Coal Yard Cafe

Coffee review only: Really good espresso drinks. Had a double espresso and a skim latte. Both solid. One suggestion if I may: if you don’t serve the double in a large paper cup that’d be nice, but it’s a minor critique as the coffees were good.

This is a quaint, little cafe. Nice decor and a casual, student-friendly vibe. A range of health-savvy options, such as natural nondairy options, etc. The chef was knowledgeable about gluten free requirements. I got the gluten free rice bowl, with spiced pork, avocado, carrots, cucumber, and a fried egg on top. Tasty and visually appealing. My friend got the regular El Cubano. It was cheesy and toasty and really good, he said. Quality food and I felt confident in their promise to accommodate my dietary needs. Would go again!

Great spot for a quick breakfast or lunch or just a coffee on the way to campus! They do get busy on Weekends and holidays, with waits occasionally getting up to 30-45 minutes, but I think that just speaks to their popularity around East Ithaca.
Staff is friendly, food is great, and the decor is cozy and authentically historic

Hubby and I brought our daughter and her roommates here for lunch. It was a cold day and had to sit at the picnic table outside because there is VERY little seating inside. Staff is friendly but overworked, looking for help. Food was delicious and affordable . We'll definitely go back on a warm day

I was excited to try the food, however upon arrival with my family I found that the place is closed. It will be closed for two weeks but they didn’t update their hours on google.

We had the breakfast croissant and ranch eggs, both delicious! The coffee was really good too

I think it's overrated.
The whole ordering and paying procedure could be better organized. You can go ahead and choose your table, but there are no signs telling which tables have been cleaned. There is no boards or LCDs at the ordering section to easily have access to the menu and once I asked for a menu the staff didn't have one to hand me, and was like go pick it up from there! I think it was a little rude and disorganized. Then I asked to pay for my friends and they said "yeah, I got their order, you can pay at the end" then I realized one of my friends was charged separately and they had forgotten to write down my other friend's order.
The food was average. Omlet was not that tasty, and the bread was either not toasted at all or it was hard to notice.
I was excited to find a good place for breakfast or brunch in Ithaca and I was disappointed.

The food here was phenomenal! Our group went here for a late breakfast after a wine tour and we were all super impressed. They had something for everyone and everything we tried was delicious!

Still wondering why we were charged $3.5 for $2 coffee. Seems the old proprietor is a capitalist thief.

Great aesthetic with unique takes on breakfast classics and a few unique dishes overall. Lost a star in my mind today when I tried their lunch for the first time. Ordered a Cuban sandwich - the meat and cheese was great, but it was made without any pickles or mustard… I checked back on the menu and apparently that’s the way they do it - but when I asked for a side of pickles and mustard they didn’t have any. A Cuban sandwich is literally six ingredients; why they wouldn’t even bother stocking the two cheapest ones is beyond me.