Red Whale Coffee — Restaurant in San Rafael

Needing to get my coffee fix without a Starbucks no where to be found I ended up finding Red Whale Coffee in the middle of commercial buildings not to far from the freeway.

Been to this place several times and I would have to say they do have their coffee down and highly caffeinated.

Their nitro cold brew was around $5 for a 16oz and that 16oz packed a punch! It was a strong smooth flavor and I was able to only drink a 4th of it before I realized how wired I was.

I then tried their pour over coffee ($5) which the barista when she did my pour over was very friendly and helpful on picking the right beans for my enjoyment. After trying their pour over I was sure these beans were roasted with love and steroids. Totally joking about the steroids part of course.

After sometime I did try their espresso drinks, the mocha to be exact, and that is where I became iffy. It was almost $5 for 8oz and it didn't even keep me awake. . . For a small set back I still give Red Whale Coffee 5 stars because their coffee has a unique taste, it's locally loved, it's local, and their coffee is strong so it is well worth the price for the strength of their coffee. They roast the beans not to far from the store front.

If you ever run into Red Whale in your nearest farmer's market or if you decide to drop by this location I recommend getting your coffee fix here when you need to stay awake but your brain is still stuck on last Monday....

April 2024, it kills me to write this, but the quality has been really hit or miss lately. Or maybe I've just had really terrible luck the last five times I've been in, but I keep coming back and being disappointed. Depending on the barista or the day, the drinks have been all over the place in terms of taste and attention to detail. Twice there have been equipment problems meaning hot drinks aren't available. I'm really saying this from a place of love and being a big fan, but I think you folks need to refocus on quality for a little while.

I've been coming here almost since the place opened, whenever I'm in town, which is about four times a year. The coffee has always been great and the space just keeps getting cooler. Be sure to check the back room for pinball, relaxing places to sit and lots of other goodies. The availability of cold brew here is unparalleled. If you like cold brew this is the place for you. The espressos and milk drinks are excellent, overall the roasts they use are fantastic. For a small period of time, during the pandemic, it seemed that they were having trouble with staff and i had a few pulls that were sub-par, but this year everything is back on track and the service and pulls have been excellent again. I'm happy to support this local business and hope they stay in business for many years. If you're in the area be sure to take the...

I like this place. It's a nice coffee shop and I can usually get in and out surprisingly quickly. They have a square card reader, and it keeps track of your points s ok that you can get a discounted drink every now and again. I love this, since I just dont like having punch cards in my purse. The drinks are good and they have a nice variety of options to choose from. They also have a small number of baked goods in case you're hungry. The people have all been fairly friendly, and overall it's just a nice little coffee shop. The only downside I would say is a matter of personal preference. I like less acidic coffee, and I've asked for their least acidic blend in the past only to be given a cup that's still pretty dang acidic. This is a bummer since my drink of choice is honestly just a cup of coffee with a little bit of half and half. But now I stick to their lattes, which are all good and I dont have to worry about the acidity of the coffee. Not taking a star off of my review for this though, considering that's just personal preference. Just mentioning it so you'll know to get a latte instead if you have...