Crooks Coffee — Restaurant in Santa Rosa

Edited on October 26th. Now to add to the problem one of the regulars who hang out across the street for hours has a dog who bit me when passing by. When I stopped to ask him if the dog had rabies shots etc he just laughed and refused to answer. He and his other buddies that hang out there are nothing but bullies guarding their "turf". I as someone who lives in this neighborhood now has to avoid that whole area. Still no response from Crooks.

After many attempts to address the cigarette butt situation Crooks still won't do anything about it and no longer responds to my inquiries. At first the response was, "oh we care about our neighborhood and intend to address the issue". The people who gather on either side of Crooks and across the street leave copious amounts of discarded cigarette butts that go into our nearby creeks and are just overall a huge litter problem. Cigarette butts end up in our creeks and eventually to bigger waterways and the ocean. One of the biggest problems for our waters and the wildlife that rely on them. Crooks should at the very least, make it part of their routine to sweep up these areas daily after or right before closing. As someone who lives in this neighborhood, it feels like they don't really care since they don't live here. The crowd of smokers on the west side of Mendocino make it nearly impossible to walk on the sidewalk without going through huge clouds of smoke and the smokers rarely move for passing through pedestrians. Even the bars at least put out the standing ashtrays. C'mon Crooks be a good neighbor.

Update as of May 11th 2024. It's still the same and has only gotten worse. The entire west side of Mendocino directly across from Crooks looks like an ashtray that hasn't...

Overall, this place is really nice for a quick early morning coffee or some time for yourself. Good, quick, and easy. Now, as someone who has been coming for several months, here are my more in depth opinions. Food & Drinks: it's a COFFEE shop. Their food and pastries are good, don't get me wrong, but it's more like something you would get along with your drink. Some of their food and pastries are surprisingly good, in fact. But it's obvious that their focus is coffee. They do have seasonal drinks, though, which is always an extra bonus. Seating & atmosphere: the seating is decent. It's not exactly comfortable, but it functions well and keeps the whole feeling of the shop together. They don't have the best seating for groups more than maybe 2 or 3 so it's not the best for brunch with all your friends. Otherwise, I enjoy their decor and I think they make the best of their darker interior with their Edgar Allen Poe/crow theme. Service: the people who work there are nice, serve you well, and are generally pretty polite. They have regulars and the atmosphere is pretty informal so be prepared for conversations with a barista happening right next door. Cost: it is a bit pricey in some items. I go there for a $3 tea and some pastries. Which, is the cheapest thing on the menu. If you're looking for cheap, this is not your place. I could say that the quality outweighs the cost, but honestly, I don't eat enough food or drink enough of their coffee to really know. Make the best decisions...

I’ve been a casual customer at Crooks Coffee for the past few years. The coffee itself has always been decent, and I never had much to complain about. I’m not someone who typically writes reviews, but my experience this morning was disappointing enough that I felt it needed to be shared.

I stopped by around 9:30 AM and was met with rudeness from the cashier on duty. I’m not sure what could have caused such a negative attitude—I was polite, placed a simple order, and even left a tip in hopes of brightening his mood. But the interaction left a bad taste in my mouth.

Unfortunately, this will be the last time I visit. If the owner happens to read this, I urge you to pay closer attention to how your staff treats your customers. It may seem small, but experiences like this are how businesses slowly lose loyal patrons—just as I’ve now lost...