Portola Coffee Roasters — Restaurant in Costa Mesa

Doing 3 stars, mainly to draw attention to the changes and disappointments of what used to be a much more lovely coffee experience. I'm still surprised that they are giving so little attention to a hot tea order after years of doing it "just right"! An incorrect steep makes a huge difference in a couple of their teas in particular. At the very least, they could lower the price to reflect the lack of barista service on those teas.

We tried one of their fall coffees. We were surprised when they asked if we wanted the marshmallow cream on top, then were told it was extra. It is listed in the drink description with no extra charge noted. Very odd. Don't recall this being true last season. But also will say, while the cream was good, it didn't taste like last year's.

The other big change is that they stop ceramic service quite early. I understand them wanting to get dishes done, but other people are already using ceramics, and they are ignoring dirty items, so it seems silly to suddenly (and so early) stop this service. Unless they are collecting all dishes at a certain time, it doesn't matter what time you get the ceramics. Literally, a week ago today, we went in a shop in New Mexico. We were very aware of the closing time being less than 10 minutes away and asked them if it was ok to order. They happily said "of course," and then proceeded to be kind and helpful baristas. Someone else came in after us and they even gave him the "for here" glass requested. Wow! What a difference from the experience Portola now offers.

Also, felt bad for the one barista today who forgot about ceramic service stopping so gave it to us, then had to listen to the other barista later tell us we couldn't have a plate because (he said loud enough for the other barista to hear). "ceramic service has stopped." Yikes! Felt so bad for the other barista. AND, we needed a plate for the tea bag since they now use bags, and no longer steep the tea.

We'll be back but wish their customer service would return to what it was 5 plus years ago. No need to make the customer feel like...

ou think you know how coffee tastes and then BAM: you're wrong. That's how I felt after this place. I came knowing what I wanted my coffee to taste like, and left wondering what all the other coffees taste like!

My first order was their nitro cold brew (not sure what beans were used) and some danish - ran me a good $9.50. I noticed everything had one price, so I'm not sure how their sizing works...they didn't ask me either for a size either. The cold brew was something else; something very interesting! It smelled like a soft chocolate liquid...but had a taste that was reminiscent of wine! It was crazy. The danish was good too, but didn't grab my attention like the coffee did.

I sat by the roasting machine trying to figure out all of the flavors inside my coffee by sniffing it, sipping it, and gently swishing it in my mouth like I was some coffee connoisseur. I never did quite get it and I probably should've just asked.

Before I left I ordered an espresso ($3 for a double-shot). This too was something like I've never had before! It was pretty acidic on the tongue and ended with a very brief bitter taste (as you would normally get with straight black coffee). I slowly sipped half of it, and shot back the other half. Interesting to say the least! This was made with their "Terra Incognita" beans. The bag is for sale and states: "the coffees in this blend change based on our current offerings", i.e., this time might taste different than the next!

They sell coffee making supplies and books on coffee making as well. Their bags run for roughly $13 to $22 (that's about the highest I remember).

Over the past year I've slowly gotten into coffees but this trip was eye-opening. I'll definitely be back and likely be leaving with a bag or two!

tl;dr = Kinda pricey, good for laptop-users, community/shared area, you might wait longer than other coffee joints, they roast their beans on site (literally to the right of the line), but in my opinion DEFINITELY worth a "shot"...get it? Like...

Review from: 9.27.2011

The mark of a superior coffee place: self-reliance, a.k.a in-house roasting. The result: superior tasting coffee, superior freshness, superior cappuccino... and an expertly made cappuccino is another sign of greatness.

Unbelievably good Mocha! contains in-house made ganache: not too sweet, not too bitter, just right.

They have this original take on a Chocolate croissant: yum.

The Cherry tarte (not always available): double yum.

Peanut butter snickerdoodle: rich, decadently sweet (a bit too much so for me).

I bought 1/2 pound of their coffee named "Alchemistic" ($12.75) - unbelievably fresh, aromatic, "wake-me up" smell from the beans and after they were ground at home. Made a great cup with my French press and the newer drip brew method. It's one of my two all-time favorites. Infinitely better than most coffees I bought in the past because the roasting is moderate, not done to redundancy. The way I see it, Americans seem to enjoy the "French" roast method (intensely roasted, many times burnt and bitter tasting) better because they're used to the ubiquitous drip coffee machine in which one can use a fairly small amount of dark roasted coffee and still get some flavor in their cup. This method also seems to usually block most of the burnt taste. If you buy coffee in Europe (in bean form), most of that coffee seems to be less dark in color and richer in aroma: ranging from hazelnut hints to dark cocoa/chocolate or apricot/cherry-like flavors. Usually undiscerning palates will only detect sourness instead of peach/apricot (fruity) nuances.

I think I like this place better than ... wait for it... Kean coffee (both locations).

Truly as good as a coffee place gets! Ground breaking (all the unusual brewing methods they have available) and yet they can make a mean traditional cappuccino! I hope...