Babaloo Coffee Club — Restaurant in Charlotte

Had some family in town and figured we’d go explore South End—because what better way to bond than dragging your relatives around in 90-degree heat in search of caffeine, right? That’s when we stumbled upon a magical little coffee oasis called Babaloo… and y’all. Y’ALL. This place is like if Pinterest and a warm hug had a baby.

We walk in and are immediately greeted by two delightful humans, Jimena and Franco, who were so sweet and welcoming I briefly wondered if I had unknowingly entered a rom-com. They smiled like we were long-lost cousins, walked us through the menu, and told us the story of how Babaloo got started—with everything made in-house from scratch. Like… what is this? A bakery? A love letter? A spiritual awakening?

Naturally, I panicked and ordered Franco’s favorite—the strawberry matcha and some banana pudding—because he said it with such conviction I would’ve followed him into battle. Spoiler: Franco did not lie. The presentation was stunning, and Franco himself? Equally as adorable. I’m convinced he could convince me to eat a shoe if he told me it was house-made.

My dad (a self-proclaimed tiramisu snob who carries espresso in his veins) got the tiramisu latte on Jimena’s recommendation, and let me tell you: it was a religious experience. The man sipped it in silence, closed his eyes, and whispered “mamma mia.” They even make the tiramisu daily, from scratch—because apparently this place doesn’t believe in shortcuts or sadness.

Then Jimena hit us with the blue cloud banana matcha, and let me be real: I used to think matcha tasted like lawn clippings. But Babaloo? Babaloo said, “Hold my latte,” and changed our whole matcha-hating lineage. It’s now a full-blown matcha fan club over here.

If you’re in South End and NOT going to Babaloo, what are you doing with your life? Seriously—run, don’t walk. It’s cute, it’s cozy, it’s not a soulless Starbucks clone. It’s an actual local gem with passion, creativity, desserts that don’t taste like sadness, and staff that might just adopt you.

Goodbye Starbucks. Goodbye Caribou. Babaloo...

We decided to check out Babaloo after seeing it on Instagram and were excited to try somewhere new. Unfortunately, I can’t relate to the great service other reviewers had. We stood in line for almost ten minutes with no acknowledgment from the three people working there. Definitely understand if you’re busy but a “We’ll be with you in a moment” could’ve done a lot to improve the service. After ordering our drinks, one of our drinks was given out to a customer who came after us. I asked the young man if that was our drink and he assured us it was not and then a couple of minutes asked the young lady to make the drink that accompanied mine. The young lady was constantly playing in her hair and touching the lids, handling espresso without washing her hands. Others in line were greeted and offered smiles and pleasantries while thar was never given to us. Overall, the coffee wasn’t good either, bitter flavor and syrup sitting at the bottom of the cups. Glad we got to experience another coffee shop and see what they had, the drinks sounded like great options but we won’t be back. It seems like other people had a better service experience so I won’t tell others not to go but we won’t...

I absolutely loved Babaloo Coffee Club the first couple of times I went—it was so good that I even went back-to-back! I made two TikToks about it and referred a few friends because I was genuinely impressed.

However, my recent visits have been disappointing. I’ve been back three more times, and each time the strawberry matcha had less and less strawberry purée. Today, I even specifically asked them to please put the normal amount since the last time it was lacking, but I still only got one tiny layer. The strawberry matcha costs more than the regular matcha, so I expect a decent amount of strawberry, especially since their prices are higher than other matcha places I frequent.

I’m worried that they gave us their "best of the best" during their opening but are now slowly declining in quality. I do enjoy the empanadas, but at $4 each, they’re quite small and not filled enough to feel worth it.

I really hope they address these issues because I want to love this place as much as I...