Antidote Coffee — Restaurant in Houston

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Antidote has been open seventeen years. I've been an on-and-off customer, and more recently, a regular, for maybe ten of those years. I've had some sublime mornings at Antidote, and some wonderful evenings. The coffee / drinks have never been great, but the Baristas, pastries, and atmosphere have always hit nicely.

Also, I see many people complaining about the music. I happen to love most of the music most of the Baristas play. Even when it's a little "too loud". Antidote (and its sister coffeehouse Black Hole) have always (until recently) had a bit of an Alt. vibe, and that was partially why I liked them.

But since, oh, I'd say about the past several months to a year, a couple of things have changed, for the worse, and as of my experience today, it was just a step too far, and I'll not be returning. One problem is that this used to be a coffeehouse for, well, adults. College students, couples, older folks, the stalwart hardcore bike riders that are always there at opening, etc. But more and more, the place seems to be a daycare center for the gentrifier set that have taken over the Heights since about right before lockdown. Especially on the weekend. You often can't sit on a couch and have a coffee, pastry, and conversation, because sprawling families with screaming toddlers have taken the place over. Kids, crawling all over the couches, their toys spread out on tables, spilling drinks, yelling, not wanting to be there because, ya know, THEY'RE KIDS! But, I get it. People with kids need and want coffee, too. I just wish they'd get it to go, and leave the actual coffeehouse vibe to the rest of us. But that's a personal gripe, and it's not as much of an issue as...

the larger issue/ concern/ problem. And if you've read many of the other reviews, you already know what I'm going to say: The owner. Wow. This person... I'm not sure what's going on with her, but she seems to be almost perpetually angry, or have some sort of axe to grind. I used to find it kinda funny when she'd yell at people who park illegally or in the To Go spots. But I started to notice that she kind of gives that same energy to almost everyone. She's rude, off-putting, and just ruins the vibe of what is (or was) typically a very chill, sorta artsy coffeehouse. And recently, I've seen her actually get in people's personal spaces, and sometimes even touch (like a poke or a nudge) if she wants their attention or thinks they're doing something "wrong". Today, however, was the last straw, I witnessed her not only be rude to one of my favorite Baristas, but she was then outright careless with and to myself and the person I was with. And look, it's just not worth it. There are other coffeehouses that have better pastries, better coffee, and far better vibes.

And this makes me sad. I have spent thousands of dollars at Antidote over the years, and had many an hour of great conversation, and I have a lot of special memories tied to the place. Also, and I really want to stress this, -the Baristas are great!- They're kind, they're fun, they know and are happy to see their regulars, and they put up with a lot of guff from the entitled "new folks" living in the Heights. But, hey, here we are. Things change. Maybe Antidote is just entering a new era, and it's not for me or those like me. Still, I don't thin anyone running an establishment that's supposed to cater to people's desire for a good/ relaxing/ productive time should ever be as rude as the owner is.

Two-to-five years ago, I would have absolutely recommended Antidote. But I...

DEFINITELY A "MUST GO" IF YOU ARE IN HOUSTON!

This review is based on my experience and personal opinion:

I am a regular of the Antidote Café, very nice place indeed. I decided to wait for the Covid-19 pandemic to sort of go away to write a review about them, so that I would be able to be fair and more accurate.

Like I said we are regulars of this small but lovely café situated in the Houston heights district, when I'm in town we go at least twice a week. We absolutely LOVE their Latte and their Chai Latte.... This is NO fancy place by no means.... It is a very simple place, with few pieces of furniture and the furniture are sort of worn/old furniture. It is randomly furnished, no specific style but I find this place sort of whimsical and very relaxing. Very friendly, Very Comfy, Very Relaxing, Very.... forget about your problems for a few.... If you look at the pictures you can see they have two main sitting areas, one is inside and one is outside. the sitting area inside has two big comfy couches among other furniture and a long bench against the wall if you like that kind of seat. so whether you are alone or with friends you can still find your place here. Outside they have quite a few small tables where you two people can have a remarkable breakfast. so, whether you come in the morning, afternoon or evening, you can select the best seat for your needs. When it's chilly or rainy, you can seat inside and disappear in those soft couches.... I love that. Sitting on a soft couch while holding a hot Chai Latte....mmmm.... paradise to me. They have a selection of Coffee based drinks, hot or iced, and If you do not drink Milk you can select Almond, Oatmeal, Soy or Coconut Milk (great substitutes). Also they have a selection of pastries/deserts available and some seriously delicious Oatmeal + raisins cookies (so Yummy). Now you can find more products available for sale, like Coffee beans, ground Coffee mix, and many other products. They have restrooms and they are always clean, which makes your Coffee break definitely more relaxing. The stuff consist of one Employee only and he/she is always super nice and super friendly. Me and my Wife love her/him. (Now that I think about it, we have been served by someone else too... but cant remember her face). The Café is located in the Heights district of Houston, very nice area and not far from the Café is Studemont Park, a very nice city park..... you can go to Antidote grab your favorite hot or iced Coffee based drink and go drink it at the Park..... mmmm... cherry on the cake!!!! For you to know, the same person owns a Café called "The Black Hole" that is locate close to Montrose, so downtown and that's a very relaxing place too.

CONCLUSIONS: Go, relax and forget about your problems at least for the time it takes you to drink a...

This place is an okay find for Houston. The first thing I thought when I came in was “this is small”. I’ll get back to the seating later though. I ordered the pomegranate green tea I think is what it was called, and the lady was insanely nice. Nice small talk and she was polite to let me smell each tea, of which their options were wide. The tea was $4 for a medium sized pot so not too bad. The taste was a bit bitter and the pomegranate flavor wasn’t as strong as I would’ve liked, but I was not very surprised since they used a large commercial tea brand. It was better as I got used to it. One thing I might note is that when I asked to resteep the leaves, the lady filled up the pot literally only a 3rd of the way and acted like that was enough water. I couldn’t get her attention though bc she went to go wash dishes or something and I didn’t want to seem rude. I guess I can get past that though. I first looked outside for a place to sit, and what a mess. The dirty gravel and rusty tables with the huge air conditioner fan looked so tacky. When I actually tried to sit in one of the chairs and tables, it was so flimsy I swear I would’ve broken the chair if I moved side to side. I didn’t care though because it wasn’t that nice out anyways. I just went inside, and the whole space was pretty compact. It was only moderately busy and I found a pretty hard time finding a spot that wasn’t 2 feet from another person. Its okay though because I did find a pretty good spot on this long bench type seat with tables. They also have couches and different chairs for lounging or reading. When I worked on my own stuff, everything was fine. I tried to eat something I had packed and one of the workers told me to put it away. I know I’m not supposed to bring outside food so that makes sense, but they just had a microwave at the drink station so I thought that meant it was allowed. Actually working was fine, and the large floor to ceiling windows let in a lot of natural light with a nice view of the Heights houses and trees lining the other side of the street. My final thoughts on this place would be that it just felt a bit dirty. I guess they were going for an industrial feel but there’s a fine line between industrial loft and just run down looking. I might go here again but I’d say there are better options...