Drift Cafe Hanover Center

Mouth watering breakfast foods. Try the breakfast sandwich.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The food was surprisingly delicious. (Don't bother if you prefer boring and typical.) The host was superb. The three of us left happy and full.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 4

Coffee was decent if not a tad overpriced. Definitely more of a restaurant than cafe as it was way too loud inside to be able to read or do work

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 4

I really enjoy the coffee and açaí bowls. My favorite employee is Daisy she is kind and speedy with service, the coffees I ordered came out perfectly. Thank you Drift!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The last two times I’ve ordered through the mobile app, my meals arrived covered in scallions, even though scallions aren’t listed on the menu. On my most recent order, I specifically requested no scallions, yet the dish was still topped with them. Clearly, the orders are not being read, and for some reason ingredients not listed on the menu keep being added.

It’s a real shame, because I prefer to eat locally, but I can’t do so if my preferences aren’t respected. I won’t be ordering again.

Food: 1

Service: 1

Drift is fantastic! The menu is outstanding, and I've had dozens of 5-star experiences at both the Wrightsville Beach and Hanover Shopping Center locations. Today, I had another 5-star service experience, but there was one drawback: my favorite brunch item, the breakfast burrito, contained maybe a teaspoon of their delicious pulled pork. I’m being generous when I say teaspoon; the other half of the burrito was mostly egg, with just a couple of onions thrown in. No pull-pork.

Despite this issue, I’m still leaving a 5-star review because I know they will address it, likely due to new employee training. I also left a tip of over $14 because the server was fantastic and busy training a new staff member. The restaurant was packed, so I didn’t want to complain in the moment. I'll definitely be back and hope the portion issue is fixed.

Incredible food! Especially the breakfast burrito and the banana cocoa smoothie. Nice atmosphere.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Drift is one of my favorite spots to grab coffee, read, or knock out a project. The atmosphere is calm even when it’s busy, and the booths are perfect if you value a quiet space. They open at 7 AM, which is ideal for an early productivity boost.

The staff is always kind, and the cooks are consistent and food is delicious. The price and menu are on point. I love the breakfast burrito and passionfruit smoothie, and just tried their mocha for the first time—absolutely phenomenal.

Whether I’m there solo or meeting a friend, Drift stays in regular rotation for me. Quality food, great vibes, and a reliable place to land. Plus, they’re family friendly and have outdoor seating.

✅ Great early morning spot
✅ Quiet booths for working
✅ Delicious food & coffee
🎯 Favorites: mocha, burrito, passionfruit smoothie

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Shout out to Megan for being so proactive to offer an alternative for a drink I ordered online that was seasonal and she was unable to make. She went above and beyond to make sure I still got a yummy drink!

This next part is for the OWNERS!
PLEASE give this girl a raise, this level of hospitality is not something you come across often, and is a larger asset to your business than you may realize.

Whatever you’re paying your workers, you should increase it at least $2 to keep up with inflation. They should be making at MINIMUM $16-20 an hr. (Even that is low for this economy)

Let me be clear, you know what you’re doing, I’ve seen y’all in meetings with your software developers while I’m having lunch, I can tell you’re putting a lot of money into marketing, branding, and expanding your locations.

However!!! The backbone of how successful your cafes are comes down to your baristas and chefs. They are doing the hardest part with the lowest pay, and if you overlook this for too long, you’ll damage your reputation in the community, and will struggle to hire replacements. There’s already certain locations I wont go to bc the service is lower quality than the price I’m paying.

If there’s anything you take from this, I hope it’s that if you pay a livable wage, your employees will make you more money than your marketing ever will.

Beware of the menu deception. Ordered the savory pancakes with scrambled eggs instead of sunny side, bill comes with an extra $2.50 for scrambling an egg lol. Ask the waitress about it, “I’ve never seen that before” but proceeds to run the card anyway. In the words of admiral akbar, “It’s a trap”, a tourist trap. No wonder locals have moved to other beaches.

I love drift, but this location is now on my no-go list. I am vegetarian and gluten free and every. single. time. i order food with modifications from this location, the modifications are completely ignored and i am unable to eat my meal. The last time this happened I emailed through their mobile app to try and get a refund and just never heard anything back. I’ve never had an issue at any of the other locations so I’ll just have to drive further next time I want drift, which sucks because this location is basically right across the street from me.

Bright, attractive atmosphere for the hours they serve. Great service, excellent iced vanilla coffee and delicious yogurt bowl. This was my first visit to a Drift. I'll be back!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Tia was amazinggg! Definitely will be back :)

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Tia was so sweet and did some amazing service. I would totally go back!!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Came here just to try the matcha latte and unfortunately it was not very good. There was no sweetness at all making it hard to drink. But the vibes inside were great though! Great place to study and I’d love to come back and try the brunch menu!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 2

Service: 5