Spruce Coffee — Restaurant in New Haven

In a town with no shortage of caffeine outposts, Spruce Coffee carves out its own niche as New Haven's living room turned progressive café space. The interior reads more like a particularly well designed cooperative house than a standard coffee shop, with leather sofas and armchairs scattered beneath warm Edison bulbs and pink paper lanterns. Cascading plants soften the industrial ceiling, while slate blue walls alternate with chalkboard messages that hint at the space's community minded spirit.

The matcha latte emerges as the menu standout, though it arrives at a decidedly relaxed pace, with wait times hovering around 25 minutes during peak hours. While the rest of the menu sticks to standard café fare, the unhurried service seems less an oversight than a deliberate choice, encouraging patrons to settle in rather than rush out.

The crowd shifts throughout the day, from laptop workers and local students to evening gatherings for open mic nights and live music events. Outside, Pride and Palestinian flags signal the establishment's social consciousness, while inside, the mix of cozy seating and community programming suggests Spruce Coffee aims to be more than just another place to grab a drink. It works beautifully if you arrive ready to embrace the slow life and appreciate a café that prioritizes atmosphere over efficiency. Those seeking a quick coffee fix, however, might want to look elsewhere in New Haven's café landscape. Dog and...

Unfortunately, I had a very negative experience with the manager of this café, named Sul. I went there to discuss the sale of a piece of equipment, and to my surprise, he dismantled part of it without my permission. One part was hidden, another he claimed to have thrown away, and he refused to pay for what he took — also stating he couldn’t return the remaining part.

The worst part of it all was his attitude throughout the situation: he was rude, disrespectful, and completely unprofessional. At no point did he attempt to resolve the issue in a fair or courteous manner.

This is a warning to anyone thinking of doing business with this place. This kind of behavior is completely unacceptable and far from the level of professionalism one should expect in any business...

My favorite coffee shop in New Haven. Good drinks(I love their matchas and lattes but especially enjoy trying their creative, seasonal drinks which are always fun but not over the top) and friendly staff. Perfect atmosphere for studying for my exams, reading a book, or socializing with friends. Music is always on point for setting the mood but not distracting from what I'm there to do, and there are nice sunny seats if you're looking for that, bar seats for doing work, and comfy couches for relaxing on. There seem to be many regulars but also newbies which suggests that it is a lovely place that people enjoy coming back to. I'm convinced that the people who rate this coffee shop low are haters of their inclusive politics and not the actual quality of the...