Blue Sail Coffee — Restaurant in Conway

I had an aeropressed cup of Rwandan coffee made by Kyle, and it was a splendid cup of coffee; it was bold without being too sharp, citrusy without being acerbic. Kyle suggested that it might be too dark, but its robust boldness was not overpowering - I love a good cup of black coffee, and Blue Sail makes a darn good cup of black coffee. They have laid a sound cornerstone. I look forward to trying something frillier next time.

My wife had a fresh chai tea latte made from recently imported raw chai, a rarity in the cafe world. She said it was one of the best chai tea lattes she had ever had - and to top it off, it was served in a mason jar.

The atmosphere is relaxed and homelike, yet with a touch of modern flair. The furniture is arranged in such a manner that the coffee shop can accommodate any size group. A lone coffee drinker can sit at the bar; a small group can cozy up on the sofas around a coffee table; for larger groups, there are 6-person tables that could no doubt be pushed together to accommodate an even larger group. Upbeat yet relaxing lounge music sets a calm tone, and floor lamps gently light up the room. We felt like we could have comfortably stayed there for hours, sipping amazing coffee and watching the world go by.

To top it all off, not only were the coffee and atmosphere superb, but the service was knowledgable and personable. Kyle talked with my wife and me as we waited on our drinks to steep (perhaps the only drawback to such high quality coffee is that it can't come instantly - only come if you have 5-10 minutes to spare). He discussed his love of coffee, how he has studied the chemistry behind it all, his trials with perfecting an aeropressed Rwandan cup of coffee, how the proper purplish hue denotes that it's perfect, and how he is eagerly awaiting a few more rare blends that should be arriving soon. We discussed local coffee culture, the meaning of the shop's name, and more. Kyle was the only one working that day, but he still managed to visit with us and the other customers, all while serving the customers.

In short, these guys get it right - a good coffee shop starts with good coffee, is carried forth with a calm homelike atmosphere, and is crested with affable service. I look forward to coming back to Blue Sail Coffee...

I genuinely dislike posting reviews with anything less than 5 stars, but when I do so, it's from a place of care and concern. My wife and I have been participating in the Conway Coffee Crawl, and Blue Sail was the next stop on our list to get a stamp, so I'll be summarizing our experience.

The storefront itself is very cute, designed and decorated well, with adequate and comfortable seating. The lighting is dim and intimate enough to be able to read a book, while still being cozy.

Staff was kind, and was able to help us order easily without any trouble.

Food and drinks were where we were let down. We ordered the breakfast pizza, avocado toast, London fog, Hobbiton Late, and a chocolate chip cookie.

The breakfast pizza was described to us a "breakfast casserole" and to us was 'just alright', but it was giving frozen. The avocado toast suffered from a similar issue. Soggy for something called toast, way too much feta cheese, lack of seasoning for the avocado, and bacon that also didn't taste very fresh. The egg itself was actually seasoned well and not overcooked. The cookie seemed like it had too much butter added to the batter, and was overly greasy after being heated. The cookie was the only thing that we didn't finish eating.

The london fog was pretty bland (my usual order is a chai latte, but they were out), and the fall special my wife ordered was also described as 'just okay'.

A redeeming factor was that we learned they are dog-friendly, which appeals to us as dog owners, but I'm not sure if we'll wind up making another trek back in.

I felt the price paid vs the portions received were also lacking on comparison to the several other coffee shops we've visited over the past few weeks. As far as our experience in the Coffee Crawl thus fast, I'd put Blue Sail in my bottom spot. There's some very tough competition here in Conway, and my intention is not to be mean or negative, but I've got to call it...

Once upon a time I thought I knew what good coffee was. Then along came Blue Sail Coffee and it was a GAME CHANGER. I have been a customer since day one. All I have seen since then is the most positive, beautiful growth a company can have. It started with the best cup of coffee I had ever had. Baristas that didn’t just know my name when I walked in, but also knew exactly what drink I wanted or even suggested new things for me to try (that I have always loved). Moving from that, they then offered the bagged coffee. This led me to delve into espresso machines and grinders and French press and all things to try to recreate the magic that the cafe had. Blue Sail then proceeded to make my life EVEN EASIER by adding the website with coffee subscriptions. This especially became important in 2020 when everything shut down and was panicking trying to figure how I was going to get my coffee. Things I never knew I needed Blue Sail single handedly gave me without me asking and made my life a happier, and more caffeinated, place to be. I get my subscriptions monthly, even ground sometimes because Blue Sail is awesome and does it for you when you are feeling a bit lazy 😅. The subscription and online ordering has also been a life saver for birthdays and holidays. Who doesn’t love getting coffee? Especially when it tastes like Blue Sail coffee. Perfection. So aside from the beautiful and friendly atmosphere of the cafe (because if you haven’t been you should absolutely go), the website and online ordering/subscriptions are just another way Blue Sail has earned 10 stars in my book. Best of the best, and always striving to be better. So proud to have this company in my home and to send its goodness far and wide to everyone...