Alchemy Coffee — Restaurant in Salt Lake City

I rarely, if ever, take time out my day to write negative reviews. I have been a patron of Alchemy coffee for approximately four years- since moving to SLC. I regularly visit - and made a targeted point to give my business to this establishment once per week throughout the pandemic. In the middle of winter when indoor seating was closed- I gathered friends and we stood outside in the snow with our coffee. I was committed. I started a coffee club that meets weekly and we choose varying businesses to visit- I always selected Alchemy, mainly for the unique beverage concoctions on rotation- but also because I believe in supporting small businesses and I believe in supporting local.

If I could now give this coffee shop 0 stars- I would. I have to share this story. A friend had been going through a troubling time the night before and I suggested a quick coffee break at Alchemy coffee. As I was walking into the coffee shop another friend called me- she was letting me know that her cousin's husband had just passed away from cancer and she needed to fly home to visit her family. I was standing in line listening to her story- I wasn't being obnoxious, speaking loudly, being disruptive- mainly I was just listening. After a few minutes I thought it was odd that no one was serving me or asking for my order. I was next in line. I was staring at the drink specials waiting to ask one of the baristas which one she recommended while listening to my friend discuss service plans. A young barista named 'Winny' finally addressed me and said rudely, "I'm going to help this lady behind you until you get off your phone call."

It took me a minute to process that the staff was being rude and dismissive to me, I have never had this experience at Alchemy before. I told her she didn't have to wait to service me because she was not going to get my business that day. She smiled and said "ok, thanks bye!"

When I called back to ask for her name she told me it was Winny. I asked where a sign was posted inside the coffee shop that states you won't serve someone if they are taking a phone call- she said they don't have one. She added, "I've been working in customer service for 10 years, and I'm just over it." She also said her manager was there and she wouldn't help me either.

I asked how old she was (likely mid-twenties) Since she said she had been working in customer service for ten years- she replied patronizingly- "Old enough sweetheart. Have a great day sweetheart." I must add I'm at a minimum ten years older than Winny, so calling me sweetheart multiple times is not only dismissive it's a clear sign of disrespect.

I want to make clear once more, I was not being disruptive, talking loudly or being rude whatsoever. I was listening with my phone to my ear, and my attention was directed towards the barista, to such that there was no reason to be denied service because Winny is "over it," as she stated. Maybe this person should find a new sector to work in that doesn't face customers until she regains her desire to care for loyal patrons and perspective that where people give their business in 2021 is more important than ever. A lot of small businesses have gone under these past two years, but you can bet that a Starbucks barista would never deny a customer taking a phone call and likely would face disciplinary action if they were to engage in such behavior.

I will never give my business to Alchemy coffee again- nor will my network- and I hope they fix their staffing issues pronto before they lose more...

I’ve come here a few times with my partner and normally have a fine experience but we came here today and the customer service from the barista with short black hair was really off putting and left us feeling really bad. I asked for a Vietnamese iced coffee and she questioned a bit condescendingly if I’ve had it before and know what it is.. I said yes. I then asked if I could have oatmilk put in it and she tells me that it’s just coffee and cream and there’s no milk in it; which I am aware of and that’s why I asked if I could have it put in. Her response made me feel like that wasn’t an option so I just went without it. I receive the coffee and it’s less than halfway filled up in the cup, which I know is normal for Vietnamese iced coffee… hence why I figured it would be okay to put oat milk in it but apparently not. For $5 + tip, I wish that it had been better and my request could’ve been fulfilled. I work in the service industry and know how it can be but also know how important it is to have decent customer service which we didn’t really receive and that was disappointing; especially for a request that didn’t seem that bizarre to me. Maybe she was having an off-day and I don’t think this is a reflection of Alchemy itself but I was telling my friend about the experience from today and she knew exactly what barista I was talking about and has had off experiences with her before too. The food and drinks here are really good but when you leave feeling bad because of the customer service, it makes you not want to come back and support the business...

Edit: TLDR - HEAVY CAUTION FOR CELIACS OR GLUTEN SENSITIVE. I'm not changing the star rating because I can't be entirely sure. I had a 'gluten free' brownie while I was there. It was on a tray marked gluten free and had a gluten free sticker on it. I have Celiac Disease and within 2-3 hours I was violently ill. Think worst stomach flu you've ever had in your life sick. I ended up going to urgent care and was about two hours away from needing IV fluids if Zofran hadn't helped with the nausea enough to keep liquids down. I can't be entirely sure this wasn't just a stomach flu except for that I'm still experiencing the less severe symptoms of gluten exposure (migraine, nausea, crippling abdominal pain, but not hospital level). For those who don't have a Celiac in your life - in order for my symptoms to be this severe, it's not just a microscopic amount of cross contamination, it's a completely careless or malicious mislabeling of product. Again, I can't be 100% sure, but this is now 4 days later and I'm still miserable which has never happened to me with a regular stomach flu.

We like supporting local, but honestly we could have gotten better coffee at Starbucks and had a shorter drive. And I really don't like Starbucks much. This place was fine. That's pretty much all. Lukewarm coffee,...