The Coffee Box — Restaurant in Port Angeles

Super cute and clean place, and the coffee is really incredible. Anywhere that uses Stumptown coffee is going to be high on my list. We don't live in town and had been driving through and I loved the coffee so much we made sure to stop on our way back through despite my having just gotten coffee from another place that I didn't finish. My only concern is the sign on the door saying they assume if you come in without a mask on they will assume you fit one of the exemption criteria, which seems to be just asking people to come in maskless in a pandemic, which many people were taking advantage of despite not having food or drink for themselves. The employees all had masks on though, and many options for hand sanitizer sitting out for use. I understand the concern of not asking people who are maskless about it, but having a sign up seems a bit like...

This establishment is part of the Storm King Athletic Club, which you will need to be a member of to enjoy loft seating rights... no view for you! Rows of protein powder line the shelves and the recommended attire appears to be athleisure wear. My acai bowl was quite tasty- I went with this over one of their paninis when I observed that the quality of ingredients being used was decidedly average (for example, the avocado toast was a smear of one of those single-serve guacamole packets from Costco on a piece of white bread). Drip coffee was from Stumptown and was good, though I question the wisdom of the self-serve pump dispensers amidst a global pandemic. They were not cleaned between customers- might I suggest a mandatory hand sanitizer station next to the coffee?

I would posit that the high overall rating here may be inflated by...

The establishment features hipster decor and the speakers were boppin` T-Swift. The pay it forward wall is a nice feature and does suggest some sort of community engagement. While the atmosphere is pleasant, the food was not so great. The panini, though hot and cheesy, was greasy and flavorless. The Acai bowl was the consistency of hardening plaster, and topped with what looked and tasted like nature valley oat-and-honey granola bars. It tasted as if someone was perhaps learning to make smoothies but doesn't yet have a sense of balance for flavors and texture. Adding injury to insult, while it was stated to be GF, it made the person gluten sick. As for coffee, if sweet rocket fuel is your thing,...