Thirsty Mind Coffee Bar — Restaurant in South Hadley

I used to come to Thirsty Mind often. I loved the cozy atmosphere & friendly staff. At one time, it was a great little coffee shop where you could sit & relax, just enjoy your beverage & hang out, alone or with company, grab a book if you felt like reading. They used to have poetry readings & it just had a really laid back vibe. This was years ago. I went back after not having visited in quite some time (it's almost an hour away from home for me) & I was saddened to see how much they've changed! Different staff, adding alcohol to their menu. Not my cup of tea anymore. As someone who doesn't drink, this will no longer be a place I spend my time or money. It's really too bad they felt the need to change it so much. In my personal opinion, they should've left it the way it was. With plenty of bars, clubs, and restaurants that serve alcohol, why the need to add it to a coffee shop?? There's so many awesome hot/cold coffee/tea type beverages such as latte's, cappuccino's, chai, etc...I can't see why they thought that coffee/tea/booze was a good combination? Only reason I imagine was to appeal to the nearby college crowd. Sad things can't stay the same...best of luck Thirsty Mind! Thanks for the memories. Maybe another place like the former Thirsty Mind will open in the area. If I were to rate it based on my experiences years ago, it...

It's a decent cafe. Definitely better than most. That said, lately the baristas have been a little rude. Also, it's really nice that they finally have vegan cream cheese for bagels but it's a little sad that it comes with so much plastic -- the cup, the knife, the lid. If the staff would just take 30 seconds to spread it on the bagel, I'd eat ten of them.

Also, the hours are a bit whack. 7am-3pm is so strange. I'm sure it comes down to staffing issues. But no more open mic, no place to chill after work, no chance to study at the cafe into the evening, and Friday/Saturday seem like just common sense to be open until at least 8 if not 10 or even later.

Would be nice to be able to leave feedback on a comment box of sorts as well, so I wouldn't have to write this all out publicly. I asked for a way to leave a note for the owner and the barista just said no we don't do that here. Well, Google reviews it is.

I actually prefer going to Esselon even though it's like 10 min further away. The atmosphere and staff and food and hours are all way better. Truly a shame given how nice it is to have a cafe so close.

I have high hopes for thirsty mind. Might be good to keep dogs out too idk it's too small of a space and when a customer's dog gets barky or lunges at you, it doesn't feel warm or safe or...

Went here to grab a coffee and a glass of wine with my sister tonight and was taken aback by the poor attitude of the barista behind the counter. We did think it was open until 10 (which was our fault, we didn’t check) so we knew we couldn’t stay for wine...which was fine with us. I went to the counter to order a drink to go and without even a smile or a greeting she asked if we wanted any pastries, which made it seem like we shouldn’t even think of ordering any drinks.

I looked up at the menu to order a drink and was made aware that the espresso machine was closed for the night. Thirty minutes were left until closing, which seems like a huge window to close the whole espresso machine down for the night. I only speak from experience of both mine and my sisters, where we have both worked in many coffee shops before. Since the espresso machines were down for the night, I ordered a coffee which was luke warm.

I understand that the store was closing and things need to get done in order to do so, but running water through an espresso machine and pulling a shot won’t set you too far back. A smile wouldn’t influence the time that you were planning on getting out tonight. Just having decent customer service skills wouldn’t have held you up either.

Unfortunately I won’t...