lil Coffea Shop Downing — Restaurant in Denver

I've been coming to this coffee shop since 3 years ago (since it was named Keith's). The coffee was delicious for a reasonable price! The staff was always friendly, and I got to know most of them by name. Since the new ownership change, things have really changed. I went in to get a small coffee and it was almost $7 for it. The staff isn't too friendly now, but the manager, Devin has always been extremely nice! I love supporting small local businesses, but the coffee shop is now feeling more like a Starbucks. I believe the new ownership is doing too much to keep up to bigger coffee chains, but local coffee shop stay in business by creating loyal clientele. I hope the changes they are making keep prices that are reasonable.

Edit (response to owner's comment):

I understand all coffee shops and local business are struggling, yet the coffee here is now more than a Starbucks medium latte. I also want to add that this coffee shop is also ran by the owners of Little India who have 6 locations and 2 coffee shops around Colorado. Yes Starbucks is a corporation, but this business is not completely independent/small. All of the food items being added to the menu are also increasing the prices and taking in mind this is a coffee shop catered for university students like myself, keeping prices lower should be a priory. I can even overlook the high prices if the atmosphere was friendlier like before. The staff always feel overburden and busy to even have a normal human conversation. Workers seem way too stress with everything being added to the menu while also having such a small...

I come here regularly since they’re one of the few places open late in the neighborhood. It’s a pretty good place to hang out, work on homework, etc. Definitely a little weird. The people who work there have always been nice. I would not advise eating the food, though.

Not entirely sure of the whole story, but this place used to be a more straightforward cafe/coffee shop. Now they’re open 24 hours, have bottles of liquor on the wall, a hostess stand (which doesn’t appear to serve any actual purpose), a massive lottery ticket machine like the ones at the checkouts in King Soopers, and an obnoxious illuminated lottery sign next to the register. It’s like it’s slowly turning into a convenience store. Every time I go in I half expect them to have a new display case for cigs and vapes.

To he honest, I actually kind of dig it. I’m not sure what exactly they’re going for, but it’s certainly something different from your typical hipster coffee shop.

The food was a bad experience. It’s overpriced and frozen. Got a butter chicken bowl recently that cost almost $20. It was served in a plastic meal prep container with the lid still on - obviously pre-portioned, frozen, and microwaved before serving. But they whiffed on the microwave part, so it was still quite cold in the middle....

Updating my review after a year under new ownership. This place has continued to confusingly go downhill.

What used to be the best coffee shop in the area is now a disappointment. This used to be a quaint and cozy neighborhood cafe. A gem. How do you mess this up? Now I don’t know what it is. A coffee shop? A bar? A restaurant? It’s trying to be all three and succeeding at none. It feels uncomfortable and confusing.

I don’t expect to see a fully stocked bar literally right in your face, with Hypnotic on proud display and all, when trying to order a coffee and pastry in the morning. This vibe is even less comfortable when walking with my kids here on a weekend morning. The cafe beverages and food are mediocre at best and very overpriced. Posh nearby cafes like Corvus and Steam are less expensive.

I haven’t tried their full menu food and I don’t intend to because…this is a coffee shop. I think. Service tends to be curt and inattentive, and slow.

What else to say? Oh, the music tends to be AWFUL. Sad to see a great neighborhood establishment change for the worse in my opinion. I’m giving two stars because I like the location and the internet works decently.

Also, the name is...