Stuck in here after getting off of a boat that we're doing a cruise on that stops in Portland. They are directly across the street from where you disembarked the boat. I walked in. It was immediately greeted by the smell of pumpkin spice, which isn't typically my go to, but it smells good so I ordered a pumpkin spice latte and my husband ordered a double shot. It was $12 for the 2 cups of coffee plus, of course they asked for a tip. They only have the one size which I would say is probably a small. We waited a good 15 minutes for 2 cups of coffee. The coffee is very good, but I can't see me having time to wait for this if I worked in the area. The inside feel is very industrial nothing cozy at all. read more

Speckled Ax - Double shot espresso - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

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I work within a stones throw of Speckled Ax, so this cafe is certainly a go to for me (despite a small area around my office with a densely populated coffee shop/cafe per capita ratio). The staff is extremely friendly and, despite being close to where all the cruise ships port, the service is prompt! I appreciate their run of the mill hot late the most (but I'm admittedly afraid of deviating from my norm too much). The kicker for me is the bakery/breakfast sandwich options... they are amazing!! Not everything is made in house, at least I think that's my understanding, and it's different each day (breakfast sandwiches are not available on Monday/Tuesday). But everything I've ever had is 10/10, delicious! read more

Speckled Ax - Banana Bread - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

Cultish coffee shop along harbor In lovely Portland Maine Really wonderful coffee so intent on ecology ( no sugar pkts no stevia Brown sugar and sugar syrup) 1/2 and 1/2 available from quart bottle. I get it but I confess it could be a little more user friendly. I am fussy about my coffee. Very hip atmosphere read more

Speckled Ax - Speckled ax coffee - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

I came here after reading that it's one of the rare wood-fired coffee roasters in the U.S., using a vintage Italian Petroncini and local hardwood for roasting. Naturally, I had to try the black coffee. It was bold and robust--just the way I like it. I also discovered a unique corn cake topped with cream and fennel pollen. The aroma alone was a treat, adding an unexpected yet delightful twist. The space is open and filled with light, offering a lovely view of the bay. The barista was warm and attentive, making the whole experience even more enjoyable. read more

Speckled Ax - Black coffee and corn bread with fennel pollen - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

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Speckled Ax is a local a single origin coffee shop. The inside atmosphere is a vibe; open and bright while still having a cozy side. They also have outdoor seating. I got an iced latte which was pretty average (heavy on milk). Next time I'm inclined to try to current seasonal latte:the lowbush latte. Also it seems that their overnight oats must be good because I watched 4 people buy it. read more

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Is it just me, or do all the coffee shops along Commercial Street look exactly the same now? Enormous floor to ceiling windows that flood the very sterile, very generic space with sunlight. A random plant. A random piece of art. The end. There's nothing personal or local feeling about any of these places. Another reviewer from NYC said it has a "canned atmosphere", and yeah, that's it right there. I can see this being a solid option for people who work downtown/work from home (lots of people on their laptops when I last visited) and especially the tourists coming in from the cruise ships. But as a Portlander, I won't go out of my way to come back when there are so many other coffee shops with a) more personality, b) better coffee, and c) a friendlier staff. read more

Stopped here to meet a friend for coffee and it was just average. I got an iced latte which was very small and came out to $8 dollars with no flavoring. Even for Portland this is pretty pricey. They do have lots of seating areas and some pastries available which I didn't try. With all the coffee spots in Portland this wouldn't be my first choice. read more

Speckled Ax - Inside - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

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Directly next-door to the AC Marriott where we were staying. It was great to walk over at 7 AM for a delicious cup of coffee. I wish they opened a little earlier. Had the seasonal latte. It was wonderful. read more

I had a delicious mocha! The service was polite. I also got some coffee beans ground to go and they smell amazing! I can't wait to brew them. read more

Good beans but canned atmosphere. Touristy spot given its location. Has a chain like feel...not my cup of joe. read more

Speckled Ax - Latte - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

Ordered an americano which was reasonably priced. One size for drink options. I wasn't a fan of the taste of the roast and because of that I probably would not return. The espresso tasted a little muddy but had fruity and earthy notes.I did however like the vibe of the shop. Interior was spacious, clean bright and quiet. Order was made quickly. read more

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A perfect place for a coffee and pastry. Customer service was excellent. The menu had so many choices. We will need to return and try a breakfast sandwich. read more

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Do not go to this millennial coffee shop. IT IS HORRIBLE... I got the cinnamon bun and it was the worst food I have ever had in my life the frosting tasted like sweetened ranch while the bun tasted like uncooked bread dough with cinnamon sprinkled in it. My fiancé got a coffee and one of their TWO PREMADE sandwich choices where they bake the eggs into a perfect square and it tastes like jello, the coffee tasted like campfire burnt and we threw it out and even after taking the egg out of the sandwhich it was still disgustin (we also asked if we could take things off the sandwich and since they are premade your not allowed to). OH AND NOT TO MENTION IT WAS THIRTY FIVE DOLLARS AND THEY SAY THEY ALLOW DOGS AND THEY DONT ALLOW THEM THIS PLACE IS A SCAM. You are much better off going down to navis which actually has good cof and makes their sandwich's fresh while having a good selection. read more

Just got off the boat and wanting a snack or coffee or tea before you begin your tour? THIS IS THE Best tasting coffee and chocolate chip cookie spot I've found! While the sandwiches looked really good, I just wanted a sugar fix with the coffee. Absolutely bight and cheerful with the modern décor. Exceptionally friendly and welcoming staff as the boat of over 4000 passengers descended upon the local community! Grab a seat at the counter along the front window to people watch, SO INTERESTING! read more

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Amazing breakfast sandwiches and a delicious maple latte overlooking the water. The staff was lovely, and the space was bright and clean.

Stopped in here for breakfast on a cold end-of-October Friday morning. Ordered a bacon, egg, and cheese breakfast sammich - with a cold brew. The place was pretty busy. While I was waiting for my food - I noted that the way the sun comes in the front windows in the morning is a bit overwhelming. The front of Speckled Ax is all massive glass windows. Blinding. No shades that I could see. Cold brew was average; the breakfast sammich was tasty! #SpeckledAx read more

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Nice interior. The staff was friendly. They have a large selection of pastries, coffees and teas. The hot chocolate was kinda mid tho. I did love my PSL. read more

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This had been our "go to" place every Thursday before we got the work day started. This past Thursday, August 24th was my last. The coffee had always been good... and the bakery (which isn't theirs) always delicious. But my goodness the level of moodiness from the staff member who took our order was so incredibly rude and dismissive it ruined the entire visit. This particular employee was never the nicest but was easy to overlook because the coffee was good and other employees were nice but this last visit she just went too far. We sat their so uncomfortable about how we were treated we ended our time there within 15 minutes. read more

Speckled Ax - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

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The menu is relatively small in terms of flavors for their coffee, but what I had was delicious. They offer the bacon, egg and cheese on a gluten free option on a bed of greens and pickled onion and it was very yummy indeed. I also enjoyed my oat milk caramel latte. The price seemed a bit steep for the small. read more

Speckled Ax - Bacon, egg and cheese gluten free version - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

I do like the atmosphere very bright and spacious with ample seating. The staff who took our order was friendly, but not sure what happened with our orders since it took a while. I had their special latte called: Lowbush, but it wasn't great. Bitter at first, but once I shook it a bit, it became somewhat sweet. It has unusual flavors and lacks the fruitiness of the blueberry. read more

Beautiful and spacious interior. Came in one morning for a specialty latte. The specialty latte itself was fine. It sounded complex with the ingredients but it came out mostly disappointing and just tasted like chocolate syrup in coffee, which was disappointing for the price I paid. read more

Speckled Ax - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

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I visited the Thames location. The open space atmosphere was very bright and refreshing. Menu was quite particular in terms of beans origins and varieties. I had a lot of questions, but the employee helping me did not really know answers about the specifics on the board. So I just got what seemed healthy and tasty after a quick google of some details. I had the Kenya Gatina AA - washed Batian Ruru with notes of blackberry, caramel, and orange zest. It was far from my typical, and I can appreciate that the coffee was of a good quality, but my experience would've been much more enjoyable if I could've been directed to flavors more suited to my palate. Beautiful view and in an easy to find area! read more

Speckled Ax - Kenya Gatina AA - washed Batian Ruru with notes of blackberry, caramel, and orange zest - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

Very cool seating. My coffee however was not the greatest... the staff was kind however! I always look forward to that. I ordered an iced coffee and strongly disliked it. I wasn't expecting this and as a result I probably won't be returning for the product, but for the cool vibes! A perfect study spot with big windows and nice seating. Parking is a bit of a struggle as there is no lot. Cool place to hang out. read more

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I wanted to love the Speckled Ax, as I'm a sucker for brightly lit coffee shops with an inviting atmosphere, a small menu, and light bites. Although I'm not necessarily their target audience, as I detest coffee, I'm a sucker for a good chai (hot or iced), and have had my fair share of amazing chais throughout Portland. Although I love the ambiance and artisanal menu that Speckled Ax offers, their chai was pretty lackluster and fell short of my expectations. It lacked the typical sweet and spicy flavor I look for in a good chai, as it was pretty bland. read more

Zero stars more like it. Weak coffee, WAY overpriced served by surly barista. Somebody must have pulled her nose ring too hard this morning. Lots of alternatives- I just made a mistake thinking all coffee shops in Portland are great (every other I've gone to is). Avoid speckled Ax! read more

First off- the coffee is fine. I'm not too picky when it comes to black coffee, and the atmosphere is pretty chill. I had run in a couple times during trips to the old port. Today I came in to get some work done while my wife ran a 5k across the street. I came in and ordered coffee to stay (in a mug). I got my coffee and sat down, opened my laptop and realized there was no WiFi. I was perplexed so I got up to ask the barista if there was in fact no wifi, to which they replied yes, curtly. I believe this was the "surly" barista mentioned in other reviews. I then asked if I could have my coffee transferred into a to go cup cuz uhh I expected wifi? Perhaps I'm brainwashed my Starbucks trying to get their cafes to be our "third places." I thought WiFi in a cafe was like chips at a Mexican restaurant or birds in a park. Fine, I'll go. Anyway, I when I asked if my drink could be transferred she looked at me like I had two heads, and said "you want to buy a coffee?" After seeing me get up away from my mug. No, I bought one I'd like it to go please because there's no wifi. They then seemed pissed off about transferring the drink or simply handing me a paper cup, fine maybe it's taboo or something? Whatever. They eventually transferred my drink and I went across the street to Navis who graciously gave me their wifi code. The experience just left a bad taste in my mouth. Or maybe that was their expensive coffee... read more

Corn latte? Yes! The sign hooked me. Such a unique latte I had to try it. The service was very friendly but the wait took awhile. It was worth it for this unique treat. Real whole milk infused with a subtle corn flavor like a sweet creamed corn. It was great! I did want a stronger corn punch but it's probably difficult to create a clean corn flavor. I would get this again and recommend it and may even pitch it's the new drink for fall read more

-NO WIFI- they should update this Yelp page -Not a great place to work for the day. They don't have blinds so the sun just beats down on your face -Coffee is decent. I got the house special fruity pebbles, not too sweet. - staff is kind read more

If you want an amazing cup of coffee, like a day changing cup of coffee, go to speckled ax.

Whoever is rating this place sub-4 stars clearly doesn't like coffee. I've had beans from here that I purchased back home several times and the quality and roast is always top notch. I finally got the chance to drop in while in town for work and was pumped that the brewed quality matched the product for sure. The espresso was flavorful and rich, a great pairing with milk for an iced latte where the notes of the coffee really got to shine. The location is great, and the interior space has a modern cozy feel great for gathering or cracking down on some wfh. Definitely a new go-to when in Portland. read more

Only stopped here for a breakfast sandwich, we ordered 2 of the bacon egg & cheese muffin. This item was $7.50. There were 5 people working here, 1 at the register, 1 at the espresso machine, 1 doing something behind the scene and 2 in the kitchen. Unfortunately there were 3 customers ahead of me who also ordered the same thing, so thus it took 17 minutes for my order to finally be done. I observed the 2 in the kitchen, only 1 was making the muffin orders. The other was just doing other prep work (something with garlic) and/or cleaning. Not a very efficient process. I wasn't expecting a fast food pace, but this was sit down and order pace. So we ate the muffins at our hotel, and I did like the bacon, but there was no cheese visible. I inquired via email and was told the cheese was mixed with the egg. Like I said, no cheese visible. Was I happy, no. Was it worth it, no. read more

Speckled Ax - a restaurant with a counter and chairs - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

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Perfect coffee and wonderful staff! Bright interior with a harbor view, and it's conveniently located

Me and my wife got coffee I got a hot latte it tasted like a mushroom coffee or some other coffee alternative. My wife ordered the fruity pebbles special which she said was pretty good the price was a bit much for why we got. read more

New location is amazing. And I am so happy that now they also serve some food. They have some outside sitting and because of Covid they are not allowing any inside sitting. Hopefully that will change soon because it might get too cold being right next to the water and temperatures dropping in Portland already. Staff was extremely friendly. But our 3 lattes did take a little bit of time. It took longer than our breakfast sandwiches. read more

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On my last day in Portland, we stopped in for breakfast. I have to say, I was disappointed. I ordered an everything bagel with cream cheese and a latte. The bagel was a little expensive but it was fine (how hard is it to mess up a bagel). I ordered an espresso drink based on reviews but it was a miss. The latte was not good. The espresso itself was incredibly bitter and the milk did not help to cut the bitterness. I didn't finish it. I also waited a very long time for my drink, which didn't help the disappointment. read more

Finding this place wasn't as easy as I thought. This review is for the Thames St. location. It is hidden in plain sight and I walked right past it at first even though I was specifically looking for it. Very clean and modern interior. No indoor seating right now during the pandemic but it looks as though they will have a good amount of seats when things return to normal. There are some outdoor chairs and mini tables at this time (Nov 2020). I ordered a Cortado and an egg sandwich. The egg sandwich comes on an English muffin and you have the choice of either avocado or bacon on the sandwich. I cannot remember what else was on the sandwich but it was good and tasted a lot better than it looked. The star of the show for me was the Cortado. Supposedly, they wood roast their coffee. Whatever they do to it, it has an amazing taste. The flavors that came through on the Cortado were really interesting and way different than any espresso I've tasted - I drink a lot of espresso... I think they also had bags of coffee for sale, some craft chocolate bars, clothing, and reusable drinkware. read more

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Speckled Ax is a solid high-end coffee shop. I've tried most of the coffee shops in town over the past few summers. While I like, and patronize, several of them for different reasons, this one has the best espresso based drinks, hands down. Their hot chocolate is also very rich and thick. The food items are on the expensive side, but that is likely explained by their claim that it is all made with locally grown ingredients (and I'm taking the claim at face value). Having said that, it isn't my favorite place to get breakfast. It's my favorite for grabbing a latte, and I'll usually only get something to eat (usually the stuff that's already prepared) if I'm in a hurry. read more

Speckled Ax - Covid-19 ordering line - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Portland, Maine

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This place has great coffee and is only a few blocks from my house so my kids bought me a gift card online. I went there with friends to get coffee and was told the online gift cards can only be used to buy online merchandise. I was given the managers email and sent two messages and got no reply. so I was forced to use my gift card online and if that wasn't bad enough I had to pay 5.50 in postage when I live right around the block! I'm sure you have plenty of summer business and don't care that I won't be coming back , but I live here year round and won't be getting coffee from you in the winter when you won't have plenty of business. read more

If you drink espresso this is your spot. If I'm not pouring shots at home. I cycle between here and tandem. I consistently get better shots from speckled ax though. Baristas and coffee's change with every shop , on pretty much a weekly basis. These guys consistently strike a balance between having a heavy~rich mouth feel, and a bright clean shot.. Their "Kenya honey Koke" coffee produced the best espresso I have ever had. Thick syrupy shots that produce the most intense blueberry flavor. I'm really excited for them to roast more this year. I seriously hope they get enough business to keep their coffee alive. It's not a great time to start paying a lease down the waterfront. read more

Delicious espressos, unique latte's and a beautiful open space is what you get when you come to Speckled Ax. The design is minimalistic and the space is large, although seating seems to be closed for now due to COVID. However, there are some outdoor seats. Order at the register, collect at the bar and then go enjoy your cafe outside or elsewhere on Portland's streets! Definitely a great addition to the Old Port neighborhood! read more