Kitanda Espresso and Açai - Capitol Hill — Restaurant in Seattle

Ola! Boa tarde! My friends and I have been customers at Kitanda since they opened. We have always loved getting their Acai bowls, Coxinha, Pao de Quejo, and Iced Coffee - especially since we have either lived, studied, or visited Brazil. As regulars, we have always been treated well- except for today.

Typically, we order Acai bowls and ask for it to be scooped out fresh rather than handed to us pre-frozen. We like to eat our Acai soft rather than frozen since we can just buy the frozen pre-made Samba ones ourselves from the grocery store.

Although the lovely workers have always been accommodating, today was embarrassing. After we noticed that our Acai Bowl was frozen (as seen in the picture compared to mine that was freshly scooped), we kindly asked the male worker on staff (had glasses, dark hair, black shirt) if he could change it. Again, this HAS been done for us MULTIPLE times - especially since we never try to be rude. After explaining the situation and how we have been accommodated before, the male worker agreed. HOWEVER, once the WHITE female on staff (brown/dark brown roots and bleach blonde hair) overheard the conversation, she refused to accommodate us in front of everyone. Even after we politely explained the situation to her and asked again, she still refused and said that the Acai Bowl was "fresh" but that she had put it in the freezer 20-30 mins prior (yet it was STILL rock hard).

I do not mean to be fickle in this review, but it seems that the common denominator is that THE ONLY TIME WE HAVE BEEN REFUSED IS BY WHITE FEMALE WORKERS and we are BIPOC/Latina women. Shoutout to the Brazillian guy who is always so kind that works there- he always accommodates us and is happy to talk about the Portuguese language and Brazil- something that is comforting as I experience saudade for my time in Brazil.

Sadly, we now feel uncomfortable ordering from the White staff at Kitanda- but we will definitely be coming back when they're not there!

also, just overheard that the male worker were LATE to their shift today (06/28), most likely explaining why they didn't feel like they had the time to serve us a softer Acai bowl.

We hope that our time and loyalty as customers is considered when training these employees in the...

This is my new favorite coffee place!

This shop hasn’t been around very long; the location was previously used for some sort of a makeup pop-up shop (I think) before finally becoming Kitanda. The location is pretty ideal, both for the business and its customers. It’s right across the street from the light rail station and more-or-less in the middle of Broadway so pretty close to most other things.

The beverages are probably my favorite part; the coffee shakes are pretty standard but I appreciate that they’re very unassuming. They’re not called contextless Italian names; a caramel coffee shake is ice, coffee, and some caramel and it’s delicious.

The food here is pretty interesting. The chicken cones and beef pockets have really soft, spongy dough surrounding them which I don’t think I’ve ever encountered before in this format; normally the dough is very flat or otherwise very airy in handheld meat-based pies like these (think of Tatar chebureki or Polish perogies) but it’s a nice variations and I honestly like it. The hot dogs as well are noteworthy; normally would eat a hot dog with mustard, ketchup, or relish, but the bun itself is somewhat sweet and it compliments the hot dog itself so well that I don’t see a need for it.

The value is also definitely there; of course it would be cheaper to brew coffee at home but sometimes you’re in a pinch or short on time or energy and really just need some food in the stomach and some caffeine; should you find yourself in that situation, you should really find yourself here next.

The staff there are always really nice and helpful; there seem to be quite a few people on rotation at this location and I can’t say for sure I’ve ever spoken to the same person twice but I always enjoy my experience so I can’t complain (and if anything it’s all the more impressive to keep finding people with the necessary aptitude for customer service).

Overall a 5/5 and I...

The coffee is not good and the service is trash. Especially when im here for deliveries. I have this window on the outside that you're supposed to use but they ignore you they will not ever come to that window. You come inside you ask them about an order and then you wait 20 minutes. You come back in and it still isn't done and all it is is a couple sandwiches and a single drink. That was 20 minutes after the order was placed because the customer had actually messaged me to let me know someone else had already been assigned and they canceled so for the restaurant to be taking this long on one small order is not only sad it's disgusting. The fact that we're paying them to make our food and drinks and they can't even put together a couple sandwiches in a drink in an hour makes me wonder about the state of the food itself and if it's even safe to consume. The logic anyway is if you can't put together a simple order, can you understand proper food storage and handling? Because anyone can memorize a food handlers permit test. Doesn't mean they understand or care what they are supposed to...