Russell's Bakery & Coffee @ 2222 — Restaurant in Austin

First things first... The Gluten Free Lemon Poppy Loaf and the Banana Nut Muffin (Also GF) are amazing!! The only reason for giving -1 star for the food is because of the preservatives they have in the muffins and in the bread/other pastries. They go so fast that there is literally zero need for the preservatives they sell out quick! The service is always great though their consistency as far as hot chocolate needs to be a bit better I went in one morning and it tasted like they had just roasted cocoa beans straight from the source and not a day later at night it was like the worst kind of chocolate milk that was barely warm, but everyone is always super friendly, and you can tell that they use quality espresso when it comes to coffee. The atmosphere is really nice, they are like a few other cafe's/restaurants that have artwork available for sale that when you look at it you'll say, "That looks nice how much?" Only to then immediately walk away because it's a few thousand dollars. Under the artwork is a couch comfy area to sit but there is a lack of plugs you have to move the couches to get to the plugs behind them which kind of sucks but it is what it is. The two chairs they have aren't really that comfy so I'd go for one of the three couches if I were you. They do have pretty nice restrooms though, and a selection of beers on tap with a nice L-shaped bar. I will be adding photos of everything I can in the very near future unfortunately I don't have any good ones of the food because I eat it so fast lol. They have a nice area outside and there's actually a walking trail nearby behind in the back parking lot behind the buildings it's been a bit cold so I haven't walked it myself but when it warms up I will. Overall I'll be back for the muffins though I wish they would take out those preservatives, and the hot chocolate as I've given up...

I wasn't impressed today. First of all, the Steampunk Coffee was out due to something being broken. Meh...continue on and order something else. Ordered the Turmeric Latte instead, as well as a beer and a salad with added turkey.

Beer - Great, as expected

Turmeric Latte - Flavor was fine but it wasn't hot. I had been sitting outside with a friend and was given a number for my table expecting my entire order to come out together. I was not told my drink would be right out or anything. Turns out, my latte was sitting on the counter for however long. I went to get it once I realized the lack of customer service and realized it wasn't even warm to the touch. Tasted good at least.

Salad - for $5+ - I ordered a quarter bag of lettuce with 3 cherry tomatoes and some slivers of onion and sandwich meat - Fine, but MEH. I would've rather just not had the salad at that point. It gets better. A hair was in my food as seen in the picture. On top of the already poor impression from my lukewarm latte, this didn't fare too well.

My friend - she ordered a coffee - she picked it up immediately after ordering and her drink wasn't hot either! She asked the girl to at least warm it up. The girl made a new pot which was great. But to come to a coffee shop and have 2 drinks poorly tended to...not ideal.

Overall, if coffee is your business, do better at least on the coffee. Staff was overall pleasant. The layout of the shop is great as well as the environment. I could see it as a nice place for those who are very close by, but I would never go out of my way to...

Disappointing Experience and Poor Customer Service

I stopped by on my way to work and ordered a plain warmed-up bagel—nothing added—specifically to keep things quick and simple. Unfortunately, the experience was anything but efficient. Despite there being no line and only a few customers inside, it took 25 minutes to receive my order.

I waited patiently near the front where I had previously been handed banana bread, assuming this was the designated pickup area. The staff, who were not particularly busy at the time, saw me standing there but didn’t communicate that my bagel was ready and placed on the opposite counter. One of them even asked if I was waiting for a sandwich, to which I responded, “No, just a warmed-up bagel.” Even then, no one thought to check or direct me to the correct area. Mind you there is no line of people at any point throughout this and maybe two people came in after me.

It wasn’t until about 15 minutes later that someone casually mentioned, “Oh, I think your bagel might be over there.” The lack of attentiveness and basic communication was incredibly frustrating—especially for a first-time visitor who has no way of knowing the restaurant’s pickup process. Instead of being proactive with customer service, the staff seemed more focused on casually cleaning behind the counter.

Overall, this was one of the most inefficient and unprofessional service experiences I’ve had for such a simple order. The staff didn't apologize or make any comment on how they had...