Extremely kind and helpful staff, the best banana bread you've ever had in your life and a very…read moreclean bathroom

I was in the area for a doctor's appointment and needed a quick coffee fix. When a spot popped up…read moreon Yelp with some great photos, I figured I'd give it a try. Parking ended up being a bit of a walk, which had me second-guessing the decision at first--but I'm glad I stuck with it. The moment I walked in, the space felt thoughtfully designed. The flow of the café is one of the best I've experienced--open, comfortable, and easy to navigate. As soon as the door opened, the barista greeted me right away. The counter is positioned close enough that you don't feel awkward hovering like in some cafés where the bar feels miles away. It immediately felt welcoming. I visited on a weekend during a slower period, but since the café sits right next to a college, I can imagine the line spilling out the door during peak hours. At quieter times though, the layout works well--there's enough space for a couple people to wait without crowding the entrance. I ordered a cortado and an almond croissant. The croissant came warmed, and the texture was spot on: fluffy, layered, and not overly greasy. The almond filling had a really nice balance--nutty with just enough sweetness and a hint of salt to round it out. I was told the pastries are made in-house, and it definitely shows. It tasted like something made with care. The cortado itself was solid--pretty classic, nothing overly fancy. One thoughtful touch I appreciated was that it came with sparkling water, which was great for cleansing the palate. The space itself is fairly spacious and works well if you want a quiet moment to sip your coffee. That said, most of the seating is high stools, so it doesn't really feel like the type of place to settle in and study for hours. Overall, I really enjoyed the atmosphere, service, and quality of the food. The one thing that caught me off guard was the price of the croissant at $6.50. It tasted great and I understand prices in this area tend to run higher, especially for house-made pastries--but it's a bit outside what I'd usually spend. So while I definitely think it's good, it might not become a regular stop for me simply due to location and budget. Still, a great find and a pleasant surprise during a routine coffee run. Staff & Service: Environment: Food & Beverage:

Why does Mercer Island have an abundance of fantastic bakeries?…read more La Fete is a petite pastry / coffee shop that has amazing pastries. The earlier you come the more likely you will get to eat the delicious pastries, but if you come past 11 AM you likely won't find much. Their croissants are always on the menu, but many of their pastries are seasonally available so you have to come back. I haven't tried their sandwiches yet, but those pastries are amazing. The staff here are so nice too! Super tolerant as my indecision took over my brain seeing so many pastries! I think not having anyone behind me helped with that - a rare slow moment - because once the door opened I waved the white flag, asked them to pick me 3 of their favorites and off I went. The only problem with that is I can't recall the names of what I bought. The croissant, easy. The little puffy pastry with big sugar flakes and apricot that was very light? No clue except it was delicious.

Really enjoyed this little cafe! The pastries are baked in house and are delightful. We had the…read morealmond croissant and the raspberry chocolate croissant and both were excellent though I preferred the almond. Espresso was solid. They also have small baguette sandwiches that I'd like to try next time. There was tons of traffic on a weekday morning. Overall a small space with a few small tables inside and an outdoor patio with more tables which will be lovely as the weather gets warmer, but we were able to grab a table. Great place for catching up with someone.

We visited Shawn's Bakery on Mercer Island for a Sunday lunch. It's a cute little spot, but be…read moreaware that there are only a few outdoor seats. The bakery was quite busy, with a steady stream of customers. The selection was a bit limited when we arrived, possibly because it was late on a Sunday. We ordered a turkey panini and a coffee. The panini was perfectly toasted with nicely melted cheese, though I wished it had more fillings. I also found the coffee to be on the bitter side. We want to come back to try their challah and pretzel rolls next time!

Shawn is such a sweet guy! Incredible coffee and even better baked goods! I will definitely be…read morecoming back!

Recently moved to Bellevue from Seattle and of course was desperate to find a new brunch spot with…read moreallergen-friendly options, and WOW. Bellden Cafe has it all, we've already gone several times I'm obsessed with the ube mochi waffle, it is soooo delicious (not too sweet, incredible texture and flavor). Their matcha is also lovely, I got matcha with rose syrup both times I went (so immaculate). I've turned into a bit of a matcha snob, so always looking for some good options and they hit the spot. The service is incredible, literally the people working there are the nicest people everrrr. Even on a super busy weekend morning, they were so accommodating, so friendly and even remembered us from just one visit! Really fantastic team, they really make the whole experience even MORE lovely. And the interior is jussssst so gorg!!! The decor is immaculate, there's lots of space (even when it was crowded), would be a perfect place to work from during the week, even their outdoor tables were very clean and cutie. Absolutely love, this has become a new staple of ours since moving to the east side! brunch girlies rise!!!

Bellden Cafe isn't a place where I'd normally eat a meal at, but we were only a bit peckish and in…read morethe middle of playing a board game. After being recommended Bellden Cafe by a foodie friend for a quick meal, we headed over to get some takeout to eat during the game. Mr. Brioche ($11) - This sandwich starts with a rich toasted brioche bun, which is then slathered with some creamy and fatty aioli. A soft and tender, spiced breakfast patty is placed on top, charred just a tad to give some browning and develop flavor. Some eggs, cooked on the flat top in a circular mold which makes it perfectly conform to the size of the bun, is carefully placed on top of the meat, and then finally some swiss cheese cements the sweet vegetal microgreens atop. The bun is voluminous, especially noteworthy in height. The interior ingredients only reaches perhaps 1/3 the height of the bun, making it appear that the sandwich will be dry. But that's an impression soon deemed to be false, as there's more than enough moisture from the aioli and melted cheese to smooth things over. (4/5) I don't normally associate cafes, particularly ones that seem to lean more towards the drink side of things, to also serve good food. But overall, I came out pleasantly surprised at the quality of the food I ate. Bathrooms - Single unisex room.

Last Frontier Café is a cute and cozy spot with plenty of seating, making it a great place to…read morerelax, work, or catch up with friends. One thing I really liked is that they have board games you can borrow and play while you're there, which adds to the fun atmosphere. I tried their Mango Matcha Latte, and it was decent. However, I really enjoyed the overall vibe and ambiance of the café, so I'd definitely come back to try some of their other coffee drinks

Last Frontier Coffee opened up about a year or so ago and is located next to the Toyota Michael's…read moredealership. This place used to be the old Tully's Coffee 20+ years ago and more recently Cypress Coffee, which it's closed its doors a couple of years ago. It's a great central location on the eastside, just off of I-90. The interior is modern, well-lit, and spacious. They have board games and plenty of tables for sitting, studying, and working. I would say 90% of people there at around 11am on a weekday had their laptops open and earphones in. The table I sat at could've been wiped off a bit better, but other than that, the bathrooms and interior were clean. Last Frontier features a seasonal menu which this summer includes a Mango Matcha, Blueberry Latte, and Butterfly Iced Tea. Outside of their seasonal menu, their menu is pretty standard, but they use a special coffee brand from Japan which I hope to try maybe in the future. They additionally serve a limited variety of pastries from Macrina Bakery. I ordered a regular ICED MATCHA ($6.75) with oat milk (+0.75). With tax and tip, my order came out to nearly $10, which is pretty steep even these days for a drink. I will say that the matcha had a nice gradient and color to it and that based on the color, they use high quality ceremonial matcha and not the cheap yellowish green matcha that many cafes use. However, it was somewhat watered down and did not have any microfoam at the top, indicating that the ratio of water to matcha was too high. Given that Last Frontier is more of a coffee shop than a matcha shop, this is to be expected. So I will say that while itt's not the best matcha out there, it's also not the worst I've had either; it's passable. Also, the drink came unsweetened by default I guess (which I personally prefer), but just putting it out there for those who are used to having sweetened matcha :) One qualm I have is that they don't have prices on their menu which I think should be transparent to customers. I also don't like how the keypad for tipping is so close to the register and facing flat up that the baristas see exactly how much you are tipping. Furthermore, I'm not a fan of shops who charge more for alternative milk. In my opinion, just because you are lactose intolerant, you shouldn't be charged more, but it seems remain a common cafe practice despite Starbucks removing the extra cost for plant milk from their menu. Overall: 3/5 for drinks, 3/5 for atmosphere, 3/5 for service

Food: We shared an "energy blaster" acai bowl which came with strawberries, banana, peanut butter,…read morehoney, and granola. The first thing that stood out to us was the bow was DRENCHED in honey. At some point it was too much honey to even eat the bowl. The fruit and acai were fresh (but covered in honey) and the acai was good. Another thing to note is that we ate the acai right away, but it already seemed to be somewhat melted. Price: the acai was $14 after tax Service/Ambiance: Despite it being decently busy, the staff was very nice and offered to answer any questions we had on the menu. The restaurant itself was pretty busy with quite a few people sitting in and studying or chatting

The service was wonderful. The gal did a good job making sure that I knew what was in a Brazilian…read moreLatte. I had been to the Redmond Kitanda a long time ago. I really loved it then. I got the Brazilian bites and have to say was kind of disappointed as they didn't feel the optimal crispness on the outside. But they were tasty. It was nice and clean inside. The outdoor seating has promise in the summer.

I loved the Turmeric Ginger Latte (ordered half-sweet). One of the standouts out of all the coffee…read moredrinks I've tried here. It uses a white chocolate ganache infused with turmeric and ginger as the base, making it silky smooth and deeply warming without the spice notes being too strong. The banana bread here is also absolute perfection! It's dense, smooth, and has high-quality milk chocolate chunks and toasted pecans. The chocolate is delicious, which makes sense given Dote's specialty in chocolates. The exterior has a wonderful, subtle caramelized brown crust, and the pecans and chocolate perfectly balance the ripe bananas smoothly incorporated in the bread. I liked that it was slightly chilled when I got it, as it was not overly sweet and really enhanced the texture for me. Will definitely be back when I'm in the area! All the pastries, drinks, and to-go items look wonderful.

If you're looking for a working spot, this is it. So many ppl on laptops doing their work on a…read moreTuesday. The quality of coffee & matcha is great! The quiche was so delicious. Salty, savory and flavorful. Not dry. Two main seating sections - front has ample sunlight from floor to ceiling windows. Back is more moody with darker paint & cushioned seating. Light music in background, nice ambiance for working/studying.

When I'm in the food for great coffee, I come here vs. Starbucks. The coffee is smooth & bold…read morewithout being bitter and strong. My go to is an Americano. And surprisingly the lady remembered me on my second visit and asked if I wanted an Americano. Great touch of customer service. The bagels are fresh & bigger than what I would get at Starbucks too. And more bagel options is a plus for me. I get why people love their small coffee stands here. They are quaint, friendly, & so much better than the big guys.

I was coming off I5 south at 7am and wanted something to kick start my time. After typing in "drive…read morethru coffee" Apple Maps took me here. It is a cute coffee shack tucked into a neighborhood just a couple minutes from the freeway exit. There wasn't much traffic in the morning which was nice. The service was nice. I ordered a white chocolate mocha. The coffee tasted a little burnt I think if I lived in the neighborhood this would be a fun place to go to in the mornings but since it's out of my normal route the convenience of it being a drive thru is something that would bring me back again

I love their corn dogs here! Literally the best. The milkshake was perfect as well. Only thing that…read moremade it 4 stars was because my smoothie wasn't fully blended & it wasn't to my preference on taste. Super friendly service & the pricing here is so good. I'm surprised not even more people know about this spot.

Do you want to have the best corn dog of your life? If the answer is yes, then you should visit…read moreBob's Espresso. Bob's is bucking the latest health trends and leaning into life's simple pleasures, namely their iconic dipped-meat-stick. In my opinion, their snowy little shack should be named after the dogs themselves, instead of the espresso. They do have a plethora of drinks that you can choose from, but I can't speak on those. I was locked in on the main prize all day, taking down two of these monster dogs. You'll immediately be taken back to a simpler time, maybe at a state fair or your local carnival, which was probably the last time you had one. Your impression of a corn dog is probably that it has too much breading, like a sausage wrapped in a pancake. But no, these are much more dog-forward. The batter is only a thin layer, making for an impeccable crunch on every bite. The inner-dog is flavorful and juicy. My only gripe is the lack of variety in sauces. I've proclaimed many times here that I am a sauce boi, so mustard and ketchup alone will not cut it. A mayo-based sauce would have taken this to the next level as a dog shop. But I can't take away points for that, since this is still the best of my life. A worthwhile stop after a day of hiking, skiing, or shameless indulgence.

Despite the average reviews which I don't understand thoroughly love this spot with its proximity…read moreto light rail, friendly service, and food. It is always quite packed but we've been fortunate to always find a spot to eat. It is great for breakfast and really love the breakfast BLT with its well toasted bread, eggs, summer tomatoes, and crisp lettuce. My daughter loves the Bialy egg sandwich will son favors the biscuit breakfast sandwich... we don't get tired of it and one of the few spots where everyone is happy.

The new Mercer Island Macrina is a beautiful addition! The space is bright, spotless, and…read moreincredibly spacious, with plenty of comfortable indoor seating as well as a lovely outdoor patio. It's a much nicer place to sit and relax compared to the Capitol Hill location. I also appreciated that they offer several gluten-free options, making it easier for those with dietary restrictions to enjoy a treat. Great coffee, delicious pastries, and a calm, inviting atmosphere. I can definitely see myself coming back.