Riverside Coffee & Tea — Restaurant in Clinton

Ever since Pete (the owner of the building) took over from Anthony (owner of the Clean Plate), I have seen the quality steadily decline.

The new staff are...interesting. Call me a curmudgeon, but I like my coffee shops quiet, and my barristas friendly but not overly talkative. Every time I've come in, I'm either getting glowered out by the washed-up hippie looking one, or having to suffer through the preppy one's and the housewife's endless stream of inanity. The housewife is literally talking to herself right now. Earlier she was chit-chatting on her phone behind the counter.

Also, what happened to the music? There's only been background music a handful of times I've come in. There's nothing worse than walking into an empty, silent store. It feels dead in here.

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy the coffee and the cozy atmosphere. But I've been coming here for years and it used to be so much nicer!

"There can be no deep disappointment where there is...

This cafe is easily the best in Hunterdon County. I've been coming here for years and the environment, atmosphere, coffee, and staff are warm and welcoming. It has a home-y feel with the two fireplaces on during the colder months, and outside seating by the river during the warmer months. When it's quiet, it's a great place to get work done. When it's busy, you can catch a great conversation with local Clintonites. All the drinks are organic and they have a wide variety selection of teas!

The baristas are the best! They are friendly and each one brings something different to the shop (most of them are college students.) While some may view the friendliness as overwhelming, myself along with the majority of the customers love chatting and getting to know them.

Overall, it's definitely the best coffee place in the town of Clinton! A must try for people driving through, or...

Visiting for the holidays, I'm a former resident of Hunterdon County. I appreciate small town and antique vibes. I really wanted to like this place more. The staff was young and moderately friendly but not knowledgeable. Disappointing coffee. Tea selection solid. Overly sugared pastries. Purchased the cinnamon bun (served microwaved, icing to flavor ratio wildly excessive). Also tried the chocolate dipped macaroon, which had way too much dough and was not light or textured. The clientele skewed young (teens and very early twenties). Perhaps due to holiday week? If this is the normal clientele, I would avoid the shop due to a seeming lack of small-space (respectful) sharing awareness. For instance 6 people not ordering anything and sitting on phones at one of only a handful of...