35 Best Coffee Shops in Santa Cruz

“What a gem! One might expect marginal coffee and pastries at the Shrine, as visitors don’t have much choice within walking distance. Not so!
I attended the 11:00am Mass and decided to try Shrine Coffee. Ordered a café au lait and almond croissant. Behold the croissant: over 6 inches in diameter and covered in tasty, fresh slivered almonds. Texture was excellent, the filling was generously portioned—and scrumptious. Almond flavour was wonderfully present in every bite. And the servers warmed it for me. I took 2/3 home. My coffee was a delicious roast with foamy, real, fresh milk, served in a generous, white cup with a saucer.
For this delicious treat, and tomorrow’s breakfast, I lovingly thank God, the Oblates and lovely staffers. Btw, the place was packed— so more than Mass attendees filled the seats outdoors and inside. Several had leashed dogs.
There’s also a gift shop adjacent where I bought two unique gifts. It had the loveliest attendant, the sweetest woman.
There are several benches around the statues in the adjacent garden, where I observed 14 bird species, including the lovely Hooded Oriole.
A 5-minute digression, directly across the street provided nice views of the pier, kelp beds, and the coast.“

“11th hour coffee is the best in town! Small batch quality direct trade coffee roasted with love. Happy to support a local growing business in the community.“

“A great place to hang out.“

“We rented bikes from specialized and needed a quick meal. This place is amazing. The sandwiches, the momos, the muffins, the chai tea .... everything was amazing. The owner couldn't have been nicer. We loved it so much we ate there the next day too when we rented bikes.“

“I don’t understand how an amazing coffee shop can, at there discretion, close there coffee shop at any time they want? Why would u treat loyal customers this way. Sometimes posted in Instagram, sometimes not. So inconsiderate of daily customers. Very disappointing to walk all the way there, excited for my greeting from the staff and my great latte, only to find a note on the door, closed at 11:30? How can u feel good about people showing up and not open and it isn’t even close to 3:00? Confusing to me how everything else but this one issue can be perfect?“

“Visited today Eli at Cat & Cloud Coffee at Westside - A must dop by at one of their four locations when wanting to sip a great Espresso in Santa Cruz!“

“11th hour coffee is the best in town! Small batch quality direct trade coffee roasted with love. Happy to support a local growing business in the community.“

“Favorite roaster around! Haven't had a bag of beans I don't like. Currently on a kick of pulling shots and making lattes with After Party. Super thick crema and great tasting notes. Don't see myself changing up from Cat & Cloud anytime soon!“

“i have only drank a cup of coffee made from your beans. enjoyed it and would recommend it to others. looking forward to visiting warehoue“

“Nice to sit and read a 📖. 💕“

“Try the breakfast sandwich. 😋“

“This is my favorite coffee spot in Santa Cruz county. Peoples coffee has a Friendly staff and great atmosphere. The baristas here won’t let you down.“

“This is always my goto coffee shop when in Santa Cruz. The Americano (or any other coffee we get) is always on point. The bagels... Ohhhhh the bagels. You have to try for yourself but they are always fresh and amazing. Go check it out! You will not regret it.“

“I gave it a 10 Olof u are from sc and n really went through the struggle N.A you know the place across the way wasn’t even there yet ol scool thing .. Madriz B“

“Wonderful coffee shop by the beach in Santa Cruz :) The baristas were very knowledgeable and were able to answer our questions about different coffee beans. Overall we had a great experience!“

“Best Philly Cheesesteak west of the Mississippi! They rock!!! Try an Apple Fritter too. They are killer!!!“

“Great coffee and great vibe. Bought a pound of their Santa Cruz Dark beans to take home to Tahoe“

“The coffee beans from Hidden Fortress are the freshest and make the most delicious coffee I've ever tasted! I have started drinking my coffee black since switching to Hidden Fortress! As far as the drinks go? Well worth the wait for the best latte in town!“

“This is always my goto coffee shop when in Santa Cruz. The Americano (or any other coffee we get) is always on point. The bagels... Ohhhhh the bagels. You have to try for yourself but they are always fresh and amazing. Go check it out! You will not regret it.“

“It was such a lovely spot to take a quick break and have an iced soy latte, Vietnamese Iced Coffee, and yummy croissant sandwiches. When you're at UCSC and in the thick of hustle and bustle, take a 15-minute break to recharge your battery.“

“Toasted marshmallow topper 👍🏽“

“the baristas always go beyond there’s duty’s, they are so friendly , And the place always clean.“

“can’t speak to the food, but I got a yummy hot chocolate. barista was lovely, and I was able to sit at the nearby picnic table with my pup while my windshield was taken care of down the street. there’s a few places to sit, but this is definitely a “grab it and go” location“

“It's a place to meet the neighbors.“

“Enjoy chocolate undertones in your coffee bean? Check out the light roast Nicaraguan or the medium roast Moka Java shown in photo here.Staff here are always attentive and helpful. Get the benefits of coffee experts who can speak to the nuances in their beans. They have a great deal of expertise above what you would probably find in a coffee place staffed by students.Oh, and Java Bob's accepts Apple Pay!Pro tips: coffee is best when ground and served between three and 10 days after resting has completed. By small quantities regularly to retain the highest amount of flavor. That's one of the secrets the coffee shops make use of.“

“Nice local spot with a rotating seasonal drinks menu throughout the year. I like it there enough that almost every time I go do laundry across the street, I come here for the morning brew. They serve fairly good smoothies and teas as well, with pastries, bagels and other food items to purchase. The place does tend to get quite warm as I’m assuming they don’t have any AC and the fans they have are more decoration than function. Also hope you come when it’s not too busy as they seem to be short staffed so any sort of influx can cause you to wait up to 20 minutes for a cup of coffee.“

“The crew is very friendly. It was my first time there but sure it will not be the last 😃“

“I absolutely despise this place! NOT BECAUSE THE DOZEN GLAZED I GOT WAS BAD.....BUT BECAUSE WE DONT HAVE THIS PLACE BACK EAST AND I WAS RAISED ON DUNKIN DONUTS....I WAS TOLD IT WAS THE BEST! THEY LIED TO ME! I HAD NO IDEA SUCH A GLAZED DONUT EXISTED. WHEN I WALKED IN THERE AT 0544 AND SAW THE DONUTS IN THE DISPLAY CASE THE GATES OF HEAVEN OPENED AND THE ANGELS SANG! THE SERVICE WAS FRIENDLY GENUINELY FRIENDLY NOT THAT SCRIPTED STANDARD FORMALITIES CRAP. 💪🏾🤎🥰“

“Only coffee shop opened on New Year's day morning. We over whelmed barista with three bagel and three coffee order. Thank you for your gracious service. Quality was top and bagel with lox and cucumber was really great. Good coffee as well.“

“Semi-Retired guy seeks best donuts in Santa Cruz tops wins for watsonville and possibly for the county. albrights came in a close second but on that day the cake part which was perfect separated from the icing which was brittle. I think it's a temperature thing but I don't understand it top would be dunlapse been there a couple times since get there before 6:00 for the maple bars. they are incredible“

“tasty coffee, great ambiance, friendly staff and easy to find location 🙃“

“The best period. This cafe never fails to exceed my expectations. A mix of consistency and quality ingredients make Stevenson cafe the best place to eat on campus, possibly in all of santa cruz. Your wallet will also be happy as their signature sandwiches are a little over 5 dollar. I have been going here for almost four years and will continue to be a loyal customer, thank you.“

“I frequent this coffee shop weekly on my way to work in the morning. The employees are always super friendly even while working fast to get all of us to work on time. When the drive-thru line is long they even send someone out to start taking orders and often it is ready by the time you get to the window. Delicious iced coffee at a very reasonable price as well! I love the cardamom and cardamom rose syrups. I also really love the vegan scones. The coconut scone is my favorite, but I got the pumpkin scone today and it is SOOOOO good. Thank you LuLu's and staff!“

“tea tea tea puer puer puer puer real deal, no electronic devices human devices. analog music.“