Socotra Yemeni Coffee & Co. — Restaurant in Temple Terrace

As much as I love this place and wanted to give it 5 stars, consistent bad experiences have forced me to leave a bad review. I have been to this place COUNTLESS times, from soft opening until recently. Every time I go, I end up more disappointed and have noticed a consistent trend: overpriced items and lowered quality control.

Firstly; they load your drink up with ice. The last 3 times I have been, I have gotten my normal order of an iced pistachio latte. I usually order less ice, because if you get ice they will load your cup full of ice and you will only get a few sips of actual drink. Each time without fail, I have gotten less and less drink in my cup, to the point where I brought it up and they told me that this is the normal amount that comes with less ice. When you pay $8 for some coffee with pistachio syrup, I think it’s very poor practice to cheat a customer out of a full cup of drink. I’m sure there is plenty of profit margin to give the customers a full drink, and it sure leaves a bad taste in the customers mouth when they spend $8 for an almost half full cup.

Secondly; inconsistency. So many times me or people I am with have gotten a drink that turns out terrible. The strawberry refresher for instance is just Red Bull with strawberry syrup at the bottom. Other times they skimp out on the drink or syrup, or sometimes make it overbearingly sweet. Again goes to show low quality control.

Third; the desserts. This is very subjective and honestly not a dealbreaker. Sure the desserts taste fine, some are even amazing. But again they are sometimes inconsistent with the size and charge almost $8-9 for any pastry. I don’t like to complain about price, but at some point a $9 slice of cake that’s two bites big becomes a little ridiculous.

Fourth; the service. Most of the times it’s fine, but other times the staff can seem rude and work very slowly. Multiple times I’ve had to stand in a line of maybe 5 people and still had to wait 15 minutes, because of some issue at the counter. Other times the buzzers they use don’t work.

Really hope these guys can fix these things up as more Yemeni coffee shops plan to open...

We were excited to try this new Yemeni coffee shop in Temple Terrace, the center of Tampa Bay's interesting array of unique restaurants, grocery stores and coffee shops. We managed to make it on day two of their soft opening. Thanks Rachel M for telling me about it! The official opening is in about two weeks...

Upon stepping in, I was presented with a beautiful, clean, stylish and well decorated interior. There was a good turn out on this Tuesday afternoon. I stepped up to the counter and was quickly greeted by Janeigh, who was engaging and ready to help!

We chatted about what drinks are made with in-house flavors and I was pleasantly surprised to learn they have four! My wonderful wife will be happy!

The manager, Abdul-Rahman, also introduced himself and we all chatted. Then, Taslima joined the fun as we discussed why I'd come to their Yemeni coffee shop, from how far away, and what I should order for my wife. Everyone was enthusiastic and I learned that everything is 50% off during the soft opening period. Wow!

Yemen is the little-known center of the entire coffee universe and the word Mocha actually comes from a Yemeni city named Mokha! Pure Yemeni coffee is so naturally sweet, that adding chocolate to other inferior forms of coffee was invented to try to duplicate the original!

I learned their in-house made flavors include: Socotra Spice roasted in house Pistachio Rose Cardamom and Vanilla

Taslima helped develop the drink flavorings and made us two, Socotra and Pistachio lattes. They were both truly fantastic and memorable.

Life is good with unique, flavorful, excellent coffee in a stylish, respectful and perfectly clean unique...

Socotra has a wonderful atmosphere! As soon as I walked in I felt like I was in a different country. The details such as the lighting, waterfall wall, artwork, and decorative choices in seating that create nooks for a little more privacy between different tables are all fantastic. There is one meeting room that a few people were inside and working on laptops which may be an option for collaborative work space. There is both indoor and outdoor seating.

The coffee was delicious with an expansive menu of traditional middle eastern beverages and the standard cafe coffee drinks. They have a pastry case with many options for a quick bite. The Forest fruit cheesecake was delicious! Not too sweet and you could taste the berries, slightly sweetened with powdered sugar and the smooth cheesecake texture made for a very pleasant treat. The Parmesan leek danish was savory with the flavors melding perfectly to compliment each other without any overpowering flavors taking over.

Lastly, the service was phenomenal. I asked many questions about the menu including pronunciation of their traditional Yemeni menu. The baristas were kind and patient and helped me fully understand what I was ordering. They quickly had my order ready on a very aesthetically pleasing tray. Everything was great and I look forward to becoming a...