The Brew House — Restaurant in Shallotte

To preface, I want to say that this place is incredibly charming and the staff were very nice! However, many of the things I witnessed concerned me and led to a very poor experience. To add to this I am from Ohio and work at a respected coffee roastery so this is meant for honest and helpful feedback, not a bashing.

First I came to the bar and ordered a double espresso which is what I do at all new shops I try. I immediately noticed something was wrong when the employee handed it to me and it felt heavy. I took the lid off and saw that the “espresso” had filled half the 12oz cup. A double espresso at many places should only be around 2oz. The coffee was extremely under extracted and undrinkable. I then noticed that the employee was not tamping the coffee properly which would explain why it happened. After a closer look I also noticed that the steam wands had a dense layer of dried, caked on milk crust. For health reasons this is unacceptable and shows a lack of attention and care towards proper machine maintenance. Finally I observed the employee making an iced latte and using her hand to grab ice from the reservoir and scoop it into the cup. This should speak for itself why I was disgusted. There were a few other things that I noticed but are not huge reasons for this review so I will not include them for the sake of not wanting to nitpick. I want to encourage the owner to train their employees better and operate with proper health and maintenance care in mind. This has so much potential and I hope this review does not fall...

I am a coffee enthusiast. I work on sunset Beach and Ocean Isle Beach every single day. I literally stopped here to grab a cup of coffee after waiting 15 minutes for a warm small cup of coffee with one cream and one sugar. I get my coffee which turns out to be cold and also scorched. Also there is no parking at all unless you want some prick to come out there and tell you you cannot park where there is plenty of room like it's going to cave the whole ground in. So yes, if I could I would only give you a half a star for your cold coffee after I ordered it hot and for your scorched and burnt coffee I literally could not drink and had to pour out. Yeah if this is the kind of service you want and you like coffee this is the place for you. I would assume to go to Starbucks. And that is saying a lot cuz I am a country boy raised and born in the mountains and there is nothing good about Starbucks coffee..... Very...

Hard to believe. I have been a hit or miss coffee drinker for 40 years. Even the Navy couldnt convert me. I stopped here for my wife and got a coffee to get an early morning drink. I went in thinking it would be two or three sips and then the trash. I drank the entire cup. Seems stupid I know. But it really was the best cup I have had. I don’t even know the man’s name. He was polite and direct, running it by himself. My wife thinks I’m being stupid. But hey, whose wife doesn’t. This has me wanting coffee for...