I can’t, for the life of me, ever say this store’s name correctly. My friends have been going here for years and I have tried it a few times in the past, but I decided to do a review for the site recently. As a disclaimer, Cafe Delmarette seems to be more of a food/lunch place than a coffee shop. However, since they use high end equipment like the GS3 and Verve coffee, they are making a serious attempt at the coffee world.

I heard that the owner of Delmarette has two stores and one of them used a Synesso they got through Lulus. I knew the Pacific store used a La Marzocco, so we stopped in to ask about the other location. After some confusion, we were told there was only one Delmarette (which is true) and decided to stay. I was immediately thrown off. The vibe in the place was strange, a little off-putting, and hit me right in the face when I walked in. There were about five people behind the counter and it though felt busy, there was not a lot of traffic in or out of the store. Too much was going on in such a small space. It was, however, well designed aesthetically, just a little crampt inside.

The guy who took my order was really impersonal, as were the rest of the staff during our stay. One of the baristas actually gave me the cold shoulder when I asked to take photos, begrudgingly telling me it was alright. Even though I had not said I was there to review or that I was even into coffee (or a snob), the atmosphere just felt cold and unfriendly from the second we walked in. As far as I was concerned, I was just a regular customer, which was why I was so surprised by their attitude. That being said, the patio out front was an amazing feature. I could sit there for hours reading, people watching, or just chatting my friends. They snatched up some prime real estate on their section of Pacific. It is attractive, spacious, and has a good view of the street.

The cap I got had highs and lows. The milk was very smooth but way too hot. I let it sit for 4 minutes and it was still uncomfortable to drink. Steaming to 130-140 allows you to drink it right away, but this thing was atleast 160. Over steaming the milk also created really big bubbles and a lot of foam. The foam was almost totally separated from the milk and not smooth enough to create well definied art, though that is just a cosmetic issue. Domino effect. The espresso was not very well balanced with the milk, too much espresso and a bit of an odd flavor. Delmarette uses Verve coffee and I am guessing they used Sermon. All of these elements of the drink did not flow together well and felt unbalanced. However, the milk held up suprisingly well for how foamy it was initially. Though it was well presented on a saucer with a spoon and made on very good equipment, I was underwhelmed by the cap. It was, however, incredibly well priced and I guess I got what I paid for.

I enjoyed the smells coming out of the shop. The food looked great and honestly, I think they are far more focused on the food aspect of the cafe. It generally doesn’t feel like a coffee shop or bar, definitely more of a lunch eatery. As we were leaving and said bye to the staff, one out of the five guys turned to us and gave us kind of a half nod, then went back to cashering. I was pretty bummed out by what felt like “coffee attitude,” and for a place that boasts high end coffee service I was disappointed. However, again, this is not a review of Delmarette as a restaurant. But, I am not really excited about coming back to eat since this was not the first time I experienced a lot of ego from their staff.

I liked:

• The location
• The outside seating
• The price of my cap