Portola Coffee Roasters

Best tasting coffee in OC (organic or washed). Their mocha latte (hot or cold) is what turned me away from SB. Temperature, taste (not chalky/powdery); silky, creamy, with a coffe espresso - balanced all round good coffee. Prices are comparable to other coffee chains.

Coffee was okay. The prices are for the local hipsters, i guess, $4 for a small cup of standard cappucino seems to much to me. "They roast their own beans", oh wow - still too expensive. The place can be overwhelmingly hip if you are not prepared and not used to that kind of vibe. I dropped by later in the evening and grabbed one of the leftover pastries - it tasted as if it was baked yesterday. Consider me too picky - I was just looking for something better than your average chainstore coffee - it was better, but still not my cup, haha.

My favorite OC coffee shop

This place used to be the place to go for the best coffee in town. Few years ago "Roaster of the year" award was totally deserved. But later something went wrong... They are trying to look different too hard... All "goodies" now look a little weird... Guys, you may target a very specific type of audience with your "grren tea croissants" ... but keep at least something traditional... Still good coffee though...

I love Portola coffee. I love the fact that they roast their own beans. Also, the people who work there are really nice. They take time to explain how they make coffee from the various machines and how to order it.

I have tried different coffee shops in OC, and this is by far the best coffee roasters. It is located in the OC Mix shopping center, next door to Pueblo, Shuck Oyster Bar and We Olive wine bar. These are all 5-star rated establishments.

Cool spot for being a food hall. Best part was that it wasn't overly pretentious, which is the kiss of death for types of places. Coffee was nice. Beware - serious coffee making taking place. hahaha. Price was on point. Can't really do laptop work for too long bc it feels like your in a Pier 1 imports/Whole foods. But the whole complex is fun for browsing.

I'm really sad to say that I won't be supporting this business any more. I was basically told that if I don't order from their set menu to go and buy my drink somewhere else. The man at the counter told me that their standards prohibited him from deviating since the way they prepare their drinks is perfection. I just wanted less milk on my latte but he couldn't do it because he didn't know if my drink will taste good, therefore lowering their standards :(

ou think you know how coffee tastes and then BAM: you're wrong. That's how I felt after this place. I came knowing what I wanted my coffee to taste like, and left wondering what all the other coffees taste like!

My first order was their nitro cold brew (not sure what beans were used) and some danish - ran me a good $9.50. I noticed everything had one price, so I'm not sure how their sizing works...they didn't ask me either for a size either. The cold brew was something else; something very interesting! It smelled like a soft chocolate liquid...but had a taste that was reminiscent of wine! It was crazy. The danish was good too, but didn't grab my attention like the coffee did.

I sat by the roasting machine trying to figure out all of the flavors inside my coffee by sniffing it, sipping it, and gently swishing it in my mouth like I was some coffee connoisseur. I never did quite get it and I probably should've just asked.

Before I left I ordered an espresso ($3 for a double-shot). This too was something like I've never had before! It was pretty acidic on the tongue and ended with a very brief bitter taste (as you would normally get with straight black coffee). I slowly sipped half of it, and shot back the other half. Interesting to say the least! This was made with their "Terra Incognita" beans. The bag is for sale and states: "the coffees in this blend change based on our current offerings", i.e., this time might taste different than the next!

They sell coffee making supplies and books on coffee making as well. Their bags run for roughly $13 to $22 (that's about the highest I remember).

Over the past year I've slowly gotten into coffees but this trip was eye-opening. I'll definitely be back and likely be leaving with a bag or two!

tl;dr = Kinda pricey, good for laptop-users, community/shared area, you might wait longer than other coffee joints, they roast their beans on site (literally to the right of the line), but in my opinion DEFINITELY worth a "shot"...get it? Like espresso shots? Hah.

Great spot for 'third wave' coffee. Excellent options, well roasted, and knowledgeable staff. Croissant was solid, not amazing, but I was there for coffee which was spot on. Plenty of space and free WiFi.