Galvin Coffee & Bakery — Restaurant in Santa Monica

Sometimes people come into your life and change you into a better person…they’re called Baristas. :D That being said let’s delve into this awesome review.

Galvin Coffee + Bakery is a charming little new coffee shop in Santa Monica with outdoor seating, unique drinks, sandwiches and delicious pastries. Perfect for coffee lovers!

Today, I was excited to check this coffee shop because for months I drove past them on Mondays and they’re always close. And I have been to Primo Coffee shop right across the street. I arrived on Saturday morning to check GCB. They have a warm and welcoming atmosphere and friendly staff.

I perused their menu drinks, food and pastries. I was perfunctorily greeted by a young white female trainee barista and took order. I was mesmerized by her beauty for a moment and in a nervous voice, I ordered a small Cold Brew and Croissants (butter and chocolate). Drink was smooth and perfectly made to my liking. Similarly, their high quality croissants were delightful to the palate. This created an experience that was both delicious and memorable.

Ample of indoor and outdoor seats. Atmosphere was relaxing. Staff were cordial and competent. Street metered parking was abundant. Overall, I had a good experience and liked my drink and pastry. I will comeback and highly...

Stepping into the venue, am in love!! High ceiling, perfect flow of natural light, plenty of treats, just the slow-living vibes. The venue might get pretty warm on a sunny day, but having the mini outdoor sitting area in front did help.

Coming in a Sunday afternoon, I wasn’t surprised that many of the pastries have been sold out especially the croissants. When I was sitting there, I could hear many guests coming and asking for the croissants and they kept mentioning they’re super good, intriguing me to come back sometime soon to try. Another one they’re popular for’s their basque cheesecake.

I, nonetheless, came for coffee only on this first visit as I’d just got my meal. Going for their signature dulce de leche latte, I’d say nothing complicated or fancy but it simply did the job pretty well. The coffee was decent and the caramel came as just right pair to it. One thing that’s prolly bit unfortunate was I went for hot one but this came more like room temp (prolly should have asked for extra hot! Surely not the barista’s fault and she’s super nice!). I would surely wanna go back for their sweets so looking forward...

Poor quality service. Cold reception. No apologies for forgetting about my order while I stood there waiting. Lied straight to my face when I asked if she had used the house almond milk. When finally getting the order correct, never apologized for the wait or poor experience. The coffee is decent, not great. The difference between this place and Primo or Starbucks (same intersection) is that at those places they smile, greet you, ask how you’re doing, apologize if there is a wait or delay, make you feel like you’re part of the community and they care about their customers. I suspect that the reason this is the only coffee shop/bakery on Montana without a line out the door on Saturday and Sunday morning is strictly due to a lack of creating a positive atmosphere. We tried it because we didn’t want to wait in line somewhere else. They’ve not figured out why people are willing to wait in line...