhood. Martha & Bros has several
other locations in the city.
East Bay at large
- Gaylord's Coffee
***
4150 Piedmont Ave, Oakland.
A relaxed, comfortable, pretty coffeeshop on Piedmont, with remarkably good
house coffee, and so-so baked goods. Mostly frequented by neighborhood
locals and students from nearby Mills college.
- Grace Baking Cafe
**½
1127 Solano Ave, Albany.
Homely feel, good coffee, lots of pastries and tasty baked goods. One of the
better places to go in downtown Albany. (Review may be out of
date. Shop was recently remodeled under new ownership.)
Palo Alto
- Caffe Verona
***
236 Hamilton Ave, Palo Alto.
If anything ever brings you to downtown Palo Alto, and you don't want to
spend big bucks for lunch, Verona is a nice alternative. Good sandwiches
and coffee in a pretty atmosphere.
- Torrefazione Italia
**½
419 University Ave, Palo Alto.
Yes, everything is five times as expensive in the South Bay, but they
do make good coffee. And notice how the motif on their latte cups matches
the tile on the tables. A good place to relax, talk, read, and observe
remarkable specimens from nearby Stanford University.