Qamaria Yemeni Coffee Co — Restaurant in Norwich Township

I’ve been here about five times. My review of the space, the service and the food and drinks are as follows:

The space: five stars. It’s very clean, bright and spacious. It’s a decent size but there can’t be too many people sitting in and that worked well for me when I studied. They are also open late into the night which is baller.

The service: five stars in all but one instance. The employees are kind and service is quick. But I had one experience I am still saddened by. I was sitting in the far corner with cushions and two small tables put together near an outlet. It’s my favorite spot to study in. A group of 7 came in wanting to sit together. I was told by an employee that I had to move for the group coming in. I don’t think the notion of moving for others is cumbersome in any way. Except in this instance, no other table was similar to the one I had. And I picked it precisely because it suited my study needs the best. To be told to move, not asked, really disrupted the flow of my studying and left me feeling really disregarded. I wish there was some recognition of my inconvenience in some way. That would’ve made me less upset.

The food: three stars. the milk cakes are decent. The Turkish bakery down the street does a much better job, I prefer those. The date cakes are dry in a way that isn’t good, not the traditional dry that you expect. The honeycomb is fantastic when it’s fresh - otherwise the bread is hardened.

The drinks: three stars. a plain espresso isn’t something you want to get from here which sucks because I think the true tell of a quality coffee shop is their plain espresso. Theirs are gritty and bitter. Their drinks are very sweet and I think that masks a lot of the flavors of the...

Stopped in on a Wednesday afternoon for a coffee to go. Had tried to go to my favorite Turkish coffee place in Hilliard first but they had been inexplicably closed, so thought I'd try another of the newer places that had opened in the area.

The store was staffed by two teenagers who seemed disinterested in me? their job? life? Who knows with most teenagers anymore; just infected with the general ennui that they'd rather be anywhere but there. Anyway, I ordered a mocha latte and a "Shay" tea, which description sounded a lot like a Chai tea, which I decided to take home to my husband.

The cost was reasonable, about $11 total for both, and the tea was moltenly hot. Great if you like hot tea, not so great if you spill some on your hand like I did!

The big disappointment was the latte. It had no coffee/espresso flavor AT ALL! It had all the flavor of sweetened milk and nothing else, not even a hint of mocha. Luckily I was just heading home, where I was able to brew a cup of strong coffee in the Keurig to add to the sweetened milk to give it some flavor.

My husband did pronounce the Shay/chai tasty, though it didn't contain the cream or milk that it would usually have if it were an Indian version of chai tea.

With so many other middle eastern and good old American coffee shops in Hilliard, I don't think I'll be making another visit to Qamaria.

As a side note, this shop does sell a number of delicious looking baked goods, primarily cake slices, croissant-like pastries and the like. Perhaps they are a better bakery than coffee house. If I'm in the area with a sweet tooth I might give those a try, but sadly, I'll take the cake home to my own home...

UPDATE 12/2024: Unfortunately, the last several times I’ve been, the drinks have been terrible. To the point I’ve just poured them out. It’s noticeably whenever the owner is not there. This most recent visit, the person working was on their personal phone the entire time I ordered and then apologized to whoever was on the phone because someone ordered coffee - not great customer service. I hope the employees can try to do a better job, because as of now, I don’t think I’d bother ordering an coffee unless the owner is there and making it.

I have tried the honeycomb pastry since my original review, and it is delicious. Always a must when I stop in.

I have been excited to try this place ever since I heard it opened! I didn't know anything specific about Yemen or their coffee, but I love trying new things and supporting all the different ethnic shops and restaurants in the area. Arabic culture is also well known for its hospitality and I was not disappointed here.

I was a little sad that they were out of the Honeycomb pastry that is highly recommended when I went in, but the Qamaria latte was delicious - I felt like I had to try the namesake drink, and I'm glad I did! You do need to have an appreciation for cardamom for a lot of their drinks and pastries, but it's one of the things that really sets their menu apart from other coffee shops.

The space is beautiful, very bright and clean - it's definitely a great spot. It was very clear that this will be a popular cafe for many in the area. I will definitely be returning (I still have to try the honeycomb!) and would recommend this place to others as...