The Grind

Many people swear by it, the only downside is that the place is not very big but that is also part of the charm. The coffee rocks and the staff is super friendly. This is one of the hub of the downtown university area.

Excellent coffee at good prices, and freshly made breakfast sandwiches that were very good. Highly recommend this local spot.

Probably the best coffee and lattes in town. Food is delicious; highly recommend the Seawich sandwich for lunch. Great service. Definitely, definitely try the maple latte.

I’ve been coming to this place for about twelve years. At some point the ownership transferred to a guy who seemed a little high strung. I could tell that he and the people who worked there didn’t really like me that much - possibly for political reasons - but I kept going because the coffee and the food was good.

A couple of days ago I went in, ordered my usual sandwich and coffee, and sat down. When the sandwich arrived, one of the employees glared at me, threw my sandwich down hard on the table from four feet away, and stomped off. It made a loud noise - loud enough to make all the other customers in the room look up and stare at me. This was both very confusing and very embarrassing.

This particular guy had been rude to me in the past but this was well beyond anything I had previously experienced. I went up to the counter to ask if there was some sort of issue. At first he denied it, then started angrily accusing me of writing some sort of note in the “confession box” which they keep in the bathroom.

I have no idea what he was talking about, but apparently I was being blamed for something I didn’t do. I tried to explain I didn’t have anything to do with whatever they were talking about. The owner of the place - a very angry guy, as I’ve mentioned before - came up and started yelling at me and threatening to kick me out.

I told them I wanted a refund on account of the way I was being treated, and he told me to leave - refusing to give me a refund at the same time despite my repeated insistence. There was a little girl working there, maybe ten years old (OSHA violation?) - she actually started to try to give me a refund, and he stopped her. Instead, he just kept screaming crazy things like “I protect my own!” and "this is my house!" - the guy looked like he wanted to jump across the counter and slug me. He also kept screaming at me to "stop making that face at him" - I can only assume he meant the confused look I get on my face when someone's acting totally insane. He seemed to be upset that I was trying to bring the issue to his attention in front of his customers, but his employee had already made the situation very public by throwing food at me in front of other customers.

I didn’t get to eat my sandwich or drink my coffee, nor did my girlfriend. I’m filing a chargeback with my bank, but it’s stunning to me that I have to go through this added hassle to get a refund despite being thrown out of a place before I could touch my food.

I’d love to know what this mystery note said or why I was blamed for writing it. I asked several times, but they refused to tell me anything about it, let alone why they thought that I wrote it. So much for “the customer is always right!” - apparently it’s more like “the customer gets trays thrown at him and no one will tell him why.”

I strongly believe this whole thing was politically motivated - they’ve seen me in there with a MAGA hat on in the past, and I could tell they didn’t like it. I’m sorry if supporting my president offends you, but I shouldn’t be harassed for that at a place of business.

All in all it was a very bizarre, upsetting experience. I don’t recommend going here, and it’s a real shame because I used to love this place. Like I said at the start of this review, I’ve been going here for twelve years (and recently almost every morning!) - I’ve easily put thousands of dollars in coffee and sandwiches through this place. You’d think that would have at least earned me the benefit of the doubt, but apparently not.

EDIT: According to my bank it appears that they ended up giving me a refund before I could file the chargeback. I'm nonplussed as to why they told me they wouldn't and then did it anyway, but it seems proper to report this here. I still wouldn't recommend going here at all - since catching them on a bad day means you might get your food thrown at you.

Quintessential local coffee shop - friendly staff, know your name, and know your coffee. A small bit of Seattle, right off of High Street. Can be a bit crowded in the AM, but it's a good thing.

Great coffee. Amazing staff. The first time I went, they didn't take debit cards so they said I could just pay them back. What other business does that?? None that I know. Of course, I returned later with cash.

Came here for a breakfast sandwich. Ordered a bacon egg and cheese on a jalepeno cheddar bagel. The bagel is essentially a plain bagel and they shove 10 jalepeno rings in the center and then melt some cheese on top. So you get 2 bites that are all jalapeno when you get to the center. Also the first 3 or 4 bites I had no bacon. I finally opened the sandwich to see if there was actually bacon on it. There was 1 piece of bacon cut in half and also set in the center of the bagel. Flavor wise the sandwich was good but it could have been better if the bacon was evenly distributed and the bagel didnt just have a huge chunk of peppers in the center. I'll try this place again but order something different.

I loved their coffee! We couldn’t sit inside because they’re remodeling. Very friendly local coffee shop!

This is one of the best coffee shops in the area. It is locally owned and run. Coffee and food is top notch, and also very reasonable price wise.

We go for the sandwiches and are never disappointed! The staff is phenomenal, they take the extra time to make sure everything is right, and the food is delicious.