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Categories: Coffee & Tea, American (New) [Edit]
Neighborhood: Nob HillMon-Fri. 6:30 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun. 7:30 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
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Sure sure, they have standard coffee house with kitchen food. Eggs, bagels and all that nonsense. Blah blah tea and coffee. They make a mean pb&j bagel too.
But they also have one thing many'a coffee/breakfast spot are lacking. Vegan cookies and most importantly PIE!
Yes, vegan pie. The staff are polite and quick... polite and quick about serving me vegan pie!
A regular haunt, Quetzal is a no-nonsense place. I never fret when I lose internet connection: it's just another great opportunity to go grab a mocha at Quetzal. I wouldn't call their staff "rude" at all: they're polite and they answer all my questions. Do you want good coffee from your barista or a hug? They're busy, yeah, but just tell them you need more time to think, if you're not ready. The cappuccino is good and potent, the chai is sweet and boxed, lackluster. They do the mocha best, especially if you sit in - it's kind of gritty and dark, packs a whollop. I made the mistake of having two, one day, and went through the roof, hands shaking, talking in tongues. One large coffee is plenty, especially if you tack on another shot, which I usually do.
That, and their daily internet passwords are funny and sometimes oddly relevant to the day's news event.
I love this cafe. I love it so much that I drive there all the way from 21st and Geary just to do my homework and use their wifi. I've never tried the food, it looks good but a little on the expensive side. Their hot chocolate isn't too impressive and their tiny cup of fruit costs $5.
But other than that, they have many tables to choose from if you need to get work done. And all of the tables have outlets underneath them to plug your laptop into which means you can sit there for hours without your battery dying. They're open til 10 if you have to study late at night for a midterm the next day, and the staff is always amazingly friendly. Oh, and they also take credit cards, which is always a plus in my book.
Lovely coffee and nice atmosphere. Good to work here I imagine if you are looking for internet cafes.
I really like this cafe. There are a lot of tables (that are cleaned regularly), their tea is delicious and well-priced, the staff is nice, it's relatively quiet, they take credit cards and don't have some irritating minimum purchase amount, they have free wi-fi, and they're open relatively late. What's not to like?
Next time I have a long stint of working from home, this will be the place I go to get some work done and get out of the house.
This coffee shop is the closest place to my apartment to get really good, fair trade organic coffee. I can't recommend any other drinks or food, but they definitely have a big selection of espresso, tea, smoothies and pastries. They also have pretty adequate out-door seating and free wi-fi.
The staff is so rude, however. I've discovered they seem better later in the day, and are a little worse in the morning. There is a middle-aged man who works here who is very friendly, but everyone else (who is under 30) has a serious attitude. They rush you through your order, and usually seem annoyed by you. They have a points system where you tell them your phone number and once you spend $12 you get a free drink or something. However, every time I'm here I feel so rushed by the staff that I never even mention it, because surely that will irritate them more. I've been here several times for take-out coffee, so this is an impression I've been given many times.
I want to love this place, and I do enjoy the coffee. The cafe itself is cute so you want to like the ambiance, but the employees make it an always awkward experience.
While I was without internet and looking for a job, this was the best place to come for a big cup of coffee and a slice of pie with my free wi fi. I love that I can hang around all day without being bothered to move on (I am polite enough to get a refill or order something every couple hours).
The prices are pretty high, but for what they offer and the portions, it's reasonable. The last time I was in I got a 12 dollar salad and paid extra to add chicken, only to receive the wrong salad (which was cheaper) with about 5 slices of chicken. Ce la vie.
If you need a place to study, this is a very good option. Lots of good-sized tables, sufficiently spaced apart, offer enough privacy and quiet to get some work done. In fact, when I went there, most of the tables had only one occupant and a laptop. If you don't want to bring your laptop, there are nice apple computers - lots and lots of them - that you can rent.
I got iced macchiato and a cookie - didn't like them. The drink was too sweet, and the cookie was a joke and tasted old. So 3 stars for giving a good study place, but no star for the food. (There's a huge menu though, so I might just have tried the wrong choices on the menu.)
I have been planning to come here for the longest time after hearing about their wifi connection, organic coffee, excellent macaroons and coffee cake. I finally brought my friend David N. here for a visit this afternoon.
Ambiance and Service: I was so excited when I finally made my way here. The interior was slick colorful with shades of upbeat yellow and soothing orange to compliment plenty of nice looking plants. Initially I wanted to add this cafe to my regular line up of places to hang out, but my experience turned out sour and disappointing. While I was actively looking to find their macaroons and coffee cake which they later told me they had ran out, their male servers were very rude and impatient. One of them became very upset with me when I was in the process of choosing my drink, and rather than helping me with an introduction with what was good here, he stood there looking annoyed. The nice female server had to calm him down and made some suggestions which I thought was helpful.
Dessert and Drink: I thought her recommended mixed fruit pie was solid, but the iced soy mocha was not well made at all. The drink was culminated by un-dissolved chocolate powder clumped at the bottom like a landfill that prompted a rough grainy finish. In retrospect, these alternative desserts along with the poor service were not enough to dissuade my disappointment for missing out on the two things I came for, the macaroons and coffee cake.
Wifi: Contrary to Neil S. and Kristine W's reviews, their internet was not free during my visit, but 16 cents per minute according to their staff. As soon as that was said, I realized that I really don't have a purpose for being here so decided to pack up my laptop and quickly made my exit.
What a waste of time and effort! Contrary to other reviews, my visit was stressful and unpleasant. I won't be going out of my way to come here again.
I "discovered" (meaning I walked past it last night and noticed it for the first time) this place last night on my way to my new found obsession--pho at Pho Vietnam.
The good:
++ The décor = industrial meets vibrant latin influence. Tons of potted plants. Natural light. Immaculate, yet warm.
++ Pretty huge menu--drinks and foods.
++ The place is big enough for you to feel comfortable sitting here for hours w/ one drink. It's seriously feels like a restaurant.
++ FREE and FAST WI-FI! They also have a row of iMacs for public use as well--FANCY!
++ LOTS of power outlets! Hooray!
++ Friendly staff
The bad:
-- Pretty pricey--a pot of tea cost me ~$5-6. Food = sandwiches, brekkie foods, and salads will run you ~$7-10 . Smoothies and shakes ~$5.
-- The bathrooms--they have to buzz you in (no bueno for someone like me, who pees a lot in general).
Mami like!
I echo what everyone else said.
Pros: Free WiFi
Friendly Staff (they don't bug you even if you hang out there for several hours)
Good Healthy Food (good portion size)
Supports going green and other good causes (like Viv)
Cons: A bit pricey (perhaps not as bad if you are a frequent club member)
location (being an out of towner, you need to happen to be in that area)
Overall - a solid place to kill some time or to chill w/ some friends
(See pics)
I was recommended to this place from a few folks who also frequent Caffe Roma. Takes one to know one!
They have a fantastic selection of coffee, smoothies, iced drinks, a good selection of hot and cold sandwiches, soup and salad, pizza and an attractive selection cakes including Hungarian Coffee cake, almond plum cakes, etc. etc.
I came here around 5-ish pm to have my brunch and had the Randy Baby (chicken breast and turkey with Jack cheese and a side salad) and a Caramel Latte. I picked the food because I know a Randy who is very cool! Good food and very filling. The coffee was impressive.
Really glad to find a cafe with a strip of electrical outlets along the bench with pretty good wifi!! It's a fantastic place to do work on their sizable tables and very background style music. People over there are friendly and relaxed.
It would be so easy to sit here, eat and work all day!
The first time I came here was probably a year ago. This is a dicey neighborhood by day, so imagine what happens at night. Polk Street, while safe if you're north of California, becomes progessively seedier as you wade south of the California Street sign...so be careful.
Warnings aside, this place has good coffee and plenty of natural light. One thing I love is that there are power strips attached to the chairs against the walls. Brilliant idea for people who need to charge their laptop. And phone. And headset. And second phone. And camcorder. You think I'm joking but you could power a village in Asia with the plugs here.
The tables are a bit crowded here, but that was my only complaint. Never tried the internet here or the computers, but rumor has it that the wifi is free. Sounds good to me!
love to come here and spend a day to do work or have serious concentration.
Done it twice thus far but warning that it DOES get busy quickly. and fairly hot if you sit near the windows on a nice day.
They've got a nice arrange of drinks/foods (pretty good price, food's a little more expensive for what it is)
Free internet as long as you buy something, password changes daily...just ask one of the workers/cashiers
During finals this was my second home... and they took DAMNED good care of me. I became a frequent buyer member, and almost every day, I got a dollar off what I ordered; a good perk for many days of stressful crunch-time.
The coffee is so good, and the chamomile tea is even better - the best. I never even liked chamomile tea before I tried it here while coming down off WAY too much coffee.
The muffins are surprisingly good. I always think of muffins as greasy or dry and as a precursor to an unsettled stomach but these are homemade with organic, high quality ingredients. They're not too sweet and they are MOIST, like cake, almost. The muffins were a lovely find.
The veggie bagel is such a good deal for lunch. It's truly filling. It's around $5 or $6. They give you a plate with avocado, cream cheese, cucumber, sun dried tomatoes, regular tomatoes, olives, onions etc. and your toasted organic bagel so you can build it the way you like; it's genius!
They also get extra bonus points for their free WiFi and for the good grades that I got on my term papers written at Quetzal. Oh , AND their printer has saved my a$$ sooo many times.
LoveLoveLove
The coffee is good, fair trade, organic coffee; I like to support this type of business. Quetzal is… Read more »
This place seems like it has a good vibe, but I was just getting some things to go and I felt that the service was just so iffy. I was ready to order and the guy kept skipping over me and letting others interrupt us. The cashier was in a mood that can only be described as bitchy. And if he wants to use the bitchy attitude towards me, go for it. I won't be coming back.
Even if the chocolate cheesecake made my fat cry in happiness.
This place is good for coffee. This place is good for free internet with your own laptop. This place costs like 10 cents per minute if you use there computers. The pastries are pretty good as well. My friends who are internet cafe users don't like that they have a password that changes daily. I guess they feel guilty for getting the password and not buying something. Some how I always going to this place on those days that there are festivals and I've been day drinking...Thanks Quetzal!
Boy have i been missing out....I've lived 1 block away from this place for over a year and didnt try this cafe til a month ago!
When it comes to what i need from a cafe, Quetzal has all the essentials:
--plenty of space and light
--neighborly and unpretentious atmosphere
--good (organic) coffee
--free and fast internet
--lots of power outlets
--good and mellow music
--open late (10pm!!)
Cute tidbits:
-They have cute passwords of the day that makes you feel in the know. It disgustingly gloomy outside today, so the password is "sunshine." sweet irony.
-Regulars are assigned a customer code. Mention it when you order and get $1 off every $12 you spend
For a person with ADD tendencies, it says a lot that a cafe has the conducive environment to let me get things done. It's just the right amount of music and company, without the disruption of loud steamers and shouting of orders being ready.
So grateful I am to have found this place that as soon as got settled into Quetzal today, i hopped on yelp to give it a well deserve 5 stars :).
Socially conscious internet cafe in seedy neighborhood = Quetzal.
I'm a big fan of this place because: it's huge, has lots of light, offers an array of drinks, snacks and foods, has ample seating, lots of outlets and free internet. Did I just score on the cafe hunt? Sweet.
Can't really complain about the place because it really does offer a very convenient and conduce working environment. It's very clean and for the most part, people's conversations are kept to a low whisper. They also don't have an overly loud or annoying soundtrack playing in the background which is clutch.
Add-ons/enhancers for their smoothes:
flax seed oil
spinach
ice cream
I've been to Quetzal many times and as far as I know, this place seems to attract mellow and unpretentious people in general. For me it's a nice place to sit back, enjoy a hot cup of Latte and just have a nice quiet moment.
What made me write a review for this place is the food I ate the other night. (I hadn't eaten any food here in recent years.) I was in the neighborhood and looking for a place to have quick dinner. I decided to try Quetzal and ordered their Smoked Turkey Melt. I was expecting something mediocre, so I was pleasantly surprised.
The sandwich was served on Focaccia bread. No one ingredient or condiment overpowered the other, so I could enjoy the fresh taste of each ingredient, including smoked turkey, Swiss cheese, avocado, tomato and romaine lettuce. What was even better is the green salad that came with it. It was fresh and their house vinaigrette dressing was amazing. I don't usually make such a big deal out of salad dressings, but I kind of fell in love with their pink-colored raspberry vinaigrette. The plate was under $10.
Turkey Melt with Salad: 4 stars
Coffe/Latte: 3-4 stars
Service: 3-4 stars
Thanks, Quetzal, for staying in business in this neighborhood for all these years.
Convenient location, open till 10pm, wifi...
I've had the food a couple of times, had a soup that was pretty decent once, but generally, people don't go here for the food, or the atmosphere, mostly for the internet.
It is large and usually pretty easy to find a good spot to camp out at, and the wireless isn't that fast, but it will do....
i really like quetzal.
i have only actually eaten here once properly -- i had a gigantic amazing sandwich on fresh ciabatta with crisp greens and zingy sauce. as a frequenter of this place, i have seen a lot of the food come out to other people which makes me really excited about trying their pizza and some of their breakfast sandwiches (this one guy got this amazing thing that looked like a mix of eggs benedict and an open-faced sandwich)!
i come here often for coffee, hot chocolate and relaxing. every time, everyone has been exceedingly helpful. they also have a frequent buyer club which saves you 10% if you are a loyal customer. :)
free wifi. macs with internet access.
food is a tad pricey for me, but it's definitely tasty.
nice ambiance, plenty of seating, lots of outlets.
solid 4 stars.
I think Quetzal smells funny.
And it's not a funny smell that you can't stop smelling. It's a funny smell that you don't want to smell anymore. Maybe it's just me, but I have smelly issues. Not with myself, of course!
Other than that though, this place is pretty cool. They have computers you can use, even though most of the people who frequent the place probably bring their own computers. The pastries aren't bad. I think I've had something similar to an apple danish. They also have smoothies (YUM!), sodas, and alcohol. The workers are all pretty nice too.
This place is a one stop shop. You can even stock up on your South American cultural clothing if it suits your fancy, although I'm pretty sure all of those garments have been hanging up on the walls for a while....
Great place for caffeine and non caffeine beverages. Friendly staff and free WiFi makes this place one of my favorite neighborhood cafes. Glad to know too the they support fair trade business practice.
My husband and I have been to Quetzal many times for breakfast, on mornings where we wanted to spend time with our laptops. We were big fans at first, also the loyalty program sounded really good, until I started asking for the receipt and saw that they often tried to over charge us. So the 1 USD payback that you get is only just to make you feel good, as you pay more when they charge you the wrong price.
At first, they were really friendly too, that was early 2007, but then a new guy started there and he has this slight arrogance about him that i don't like.
The food is decent and the wifi is free but since it's not the coziest place in the world and the servers got less friendly and more arrogant, we hardly come here any more.
I have to mention their fruit smoothies though, which are great. You can get them to go, so no worries ;)
I wandered into this industrial-chic cafe after dropping off my City Car Share jalopy in the adjacent garage. The barista/cashier was super-friendly and made me my non-fat chai latte with a smile on her face. The chai itself was way too sweet for my liking (nobody can beat Peet's), but it was nice to check out someplace different. Tons of space for WiFi users and lingering chatterers. I fell under neither category, so drank my tea and split. Interesting joint.
If you've been to one internet cafe, you've been here. I do like that there are lap tops for you to use and the bolted down plastic covers are nice.
There pricie, and theres a over all dark feel about the place. It might have been me, but it was a HOT Sunny day in SF.....
They have your usual coffee house drinks and some treats to snack on. The staff was nice and seemed to like there job, which is some times hard to find in retail.
I couldn't get work done here
but I have a hard time getting work done anywhere away from work
I could however sit outside and easily kill an hour with a hot cup of tasty coffee on a dull grey day (see I dont just hang out at bars)
The staff was really friendly and helpful
the place was really nice and lunch looked good too
only negative was the terribly boring woman behind me who kept going on and on about her scooter but I suppose that's not their fault
Enough of the petty complaints you whiners. This is probably the most solid, clean and extensive internet cafe you'll be able to find in the city. Full Apple iMac bar for those without their systems. Lots of nooks for tackling work or just being in your own space.
Considering it's in the pocket of Polk in between Bush and Geary, would give it even more stars for having such a full capacity of engaging people -- on a Monday night.
Solid food all around and reasonable prices. Great cafe menu and drink options for all ages. Fair trade products, responsibly sourced coffee. Nice to have a tribute to the Quetzal as well. We've always had a great experience with the staff here, so I am guessing the complaining visitors are as peculiar as their reviews.
I love that I have this place to go to everyday on my lunch break. The coffee, smoothies, food, and staff are great! I have been going here nearly everyday Monday through Friday for the past 3 years. I am always welcomed by name, mainly by the owner Wayne and Gaspar.
They are very accommodating, if there aren't enough table outside to sit and eat your food, before you can ask they are right beyond you with a table and chairs, amazing service.
They have Mac's available to use with printing behind the counter safe to be picked up when you are done. The ambiance if very nice with music that reminds me of my traveling days.
Great place, great coffee!
Date & Time: Sunday October 12, 2008 @ 1:30pm
Company: Michael & Jack
Crowd: Colorful Neighborhood Peeps Most on Laptops
Vibe: Chill
Decor: Order @ Counter. Tightly-Packed Tables & Benches
Service: Efficient
Imbibe: Espresso
Devour: Banana-Cherry Bar
Total: $7.40
This place is great! Stumbled in here after trying to go to Leland (they are remodeling, open again tomorrow I think). Anyway, Quetzal is laid back, plenty of room, places for plugging in computers, free wifi, a discount club for regulars and good, prompt service. I've just had the drinks but the sandwiches look really delicious.
This is one of my favorites. I used to haunt this place frequently when I lived over in Russian Hill/ Nob Hill. The coffee is great with nice sizes. I'm particularly fond that they actually give you real, solid mugs for your Joe. I hate it when those cookie-cutter places only give you paper cups whether you're staying or going...but I digress.
The ambiance is roomy and airy with outside and inside seating available and plenty of interesting foot traffic. A decent WiFi awaits among the plants in this industrial meets Andean-colored decor. With plenty of wireless for all (there are even some switches to plug into for the net 1.0 types that are still among us- so options are aplenty!!) and plenty of plugs, so you won't be left hangin' when the music stops.
The food is very good whether you're in the mood for a tasty sandwich (love the Quetzal club and Randy-baby), a hefty smoothie that packs a punch with all the health-club trimmings, or just something sweet.
I also like the frequent buyer club they offer. Anyway, enough reading of this review - go and put it to your own caffeine-cravin' palette!
Apparently, internet cafe coffee shops in the middle of the day are the new singles bars for the un- and underemployed. Who knew? Needless to say, I was quite pleased to discover this, and the house chardonnay is not too bad.
I would give Quetzal a better rating, but Robert (or "Bubble," as my coworkers and I used to call him) is always miserable to have to interact with.
He's moody and snide, and is the kind of person that will say something to try and make you sound stupid, but it won't be grounded in anything. His sense of sarcasm is pretty generic - he's the kind of person who will say "I dunno, can you?" If you ask "Can I get a latte, please?" And he'll be morose the whole time, like he hates hearing people ask for coffees.
I think their coffee is pretty good, their blended smoothie drinks and desserts are good, and the other people who work there, especially the two owners, are friendly. It's also clean. I haven't tried their food.
But if you walk in and see a pout, a bowl-cut, a spiky belt, and platform shoes, then be prepared - you're about to talk to Bubble, and he doesn't like you!
After our breakfast, niece and I walked around the dirty strip of Polk St. and landed at one of many coffee shops, but one of my favorite on that area and street.
I was first introduced to the café's White Mocha by a yelper when I was still learning how to yelp. Now that yelper is at the very end of my friend's list and I hope she is doing well.
Normally, I would infrequently drink a White Mocha. But we had an abrupt thirst for that White Mocha and every coffee shop has their own version and ways of brewing the popular espresso drink. But here, all the coffee and espresso drinks are made from organic fair-ground blend.
I bought a White Mocha and Niece opted for the Caramel Mocha. For $3.80 each, the barista grinds the freshest beans to prepare our respected beverages. Both of our 16oz drinks also comes with "mountain-size" heaping of fattening whipped cream, and her caramel mocha comes with a drizzle of the caramel on top of the clouded cream. Her drink can be mistaken for a gourmet dessert from a fancy restaurant. When we first sip our drinks, we get a piece of whipped cream from our beverage on the tip of our nose (sorry, no pictures). We also split a Blueberry Scone for $2.25. I'm also not a scone-guy, but that pastry was surprisingly very moist and show no taste of aridity. We enjoyed our treat in the lounge area with comfortable sofas and lounge chairs.
Credit cards are accepted here. And being an internet café, they do have Wi-Fi access (duh!) with both Apple and Internet Explorer. They also have a frequent buyer's card: buy 10 drinks, get the 11th free!
After going to Quetzal for years and years I realized the staff would just never thaw and give me a friendly hello, unless the exceptionally nice owners were there. And for some reason they did away with table service several years ago, which was strange. So... it is what it is.
The food is great for cafe food but I just wouldn't describe it as homey or cozy, and the plethora of people alone there on their computers make the atmosphere unappealing (to me). But they are an internet cafe, and that's how internet cafes are hmm?
However, it's a great place to have a little meeting or grab a bite with a friend, or have a coffee date. The food and coffee are high quality. Their veggie melt sandwich with artichoke hearts is one of my favorite sandwiches in the city, and they serve a nice salad with all their sandwiches. It's pretty expensive, but they uphold their good quality albeit with a somehow very impersonal atmosphere.
Queztal is hands-down the best place to get work done on your laptop while being comfortable. It has the best layout for computer work: large tables and counters, power outlets galore and even wired access in some spots!
The coffee is good, the atmosphere is good, the music is not too loud, the staff is friendly, they have beer, and the beer is cheap, they have some food.
Only downsides: To far from mass transit and no real lunch food selections, ust baked goods.
Good music, super easy internet access, lots of room to spread out, and if you are not so lucky, the occasional guy asking you if he has B.O even though he does not - which makes for really awkward conversation opener.
Slightly great smoothies too!
Overall, this place will get me by while I await for ATT to install interwebs in my apartment. Bring it on.
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