Cali Coffee — Restaurant in North Lauderdale

Cali Coffee was founded in 2018 in Broward County by Craig Avera and Rose White who met each other while working in the fitness industry. Cali Coffee is not your classic coffee house where you can set up your laptop and work a spell or hang out. Instead it is for people on the go with a walkup window and drive through. They have now expanded to six locations including Stuart and Miramar and they will be opening 12 more soon all over the state.

I first tried Cali Coffee in Cooper City and really enjoyed it. In addition to coffee they also have on their menu fruity drinks, energy drinks iced tea, soda and shakes. They also have a kids menu with a featured shake flavor and a few pastries.

We were headed home and my friend suggested stopping by to try their new iced coffee. We had been sitting outside in the heat for a few hours and an iced coffee sounded perfect. Like all of their coffee drinks the iced coffee is highly customizable with many favors to chose from, toppings like sprinkles, syrup drizzles, cookie crumbs, and cold foam for an additional charge. My friend was able to order our drinks on the app so we only had a short wait when we arrived. I chose a Irish cream frozen coffee with cinnamon sprinkles and a caramel drizzle. I like that you can even customize the percentage of sweetness. In this heat, a frozen coffee from Cali is the perfect way to caffeinate...

Today I visited Cali Coffee and had an unpleasant experience due to the way I was treated. When I got to the drive-thru window, I looked at the menu and saw a drink called “Beverly” that caught my attention because the picture showed it with a foamy cream on top.

When I ordered, the employee asked what size I wanted, and I said “small.” He handed me the drink, but when I received it, I noticed it didn’t have the foam shown in the photo. I asked about it, and he told me that the foam was an extra charge. I told him I was happy to pay the difference and asked him to please add it.

However, when he took the drink back to add the foam, he made a rude comment out loud: “Next time tell me you want it like the one in the picture.”

My issue wasn’t about the extra cost — I was ready to pay for it — but the way he spoke to me. If they are using a photo to advertise a drink that includes foam, customers should be informed that the foam is optional and comes with an extra charge. Just like he asked me whether I wanted it small or large, he could have asked if I wanted it with or without the foam.

There’s definitely room for improvement in customer service and better communication about what’s included in the drinks shown...

I got the Chai Latte with a smoothie style blend and it felt like I was drinking French Toast and Cinnamon Toast crunch. SO GOOD! I usually don't like highly sweet drinks, so, the way they made my drink was light on the sugar with just enough sweet taste of the chai tea latte to make it so delicious and refreshing. Their single table seating outside is a blessing, taking into consideration they're a drive-thru focused establishment. For bike riding the location has passable bike access, although no place to lock up your bike, with painted bike lanes feeding from SR7 or 31st. The only downside was no available restroom for customers, but as I mentioned, this is a drive thru focused location and that's what it is...regardless, I'll definitely be coming here more often to try out more...