Pale Horse Coffee - Great Bridge — Restaurant in Chesapeake

My first time coming here today. Kind of between a 4 and 5 star review but they are awesome overall.

Loved the atmosphere/theme! Very proud veteran-owned with wall the branches represented, patches on the wall, military themed merchandise, challenge coins displayed. I did purchase two stickers as posted in the pictures, $1-$2 each. Light country music playing in the background.

What’s especially important to me as a remote worker is a coffee shop having an abundance of comfortable seating WITH OUTLETS. This is so important, I always call ahead to ask. Along the left and right wall of the space there are multiple surge protector power strip. Amazing. And of course they have free wifi, a good coffee shop given. Just don’t do video calls/calls in here with the background noise. Also, long hours from 6a-6p so I don’t have to rush finishing my work for the day. Dependable remote working space.

Very open industrial looking space, masculine decor. Brown leather couches, dark colored metal and wood tables, skeleton themed. They have this HUGE coffee grinder machine in the back left you can see, because they ROAST IN HOUSE! Awesome. Loud sounds of coffee grinding and the classic espresso machine, which I appreciate. A bit of an echo in here, but the noise overall is not too disruptive if you don’t have to be on the phone.

I ordered a Guardian Iced Coffee. Salted caramel and Vanilla. It’s great, but very bold coffee. Which most people love, but I’m more of a sugary sweet girl. It’s good though. BOLD COFFEE is the takeaway. My iced latte was $8.40 though… which is PRICEY. I think $6 or even $7 would be far more appropriate but it is what it is. They do have a soda fridge with red bull, canned soda, bottle water, and juice as well if you don’t like coffee. Unfortunately. Their burrito case was empty when I arrived :(

It is very busy. Expect most every table to be filled at 11am.

Overall, would recommend. Highlights are great atmosphere, big industrial space, lots of seating and outlets, bold/strong coffee, a bit pricey, awarded veteran-owned...

Coffee Shop No. 404 Pale Horse Coffee Chesapeake, VA 23322 September 3, 2024

When I started researching coffee shops to visit on our way to the Outer Banks Pale Horse Coffee was the first shop to peak my interests. First, they are a veteran owned company. Many of my family members are veterans. I am a veteran. My husband is a veteran. It would be accurate to say most of my favorite people in this world are veterans or spouses of veterans; so I never miss a veteran owned coffee shop. The second thing to catch my attention is Pale Horse Coffee roasts their beans in house; which if you have never been to a shop that roasts their own beans you are missing out. The smell is fabulous. Lastly, these guys have earned the Costal Virginia’s Reader’s Choice Best Coffee Shop since 2020. Putting Pale Horse Coffee at the top of my list was a no brained.

The shop has a large open concept with plenty of seating and electric outlets. Many folks were working to include adults and a couple of homeschool families. Military patches and challenge coins are displayed on walls. Bags of coffee and merchandise promoting the shop are available for purchase.

When ordering cortados I always look around for small 4-6oz glasses or cups so I can order my cortado “for here”. I looked at the top of Pale Horse’s espresso machine, saw the cups and ordered the cortado “for here”. I was so disappointed when the barista handed me a large coffee mug; in most cases this will guarantee a poorly made cortado. I accepted the mug and sat at a table feeling a little down, but then I noticed the mug was only half full. I took a sniff of the cortado; it smelled incredible. My mood changed instantly and then I took a sip. The barista made a darn near perfect cortado!

Moral of the story is don’t judge a cortado by its cup!

Enjoying life one...

Quiet, but a bit cold-feeling. By that I mean that the building is very open, high ceilings, open floor plan. A warehouse feeling. Kind of like Coalescence Coffee in Norfolk. I believe it was once a warehouse of sorts, so it makes sense. Not really something they can fix. It is a different kind of environment you would find at a place like Fair Grounds or Cure Coffeehouse, both of whom live in smaller, old buildings. Regardless, I can focus on homework. The few times I've been there no one was being very noisy or loud, something which I often experience at a place like Café Stella. Seems people usually go to Pale Horse to read a book or do homework, minding their own business with earbuds in. Perfect, I'm doing the same thing. However, the open air type building they're in doesn't provide for a relaxed or secure time, there's no nook or corner I can find to get comfortable. Nothing against the coffee itself, but rather the facility they chose to move into. Atmosphere affects the overall experience one has at a restaurant or café, cafes especially. People go to eat at restaurants, but people often go to cafes to have coffee while doing something else, and the surrounding environment can influence the effectiveness of the work or task they seek to accomplish while at the establishment. I don't particularly like Pale Horse's environment, but others may find it perfectly acceptable. It is a matter of preference. I figured I would let people know about my experiences while here, in light of my preferences and interests, which is the purpose of...