Parable Cafe — Restaurant in Columbus

Parable is a solid coffee shop. The staff was warm and welcoming. I had two cappuccinos which were well-made. The espresso seemed slightly watery but that’s being very critical, both were good. Strangely, they charge $7 for a cappuccino which is possibly the most I’ve ever been charged, in the world, for a cappuccino. New York, Miami, LA, Sydney, Stockholm, Rome, Paris, Tokyo…I’m constantly touring and I can’t remember a single time I’ve been charged that much for a cappuccino. That sets up an expectation that it’s going to be the best cappuccino in the world which it was not. I might have felt ripped off by Parable, imagining corporate greed but upon leaving I caught sight of a piece of paper that read something along the lines of “if you simply don’t have the means for a coffee ask us and we will use our community fund to make sure you get a coffee”. Now that’s pretty cool. I’ve never seen anything like that in a coffee shop. I also chanced on some information that Parable pays their employee a “living wage”. So I guess the additional charges might go into the pockets of the employees or those even more in need. Also it seems that they have a pay-what-you-want model in place. I did not see that when I bought my coffees. Perhaps making that arrangement more central to their advertising might make sense as I surely can’t be the only person who was taken back by the $7 charge. A quick “by the way we have a pay what you want model but our prices reflect a higher wage for employees and community outreach” statement at the cash register would be useful. Interestingly, they didn’t have a tip jar on the counter or tip menu option on the iPad checkout. So their wages are higher? How much higher? Do they need to completely eliminate tipping all together? I’m back in New York and I’ll get an afternoon capp at my local which is on par or better than Parable for $4.36, add a tip of $1 for my favorite baristas and I’m out $5.36. The atmosphere at Parable is nice, spacious and relaxed. Again, the employees were excellent. But here is the worlds most expensive cappuccino in Columbus Ohio unless you happen to read the menu carefully. All this is very progressive and interesting but it needs to be front and center so the consumer has a full grasp of the mission and...

The combined experience, skills, and knowledge of the owners of Parable Coffee are evident in every cup they make. You can can choose any option from their carefully curated menu and be confident that you will be served a drink of the highest quality.

Every visit I have had so far has been an adventure. Fruity, juicy single origin pour overs. Equally delicious auto-drip options. Unique flavors, like their matcha with rose-hibiscus syrup. Interesting seasonal features, like the sesame miso caramel latte. Normally I always go for the same thing at a coffee shop, but here I find myself wanting to try everything on the menu.

They carry delicious pastry options as well. At the moment, (vegan!) cinnamon rolls and scones made by Comune, the restaurant inside which Parable is a pop-up. They are just the right level of sweetness to complement your coffee, and the creative flavor combinations for the scones are different every week.

I love everything about this business. It is POC and queer owned. They've done away with tipping. They put a lot of time and effort into making sure everything they carry is ethically sourced, right down to their milk options. (Their dairy is local, and their oat milk comes from an employee-owned company, just like them.)

You don't get to spend much time inside because it is currently take-out only, but the atmosphere of the space is lovely. Pristine, trendy, and lots of natural light. There is a patio out back where you can enjoy your drink if the weather is fair.

If you are a third-wave craft coffee connoisseur, you NEED to visit. If you don't really care all that much about coffee, you should still visit! I used to be like you! I'm warning you though, once you've had a cup of coffee that tastes like fruit juice, it's hard to go back.

I really hope to see Parable stick around and become a permanent fixture in the community.

Edit June 2024: I have removed a star from my original review, as they no longer carry vegan pastry options. Their drinks are still some of the most spectacular in the city, but being able to enjoy a pastry with my coffee was an important part of my original review, and I'm a bit disappointed that I can't do...

Weird how my review was never responded to. I thought they'd at least address the parking issue. Meh.

Unfortunately my experience was a letdown. First off, there's no signage on the building? Upon entering, like some other reviews have stated, the music is just off. I go to coffee shops to chill and relax. The environment is not relaxing. Yes, they have a plethora of plants and a modern aesthetic, but Get Low and Back That Azz Up blasting does not mesh with their aesthetic. They clearly don't want to change this because it's already been mentioned multiple times in reviews.

My drink was also disappointing. I had the sesame miso caramel latte. I was expecting a flavor explosion and maybe some unique texture or layers to the drink. It looked and tasted like a basic sweet latte, and it was small. There was no pop of flavor or uniqueness, and there certainly wasn't an overwhelming umami element as the description stated. I don't mind the prices as much as others seem to, but the drinks have to be worth it. This wasn't.

The lines were crazy, and there was no option to order online. This just added to the stress of coming here, and wait there's more.

There was someone literally doing a photo shoot pretty much on top of me, and no one seemed to care. Sorry, but they should be asking your permission to do this and doing it after hours or when the shop is slow. This was extremely intrusive and taking over a large portion of the cafe. I felt extremely uncomfortable and couldn't even enjoy my drink that took a long time to procure. Also, there were booths I saw in the picture that don't seem to actually be in the cafe?

Lastly, I read on these reviews to park in Columbus Commons lot and get a validation from them. Well, the machine stated the validation was invalid. I tried it on two different machines. So, I paid $8 just to park here and have a stressful and unpleasant experience. I doubt I'll...