Perky Beans Coffee & PB Cafe — Restaurant in Leander

This is the third time we’ve been there. First time as a large party of 10. We got there with no expectations, knowing we might had to wait… and we were fine with it because we had family Visiting and all we wanted was to have them try one of our favorite dishes there (banana French toast) so as we arrive @ around 1:30 I go inside and ask if we could get on the waiting list for 10 people. Place looked full but as I was standing asking about us getting on the waiting list, at least three tables were done and walked out…. I ve been in the restaurant industry for more than 20 years (back of the house and front of the house as well) so I understand how seating can affect the kitchen flow. So I asked Jay the hostess how long would the wait be, and not very nicely she answered… well, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. But by the time I seat you we are pretty much gonna be closed so we can try to squeeze you in. 😒And I could tell they were just finishing with a crazy wave. But I saw at least 6 empty tables. At the same time this couple of elderly came to ask if they could get a table for 2 and Jay answered the same way… I think she told him well you are gonna have to wait about 40 mins or so. And he was like, but I see a lot of empty tables… (I also understand that maybe they were short staffed and ok, you need to give the kitchen a break we’ll be nice to people who want to enjoy the food there and tell them that! ) just mentioned that you can seat them in about 10/15 mins once the flow goes back to normal and trust me WE will understand. He was pretty upset and told her but I don’t see any people waiting… and she said well we do have a waist list. Anyways I believe they left. I ask her if we could please be seated separately we didn’t really care, all we wanted was to our family visiting to try the food there. She was very rude when she replied well of course I can seat you separately but that means you are not going to be close to each other and you might get seated at different times. And I said sure thanks. Well 5 minutes later, they sat a couple on a table for 4. And right after that they sat half of our party (4 adults) on one side of the restaurant and 2 minutes later they sat the rest of us (4 adults and my 5 year old twins) in a table for 4. I was like we are good two of us sat them on our laps. This 2 four tops were right next to each other. She totally had the option of seating us there together but she decided to split us up. I really didn’t wanted to be rude so we just sat where she said. I asked if I could put an extra chair on the table for one of my kids and Jay again said NO because it would block the waiters from walking and allthough it didn’t I understood that for safety reasons it might not be ok. Before we got our food most of the restaurant was empty… I think about 4 tables were still eating. So I asked our server if we could move to the 4 too next to us so we could add a chair since that table was more in the middle and adding a chair was not an issue to anybody. Well she said I have to ask my manager… she went there (right behind us) ask him and he said NO. And she was like insisting because it was pretty hard for me to eat with my kid on my lap as well as my sister with my other kid on her lap. Anyways he was pretty rude and said NO again. So Sara our server was pretty shy when she told us I’m so sorry but my manager said no. Bad situation for our guests …. The food is delicious, and the servers are awesome. Sara was great to us, and I believe Danielle is the name of the super sweet lady that served the rest of our party. I truly believe that attitude...

Perky Beans Coffee is great. Their coffee tastes so much better than Starbucks. Also, the coffee is at the perfect temperature while Starbucks can get too hot. Their food is also good except for the pastries. Starbucks does have better tasting pastries than them. I tried the cinnamon roll, banana nut muffin, and bear claw. I was disappointed to find that they all were flavorless. I do like to have a pastry once in a while and my favorite coffee shop sadly doesn't deliver on that. Once in a while they will mess up on the food though. One time they only gave me bread with meat and cheese. They completely left out the lettuce and tomato. Mess ups like that don't happen often. Also, their smoothies looked good, but didn't taste good. I ordered 3 and everyone who tried it said it was too bland. One more thing I must add is that I'm saddened that my favorite holiday drink didn't come back for this holiday. I don't really care for the rest of their holiday flavors. When I asked about it, the employees look at me like they have no idea what I am talking about. I'm guessing they weren't working there when it was around last time. Overall, the coffee shop is great and should definitely be given a try. Plus, the employees there are very nice.

The PB Cafe has good food, but there are some issues I have had with it. I don't order the burger any more because they keep undercooking it. I've had to throw it out more than once because it was raw throughout. Good thing I look at it before taking a bite. Another dish they overcooked the eggs which didn't make the meal taste as good as it could've. Also, they have been giving very little fries on the side with my sandwiches. Last time I counted 5 whole fries which was sad because I do spend a lot of money here and give good tips for this. Good food when cooked right and given better portions. No real issues with the employees as they're all pretty cordial.

I would give 5-stars if the coffee shop had better pastries, smoothies, and more consistent with the sandwiches. Also, if the cafe cooked their burgers better and gave larger portions of fries for the price we pay. I wouldn't take a star off for this, but I was disappointed that my favorite holiday drink wasn't on the menu this year. I guess it does save me money as I go a little less over the holiday now since I don't have that tempting me haha. Right now, this place is a solid 4-stars. Not perfect, but...

I want to start on a high note, as I’m sure many of us can agree. I initially loved Perky Beans—I was amazed by how wonderful the servers were, how great the food was, and how harmonious the café seemed. If I didn’t know better, I would have given it a full five-star review.

Unfortunately, I can no longer support Perky Beans. While the employees made this place amazing, I have personally witnessed upper management verbally berate and abuse their own staff. I’ve overheard them arguing about schedules and even having these unprofessional conversations out in the open, in front of customers. The café is frequently understaffed, leading to long wait times, and the overall atmosphere has declined.

Concerned by this behavior, I looked into Perky Beans' Indeed reviews, and what I found confirmed my concerns. The owners and management have responded to critiques on Google Maps and Indeed with unprofessional, immature, and even false statements. It’s clear that they only care about our money—not the longevity of their own business or the well-being of their employees.

I encourage you to watch how they respond to this and other reviews. Look into their Indeed page yourself. This so-called "local café" that asks for community support is just another exploitative, profit-driven business that mistreats its workers. With new cafés opening in the area, including Dutch Bros, I strongly urge you to take your business elsewhere.

Their quality has significantly dropped, and their coffee beans are low quality. You’ll notice it if you let the coffee sit for even 30 minutes—the smell gives it away. The wait times are atrocious, but please don’t blame the employees. They are the only saving grace, doing their best with what little they’re given. Most of the employees who made this place great no longer work there. My hope is that they’ve found a better workplace—one where their talents are encouraged rather than wasted.

Edit: Also, I am not a disgruntled employee, like the owners imply me to be. But the fact that they respond as if i am further proves my point on how well they treat their employees. I am never going to get food at perky...