Exploring the Bay Area

Espresso Roma Cafe Open daily from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm, this cafe is a great place to start your day or stop by and grab a bite. There is an impressive coffee menu and an impressive food menu. It is a cross between a coffee shop and a casual dining restaurant.   When you walk in, you might be overwhelmed by the number of options, which include eggs, sandwiches, soups, burgers, breakfast burritos, and salads as well as a variety of coffee and tea options. They also have a juice bar and an assortment of sodas.  When you finally choose, you can place your order at the counter, where they will ring you up and accept your payment. They will either prepare your order on the spot or give you a number to put on you table. After that, you can be seated. This cafe has lots of seating. The majority of the seating is outdoors, most of which is under a veranda. There is also a small lounge and eating area inside. The vanilla latte (pictured above) was fabulous. The coffee flavor was deep a...

Way Station Brew Way Station Brew is a dark and mysterious restaurant, cafe, and beer garden. It is decorated in dark colors and dimly lit, with jazzy instrumentals playing in the background. Half the walls are dark red exposed brick; the other half are painted a dark teal that seems to absorb the light, leaving the room with a dark appearance. There are two black leather sofas, a black leather booth running along one wall, and several black leather bar stools, some at the high-top tables and some along the bar. Both of the long walls are adorned with bright, colorful, modern art displayed on them, adding some childish personality to this mysterious den.  The door opens to Dwight Avenue. The storefront has windows that overlook the street. Upon entry, you will see a piano pushed up against one of the walls, and beyond it, a lounge area, and even beyond that,  a small bar.  Behind the bar, you will see an espresso station that extends for the length of the restaurant on t...

  Gold Bean Cafe Gold Bean Cafe is a great environment to sit and work. The wifi is free, fast, and reliable. People tend to talk quietly or sit alone working on their own projects. The speakers play pleasant Latin pop at a medium volume that I found actually helped me focus on my own work on my computer.  The entire cafe has a clean and modern feel. The black and white design is simple yet elegant. It is not a large cafe, but it has an ample amount of seating indoors and outdoors. The outdoor seats have some nice umbrellas to guard them from the sun. When I came in, I studied the menu, which is displayed on the screens above the counter. This cafe serves some interesting breakfast options, like breakfast sandwiches, bagels, and avocado toast. For lunch, they serve a variety of sandwich and panini options. They even had some delicious-looking fruit smoothies, juice, and lemonade, as well as some pastries on display in the glass case on the counter.  But their specialty wa...

Olympus Caffe and Bakery Nestled in downtown Mountain View on Castro Street is one of the Bay Area's best kept secrets: Olympus Caffe and Bakery, the Turkish- and Greek-inspired Mediterranean cafe. This restaurant serves fascinating Mediterranean dishes alongside dishes that are more common in this culture, ensuring that there is something for everyone. This is a sit-down restaurant where you order and pay at the counter, and then they give you a number to take with you to your table. When the food is ready, they will bring it to you. There are some tables indoors and some outdoors; you can pick what you prefer. If you sit outdoors, you may witness some live music or other entertainment on Castro Street.  One of their main specialties is their espresso bar. They have a wonderfully extensive selection of coffee and tea beverages, including lattes, mochas, and americanos, some hot and some iced. Unique to this shop are the options of Turkish coffee and Turkish tea. Every time I drin...

Berkeley Espresso Berkeley Espresso is a nice place to stay for a while. The coffee shop is painted in warm, soothing tones. The windows let sunlight in and allow visitors to watch the normal action outside in downtown Berkeley. The speakers play comforting classical favorites at a low volume. They even have free wifi and half-price refills. Berkeley Espresso provides quite a few options when it comes to espresso drinks. They have lattes, white and regular mochas, cafe au laits, capuccinos, americanos, and espressos. All of these can be made with your choice of milk or sweetening syrup.  I have personally tried a vanilla syrup latte, a mocha, and a white mocha. Each time, I found myself very satisfied with the flavor. The underlying coffee flavor was only a tad intense, not too intense but certainly not bland. The added flavoring gave the drink character and intrigue.  The menu doesn't stop there. It also has other coffee and tea beverages. There is also an organic house blen...

Coupa Cafe Coupa Cafe is famous in the South Bay for being a cross between a quality coffee shop and a proper sit-down restaurant. Coupa Cafe proudly serves coffee, pastries, smoothies, desserts, and full-fledged breakfast options alongside salads, crepes, paninis, wraps, and burgers. It delivers expertly-made food and drink items for an inexpensive price and welcomes guests to use the tables for as long as they like, There's a lot I could say about this restaurant, but simply put, it is a fantastic place to choose to visit. The food and beverages are yummy. The prices are competitive. Their tables make a great place to eat, drink, or meet, and Coupa is a restaurant that does its best for the community and the environment. It's even part of the South Bay culture by now, a place favorited by Silicon Valley executives and common folks as well.  Coupa Cafe has been family owned since 2004 and is a shop bursting with personality. They take real pride in what they do, as they serve...

Peet's Coffee Peet's Coffee is a national chain with a real stronghold in the Bay Area. I debated whether to review it on my blog about the Bay Area, but ultimately decided that Peet's is an integral part of the Bay Area's coffee culture.  Peet's is a chain that residents of the Bay Area frequent because it has consistent quality you can count on for a price you can afford. Peet's can corner the market on a simple yet winning formula for making espresso drinks and small bites. The beverages are handcrafted by carefully trained baristas, yet elegantly simple in their recipes; the coffee tastes like what you would expect a good cup of coffee to taste like. You can customize your Peet's experience, but in the end, you will end up with a finished product with the signature Peet's taste, a very typical but yummy blend.  The pastry selection is what you would expect to see at a coffee shop. Everything is baked properly with an emphasis on appearance and taste...

Homemade Cafe The Homemade Cafe is a small, charming, no-frills American diner in Berkeley where the food is simple and indulgent, reminiscent of old-fashioned Southern hospitality. Sitting at one of its tables, you can bite into the food, close your eyes, listen to the chatter of the other patrons and the clanking in the kitchen, and forget that you are, in fact, in an urban area in California; the vibes of a traditional small-town country eatery are that strong. It's not what you expect in this area, and yet it has a loyal following that keeps coming back for more. In my opinion, the members of this following have discovered something very valuable: a perfect homey cafe to dine in!  The menu is posted on the door on the way in. You will see a variety of dishes offered for relatively low prices. The Homemade Cafe has appealing sandwiches and salads, all made in that signature American country style. But the specialty is breakfast: eggs, waffles, pancakes, French toast, bagels, and...

Philz Coffee Philz Coffee is a San Francisco-based coffee chain where you can customize your cup, choosing your ideal amount of creaminess and sweetness. They use high-quality, sustainably-sourced coffee beans, and handcraft each beverage to perfection.  Philz Coffee is a nice place to bring your laptop and work. It is quiet, and the coffee, hot chocolate, and pastries are top-notch.  They also have free wifi.  It is a coffee shop that exceeds your expectations for a coffee shop. The coffee is not just an average cup; it is an experience of taste, texture, and smell, made just to your liking. The flavors are original and unique; the end product is something so much better than you expect from a typical cup of coffee. The pastries are also notable; they are high-quality, delicious treats that you will be glad you tried. Go ahead, give it a try!