Nervous Dog Coffee Bar, Beachwood — Restaurant in Beachwood

A hip coffee shop in Beachwood!? What!? And it’s part of a growing chain?

Can’t be. It simply cannot.

I was raised in the Village of Beachwood from the age of 3 and I knew Beachwood as an exclusive Cleveland suburb that didn’t permit commercial enterprises to operate within its boundaries. Didn’t know why, but I accepted that.

It changed a little as I traveled through my teens and 20s, but the types of businesses permitted eventually were small offices and a ritzy shopping mall.

At age 26 I was recruited to a big advertising agency in New York—my dream! I toiled there, and eventually founded my own agency. For 50 years I’d periodically pay my parents and relatives quick weekend Cleveland visits. My trips were quick in and outs.

I moved back a few weeks ago. Beachwood has blossomed, bloomed, become beautified! And my favorite bud on the blossoming Beachwood tree is a coffee house at Cedar & Richmond called the Nervous Dog. (The creative name drew me in first. There are no dogs or canine remnants on the premises.)

Uniquely, it’s a no cash establishment. Bring a credit card or, as I do, use Apple Pay.

The coffee concoctions, each prepared especially for you, are supreme.

There are plenty light foods to choose from too, if you’re so inclined. I grab breakfast here. The toasted Asiago bagel with cream cheese is just to my liking. (I’m a creature of habit.)

The atmosphere is, bougie, food and drink delish, the crowd bohemian and clean.

I love it here. Starbucks might churn out java like it’s spreadsheet fuel, but this place? It brews personality by the cup. It's part café, part Council of Cool—and no, they don’t serve anything with your name half-misspelled on one side of your cup scribbled with a...

THIS COFFEE HOUSE IS DISGUSTING! My sister and I got our coffees and my toddler aged niece a chocolate milk and she noticed a substance in the corner of the sofa. We pulled back the cushion to expose vomit that was never attended to and clearly covered up. Upon further inspection, we noticed dirt all over the floors and the table tops sticky and gross with food residue. The bakery case is visibly dirty with what appears to be a film on the glass and in good conscience, I could never order any pastries or recommend them to those that I love. As someone who works in the service industry, there are typically opening and closing procedures to maintain cleanliness and I can say with confidence this establishment is not executing those duties on a consistent basis. Both times I have visited in the early morning hours, the floors have not been swept and the bathrooms are atrocious. I spoke with the supervisor to let him know and unfortunately, he was not open to feedback. I had high hopes to support this local business but however cleanliness, when it comes to food/drink, is non-negotiable. This is unfortunate as their coffee...

I was in town for work and as a nervous dog owner, I knew I needed to stop in. Honestly, this did not disappoint and I wish I had one near me. The food and coffee were good, the atmosphere was fun and cozy, and the staff were working their tails off! I came in during a morning rush and the two ladies working were cranking out drinks and food like nobody's business with minimal wait times for ordering and delivering.

I would also like to give kudos to the staff for handling a situation with a customer who was making unnecessarily disparaging comments flawlessly and without missing a beat. From what I've seen, the negative comments towards this place are based on the assumption/desire that it be a carbon copy of a certain oceanic themed chain; however, I say variety is the spice of life! If I'm ever in the area again, I will...