The Coffee Village — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

Updated for Jan. 5, 2020: A cold, wet Sunday finds me back in Pittsburgh for the 50th Anniversary Tour of Jesus Christ Superstar and a caffeine stop at my favorite coffee shop. Glad Christopher is still here. Great guy and conversationalist. Nice inviting atmosphere and good service keeps me coming back.

Updated for Dec. 1, 2019: some stunning classical music and a large cup of caffeine to start my day before attending Les Miserables at the Benedum Center. The rain outside makes a large Caramel Latte very welcome. Nice job by today’s staff, particularly Christopher who is a kind and wonderful host. He’s a keeper. Will be back again in early January for another show. Wish we had one of these in my town. Much prefer this over Starbucks any day of the week.

Updated for Nov. 24, 2019: Sunday morning, enjoying a large Caramel Latte, listening to the BEST lazy jazz, crooner, easy listening music perfect for a cold, lazy Sunday morning in a coffee shop. THIS is what makes Crazy Mocha make me want to come back. Nice job, morning crew!

Updated for Aug. 11, 2019: Change the weekend staff, change the vibe completely. Before it was fantastic 70’s disco music, now it’s some sort of awful Zen Buddha Hippie weird guitar music. Is that suited for an early Sunday morning? Whatever. Still the same coffee and offerings. May start looking for another place to consume caffeine.

Updated: April 14, 2019: I was here today, as well as about a month ago, and had two completely different experiences. Last visit was fine, introduced a friend of mine to Crazy Mocha, and had an amazing visit. This time, the place was crazy busy, loud, and one staff member - who walks so heavily it was vibrating the floor and echoing through the entire store - overall made for a VERY poor experience. There was so many people, and so much noise, I rushed through my coffee just to leave. Which is sad, because I’ve usually enjoyed sitting here sipping my coffee and relaxing.

Updated October 21, 2018: Been coming here quite a few times over the past several years. This morning’s crew was very personable, eager to please, and just wonderful all the way around. There seems to be an issue now with homeless or others loitering out front as they’ve put up signs in the exterior windows. It was certainly the case this morning as one guy stood there for 15 minutes on crutches, smoking a cigarette. He eventually came inside to use the restroom, supposedly bought something, which I didn’t see, then went back outside only to stand right in front of the window I was sitting at, talking to himself, then walked away. Then he came back and parked out front again, and again came inside. This went on for about 30 minutes. If you’re going to have No Loitering Rules, enforce them. Overall, I’d still recommend this place over Starbucks down by Heinz Hall.

An hour and a half later: same guy out front on crutches. Now he has a “friend” with him. Both just standing there for a long, long time.

2 years ago: Great little coffee shop. Just a hop and skip away from the Benedum Center, a little further if coming from Heinz Hall, but it's worth the effort to get away from the corporate giants like Starbucks. There were lots of snacking options, I took pictures and posted them here to get a feel for the variety. Only one barista mid-morning on a Sunday, so be patient if there's a little bit...

I've never left a review before, but this place is horrendous in so many ways, so I have to speak up.

I've been twice. Both times the service and product were miserable.

On the service:

The first time, the barista was an incredibly rude and off-putting middle aged man who treated me and the other customers like we were inconveniences. One of the other customers mentioned to me that he's both racist and just kind of a jerk to everyone, that a lot of people simply stopped coming to the shop because of him.

The second time, it was a couple of young baristas who didn't seem at all interested in customers, working, etc, and just wanted to sit around gossiping loudly enough for the whole shop to hear.

On the coffee:

I have been a barista for years. I can tell when a bean grinder hasn't been cleaned or dialed in. It's like they just use a one-size-fits-all grind. What you get is essentially gas station quality drinks. I wouldn't be surprised if they just open bags of beans willy nilly and let them sit until they're gone. Their coffee and espresso combines the tastes of sour, stale, burned, and mud.

On the food:

Overpriced and either ordered from a cheap distributor or bought at a budget store like Aldi's.

On the setting:

Ever been to a cafeteria in purgatory? Like that. No personality. Fake plants. Cheap design. Counterintuitive layout.. order in the front and pick up in the back? Really? Crappy radio station on. There's a feeling of sterility, creative deadness. It's unwelcoming and almost hostile....

So first of all this is the only place in the Silent Hill-esque world that is Pittsburgh in the morning hours with an actual restroom. You have to pay for coffee to get access but given the fact that no other place in this forsaken land will let you use a public restroom even WITH payment offered (other than the bus stop, whose restroom looks like a recreation of Nagasaki) I see this as fair and reasonable.

Now I am not a coffee drinker by nature, I find it often too bitter. So I wasn't expecting a lot from my caramel latte. HOWEVER my expectations were blown out of the water!! A sweet and yet potently flavored beverage that I would buy again and DID buy again. Its caffeine soothes my frazzled mind; its flavor soothes my fractured soul. Their menu boasts more than just caramel lattes too; you'll undoubtedly find what you need. Especially given the freedom of customization with espresso and flavor shots.

The customer service was friendly and cheerful and the atmosphere was warm and welcoming, a feeling compounded by a magnificent mural on the wall. If you go ANYWHERE in Pittsburgh, you...