Colectivo Coffee Monroe St. — Restaurant in Madison

This is a case where I wish Google had half stars. It's really 3.5 for me. Great location, and they've done a great job with the space. The staff is very hit or miss. The front of the house staff frequently seem to be hired because they have the right look, but their customer service skills are pretty lacking. We have to repeat or correct our order with them more often than not. There are several coffee shops on the near west side, we've been to most of them, this place is reliably the slowest. The food is good, but the kitchen is totally out of sync with the coffee; your food will be delivered up to fifteen minutes before your coffee is ready. Edit: Went back today for the first time in a while and things have inverted. Got my coffee right away, and waited over 20 minutes for someone in the kitchen to toast a bagel and put some smoked salmon and onions on it. The place was mostly empty, so the only reason I can think of for the delay is that the kitchen staff was simply letting my order sit while they did other things. Another Edit: Went back today with my 12 year old at their request. They have solved the issue of the coffee and the kitchen being out of synch. But not much else. We waited in line for close to fifteen minutes while the person in front of us ordered beans and the woman at the register stared at the register pad in confusion slowly hunting and pecking. I'm assuming she was new and it wasn't her fault. Just as the ensuing line got to the door someone came out of the kitchen and took over the other register. This was at slightly after noon on a weekday. Not much of a lunch rush in the place, but if the normal wait at the lunch hour is fifteen minutes to get through the line it's understandable that people aren't lining up to get in. What's not understandable is how the run of the mill coffee, overpriced and undersized menu offerings, and marginal customer service has kept this place open...

NOW featuring six regular vegan baked goods * every single day * from Troubadour bakery!! Colectivo (out of Milwaukee) roasts my favorite coffee in Wisconsin, and for a while now they have featured several vegan breakfast and lunch items from the kitchen. They have a delicious sweet potato and kale bowl, a Chia oatmeal power bowl, a falafel sandwich, and a couple veggie sandwiches that can be made vegan, sourdough and bagels that are also vegan. They also offer and soy milk and other non-dairy options to go with their excellent coffee, cappuccino and espresso offerings. They also always have one two three vegan smoothies available. Lunch items come with green salad, fruit or chips, and there are always options in the cooler to take away, like their hummus wrap and mixed fruit, juices etc. But the addition of the bakery items has really put this place over the top for me, and now it is one of my favorite spots in Madison. I am here several times a week, and not just because I work a block away. :-) The Morning Glory muffin is so moist, and filling. Three of either of the oatmeal protein bites will fill you up all morning if you add a piece of fruit... The cranberry almond bar is absolutely TO DIE FOR, and is so juicy and buttery - it is like a tart cherry pie. I haven't tried the caramel tahini bar or the ginger cream cookie sandwich yet, but I am prepared to swoon when that happens. All of the vegan bakery items are also gluten free! I believe the bread they serve is from Madison sourdough. Everything I have had here is absolutely delicious. So much to choose from for breakfast or lunch. Open...

Colectivo seems like a fancy little hole-in-the-wall shop which belongs perfectly in Madison's lineup. Atmosphere. It's very cozy, there's a fireplace, and the whole building as a sort of "Built out of a Brennan's/garage" aesthetic, which actually works to its advantage! There's plenty of seating, but the place, like always, is slammed. Still, if ever I could find them when they weren't busy, I could see plunking down with my laptop for a few hours to get work done. Pastries: There's a ton of options! And they're alright. Some are complicated, some aren't. I like that aspect, a little for everyone. I'll say they could improve the chocolate croissant. It's disappointing to see that much air between the bread and the chocolate when something like Panera's variant is up front about what it has to offer. Food: Their sandwiches are pretty good as well. They're nothing groundbreaking, but they'll fill you up. Pretty light fare. Haven't been able to order anything unappealing yet. Coffee. Every time I go here, no matter what I order, it always tastes like their milk has gone sour. Not to mention the portions are extremely small. I have no idea why this is. It feels like they get their coffee from True Coffee Roasters (correct me on that) in terms of...coffeeness. But the milk is just horrible.

Three stars. It's average. There's some real potential here to make the boutique coffee place they seem to want, but they gotta change up their ingredients. If you want atmosphere, this is your place. If you want good coffee, go...