New World Café — Restaurant in Raleigh

First of all, this might only be the second time I've ever gotten on line to complain about a business. Employees have off days - I get that. Because this involved the owner and terrible customer service, I feel the need to write a review. I had never been here before and had coffee with a coworker here this morning. Then, after picking up from a doctor's appt, I remembered I saw a drive through so went to swing by to get her a drink and myself a sandwich rather than going to a big box coffee chain. I pulled in the drive through but it had a printed paper saying you have to order online (there is no link so I had to google New World Cafe and it came up with a website to order). I tried to click on the box multiple times and if finally worked, I input my order and paid at 12:25. It said it would be ready at 12:40. I went inside just to wait there and leave my daughter in the car at 12:30. 10 min prior to the order estimated time. They didn't have my name and I told her I was early but she checked and realized I had ordered at another location in Durham. (I didn't even know there were two locations and at the top is showed current location. Admittedly I was moving fast to order in the parking lot and didn't hyperanalyze the order confirmation). She didn't know how to solve the problem and just kind of shrugged (but she said it was her second day so I'll give her grace). So I called the Durham location and they said this has happened before and they can transfer the order but had to call a manager or someone and then would call the Raleigh location. Then it seemed like nothing was happening and the owner (of both locations) called the manger at the Raleigh location to tell her that she could only make me a sandwich and I'd have to reorder and pay for a new coffee. I was shocked. They had been on the phone for at least a min and a half but when I asked her why and how that could be, she just kind of shrugged and said "that's what he said". She didn't seem super customer facing or problem solving. I asked her to call him back. He didn't answer. At this point it was 12:40 and I felt like this was taking forever and it was ridiculous and nobody at the Raleigh location seemed to really care so I decided to just leave and get in the car to get my daughter home. I called back to the Durham location and asked to have the owner call me. He called me and basically said it was not his problem that I ordered at the wrong place and he wasn't willing to absorb the cost of 1 cup of coffee since I should have noticed it was ordered at the wrong place but he wasn't willing to have them remake my coffee at the correct location because they had made my coffee already in Durham. This is so short sighted. If it was different owners or even a remotely expensive item I would have understood but seriously to be so dogmatic about it and when 1. I'm clearly not the only person who this happened to so it's easy to do and 2.the online ordering system is glitchy and it didn't pull my location and/or give me drop down options. He argued with me (as he looked at his laptop) that it's easy to see but when you are on your phone and trying to order, it's a big blue box and I just thought I had to click within the box to order). For someone new at that business who didn't even know there were two locations I would think being in the parking lot would cue the website to the correct location and 3. the cost of helping get the customer the drink is a little espresso and milk is cheap. It was so short sighted. I would NEVER support this business again because of how poorly this was handled. Part of being in a customer facing industry you'll have to absorb costs for mistakes that happen all the time but this owner is not customer service oriented. I would think a local place would have better service than a big box chain but not so much. Their system would have known the right location and they would have likely been happy to make me a drink and sandwhich even if I did order it at the...

This is my go-to coffee shop in Raleigh. I drive out of my way, past several other coffee shops, to go here. Why? The owner is a coffee nerd and you get real coffee. He trains his baristas to be coffee nerds, so you get consistent quality. I've gone to other shops where your latte will be good if the owner is in, but it will be burnt or watery or some other issue otherwise. A barista at New World is a coffee expert and at other shops, sometimes the barista has only been trained to use the cash register.

New World breakfast options are excellent - the build-your-own breakfast sandwich option is something that makes every member of my family happy. I've never recommended New World to anyone who didn't come back with rave reviews. I think the Durham location even has a slight edge for breakfast because they have a grill. But I still rate my preferred breakfast sandwich 5 stars in Raleigh. (Edited to add: the new location in Raleigh has a grill and more, so back to full marks for Raleigh!)

I love that it's simultaneously small business and low-key. Friendly people who will speak when you come in. Tables to hang out or a to-go station when you're in a rush. You can immediately tell and appreciate it's not a huge chain and that the owners give attention to both locations. But it's also one of the only places I could order online during Covid that wasn't Starbucks. I'm being overly picky to say I want the modern capabilities of a big chain without having to drink their coffee. I want a coffee I can choose and pay for at home and know it will be ready when I roll up. But, again, I want it to be good. So, New World it is, even 10 minutes in the wrong direction from my office.

I know they are moving (the Raleigh location) down the street to the old Steak and Shake by the Duraleigh Library. I don't know if they'll have a drive through (that would be AWESOME!) but I do know they'll have more space and more seats. And it's so needed in that area where all you have are Starbucks and that new one where everything tastes like a frappucino with no coffee in it. I'm happy for their success because they've worked hard to earn it - they provide a quality product that is in short supply in the area, and that is always an excellent business model. I will continue to go frequently and support...

We were on Glenwood doing some furniture shopping and were desperate for coffee. So I searched the area to see what was available with excellent reviews and this place popped up.

We arrived at New World Cafe about 5 mins before closing and the young lady was so nice and answered all our questions with enthusiasm. She chatted with us while she was making our drinks and really made us feel welcomed, even though we were the only customers there and arrived right at closing, which would annoy most. We even learned she was from South Africa.

We ordered a 24 oz. Iced Heath Mocha with oat milk and a 24 oz. iced Caramel Latte. That Heath Mocha was the best mocha I've ever had and that's saying a lot since I order them nearly every coffee shop we visit! I love toffee and anything made with toffee, so it was a no brainer for me to order the Heath mocha - combining two of my favorite things. My husband said his caramel latte was excellent as well. The roast was great, which was expected since they use Counter Culture coffee (roaster from Durham). I felt the price was worth it given the quality and size drink.

We'll definitely return if we're back in the area again. I'll have to try their cold brew next time since I loved the setup they had showing it being made (Kyoto style).

We live in Durham and have excellent coffee shops and local roasts, so we're fortunate to get great tasting coffee regularly. We've had the highest quality coffees in Kona and San Francisco (and have their roasted beans shipped to us regularly), so we're a bit of coffee snobs. Some people like fine wines, we love great coffee. Whenever we're in another city, we love to visit a local coffee shop to support small business and hopefully get a good brew. We're glad to have found a great espresso drink at New World Cafe and highly recommend it for other coffee snobs like us (or those who just like a...