Peet's Coffee — Restaurant in Irvine

Pros: Extremely good coffee Beans for purchase guaranteed recent roast date Knowledgeable staff Some of the best lattes around

Cons: None

TL;DR Skip Starbucks and grab the fresher (and less charred) chain alternative. Baristas know how to steam the perfect latte!

I want to start this review by disclaiming that I used to work for Starbucks and was a staunch supporter of the chain for years. That being said, after trying a latte at Peet’s I can no longer recommend Starbucks for anything other than convenience. If you are in the area and looking for a decently priced latte, coffee, beans, tea, or frozen drink then please come to Peet’s rather than the other coffee shops in the area!

The beans for home brewing all have the roast date printed on them which is awesome. Rather than telling me they expire months from now, telling me when they were roasted lets me decide how long they should last and how coarse I should grind them. The major Dickenson is pretty solid choice and it is what they typically brew for their espresso, but the other beans I have tried have all been excellent. The real highlight, though, is the hot lattes. The milk that they steam comes out with the perfect amount of creaminess. I have never been served the cheap bubbles that are common at the various competitors. I can’t speak on the flavored lattes, but with such an amazing latte I can’t imagine that the flavored ones are anything short of perfect.

Over a year ago Peet’s switched the iced coffee to a cold brew, and I would say that it is on par with Starbuck’s cold brew (albeit weaker on the caffeine). Peet’s doesn’t charge more for the cold brew, though, and it has become my staple drink. The hot coffee is brewed very regularly and tastes awesome.

There is rarely more than two people in line and the service is fast. The indoor area is clean, but I have never stayed to enjoy my drink (always on the go). It’s usually fairly quiet, and the music is hardly noticeable so I would recommend it as a study location. The weekends can get a little loud from conversation, but not any more than the other coffee shops I visit. I have used the ample outdoor seating when I bring my dogs, and it makes for a pleasant morning. Plenty of shaded seating if you like to study or drink outdoors.

The iced teas are also quite good, but I haven’t tried any of the hot teas they offer. Their frozen blended drink, Javiva, is pretty awesome, too. I believe it’s made from real coffee instead of the powdered extracts/flavors as most competitors are. Cool if you’re in to that, but the takeaway is it tastes great no matter how it’s made.

The bottom line is Peet’s has great coffee with a commitment to flavor and freshness. I can’t recommend...

This location used to have a lot of good employees with great customer service for years when I got my drinks and pastries from there for 8 years, but when they hired newer employees their customer service went down the drain. They hired a lot of disrespectful people, whenever I was in Irvine I stopped by at this Peet’s tea hoping it would better customer service then before but I was wrong for thinking they changed. They leave the tea pot on the counter and tell me to pour it myself, also they have a serious look on their face every time I go there. One time a girl that worked their refused service when I arrived 10 minutes before closing time, she kept arguing with me until it was time to close and then told me that she can’t make my tea cause it’s closing time. She finally agreed to make it but she made it with tea bags when I told her to make it with loose leaves, so I asked for a refund. She pretended like she refunded me when she didn’t, there for she stole from me. They didn’t discipline or fire her but they only gave me a free tea card for next time I go back. Now I don’t go to this...

I bought a pound of coffee and in this place (unlike other Peet's locations I tried) they used to put their dirty hands in the bag before putting under grinder. Other locations I bough coffee from they have procedure in place to fill the bag with beans first and then put under the grinder, so they don't have to use their hands for the bag to expand. I bought house blend and this is second time that the coffee in this location is not fresh. Not sure why, if this is because their silver bag is not closed or simply they order too many bags an they are simply old. BTW, some of their employees are like the ones from Ralph's (tired, overworked and moody). UPDATE: they don't put their hands in the bag anymore and teh...