Philter

Wonderful little spot for coffee.
Very cozy décor, good coffee, lots of seating and friendly staff.
Also, I don’t usually get food other than a pastry or something at a coffee place, but they had mushroom soup– and I had to try it. It was fresh and yummy. I highly recommend that you try it.
We will be back.

This is quaint little coffee shop. The coffee and the atmosphere is fantastic. They have a couple seats outside the shop where you can sip your coffee and watch the people walk by wich I enjoy.

I love Philter and come back whenever I’m in town to visit family. Great for studying, lunch, breakfast sandwiches. The croissants are so so good for breakfast sandwiches. Tried the ham & cheddar (w/​Granny Smith Apple!) sandwich today and the maple Dijon was amazing, same with the ham itself. Looking forward to an affogato sometime soon!

I am not typically in necessity to write reviews, and on that note I would like to share the experience of my time at Philter. The shop is a quaint spot. My wife and I recently moved here and stumbled upon it today. She ordered an espresso and I drank up what the Barista explained was Brazilian coffee. We were surprised at how delicious both were! We will be back to get destroyer beans promptly!
The two ladies were nice enough to let us stay extra while the rain died down. They neither rushed us out nor made any sort of remark while they closed up. They made adequate conversation (since we were of the last ones in there). A competent staff with an acquired taste is something you do not find regularly.
We have not tasted espresso this delicious since we stayed in Seattle. I look forward to meeting the owner.

If you’re looking for a window seat and a delicious coffee after strolling through Kennett Square, look no further. Philter is a unique spot with a wide variety of options, a quaint atmosphere, and a convenient location, right in the middle of town. The coffee is brewed just right and has a unique, bold flavor. The service was great, too — the cappuccino magician crafted me a rather lovely creation. I have already recommended this spot to my friends!

Philter is an oasis of excellent food, atmosphere and handcrafted beverages, justifiably loved by locals and visitors. May is the perfect time to relax with a delicious iced tea outside in the sun. You will never be rushed or disturbed, but there is a high probability your people-​watching will be interrupted by saying hello to friends as they pop in for the famous coffee, latte, espresso, etc. My favorite sandwich is the hummus, red pepper and cucumber, but you really can’t miss with any selection. Also look for the specials, as they are seasonal and interesting and a good way to vary your ‘go-​to’ picks. Look around and appreciate the surprising and elegant details in décor (Harry Bertoia, Emeco, custom crafted salvaged barn wood tables, etc), the music, and the art. Though my toddler-​toting days are over, I love how families are welcomed through thoughtful touches and menu choices so adults and adults-​with-​kids can enjoy Philter together. Great place for an informal business meeting, too. A definite ‘must-​stop’ in a cool town.

I love the food, the coffee, the look and the atmosphere of this lovely little place. I live all the way in Newark Delaware and I try to make excuses to come up here haha

The whole room is very neat, nicely decorated. Down to the labels of the trash and dish bins and the copper rings holding up labels everything is creatively presented. The coffee is freshly ground done the right way and presented beautifully. This spot is a must to pick up the morning coffee if you are visiting little olé Kennett Square. Kennett has had a few coffee shops come and go this one is here to stay.

Walking towards Philter the first thing you notice is an eye-​catching patinated bronze and wrought-​iron sculpture above a colorful and vibrant planter box. This gorgeous example of metalwork was created by a local craftsmanship and is, pun intended, a sign of good things to come.
I ordered their single-​origin espresso, a Papua New Guinea Kunjin from Ceremony Coffee Roasters, grabbed their copy of Drift (Volume 3: Havana) and took a seat by the window. Below I found a beautiful little garden with a tiny string of LED lights snaking through leaves and stems. It reminded me of the ‘desert’ wing at Longwood Gardens and I found myself slip into a pleasant daydream until my espresso was brought over by a smiling barista. The espresso was fruit forward, mildly acidic, a complex body, slightly tangy finish with notes of caramel, blackberry and nutmeg.
After finishing the accompanying sparking water I went to thank the person who crafted my beverage and was introduced to Chris, the owner. That began a wonderfully engaging conversation about the genesis of Philter, his passion for coffee and a recounting of the half-​a-​year build-​out.
Among the many nuanced decorating decisions, Chris explained that the front counter used to be the woodworking bench of a nonagenarian carpenter. The piece was purchased at an estate auction, cleaned up but with all the character intact; it even includes the original castors. It is a subtle homage to the life’s work of an artisan who spent the better part of a century crafting and repairing goods for innumerable families.
The interior is simply stunning; a harmonious combination of reclaimed materials, plants and whimsical accents. Hand pounded zinc counter-​tops, copper light fixtures, hardwood floors, tables and shelving create an elegant rustic charm. Regional prints and original works adorn the walls, a small retail section interspersed with succulents and a reference library of coffee related publications all speak to the aesthetic and cohesive vision wonderfully orchestrated by Chris and his team.
I visited again a few days later as I made my way back to Baltimore and enjoyed another stellar experience.
Final Verdict: Philter serves the best coffee between Baltimore and Philadelphia. More than that, it tells a story. The narrative speaks of passion, dedication and the three-​year anniversary of business that was ten years in the making; evocative of the past with plan for the future. I cannot wait to return!

Let me start by saying… you can not rush perfection. And patience is a virtue. Remember that kids! In an age where people are less and less patient, it refreshing to see a place taking their time to DO IT RIGHT.
So it takes a while for your coffee as it slowly drips and drips and drips. But what you have in end is something that transcends space and time. From the first sip to the last, its really something special.
Our standard order when we go is threefold. Love the ice coffee and order that first, while that is dripping and dripping an so on, i usually enjoy an espresso. Lastly i buy bags of beans for the french press at home.

Can’t believe I’ve never tried this place before!
One of my favorite coffee shops now. I had a cold brew coffee which was very strong and had great flavor. My boyfriend had a mocha iced coffee which he also loved.
For breakfast I tried the egg and cheddar on a regular bagel which was better than I already expected it to be.
A few of my favorite things about this place is that it didn’t feel overly crowded inside, there were so many cacti and other plants around the shop, and there was tons of natural light compared to the usual dark and moody coffee shop. There were also plenty of outlets available to charge your devices.

The BEST cappuccino… and I’m a coffee snob ;) Great, rustic atmosphere and the owners are very down-​to-​earth, cool people. Who doesn’t love supporting small businesses???

Best coffee in the Kennett square area. You can tell that the employees are passionate about their jobs. I am excited to go back again.

Absolute best cappuccino in the area! I’ve searched high and low for someone to get it right and Philter delivers. The drink was a perfect mixture of coffee and milk with a shimmering micro-​foam on top. I also had a chocolate croissant which was flaky and not over powered by butter. The service was quick considering how busy they were. It’s a very contemporary shop, and the owner was really nice. I’ll definitely be back.

It was less then a stellar experience. Got the mushroom soup. Plenty of mushrooms in a broth but it wasn’t hot and the mushrooms were rubbery. My wife had a breakfast sandwich and I had the curry chicken salad. They got the bread wrong on both sandwiches. The egg sandwich was really good. The chicken salad had almost no chicken salad on it. The coffee was good. I don’t expect to be back.

Great owner, great staff, fantastic coffee and food.
Love the feel of shop and the window seats are great for private conversations or just people watching.
Philter is one of the highlights of downtown Kennett Square.

Great place for a relaxing weekend morning. Coffee is good and sandwiches are delicious

Stumbled upon this coffee shop… Really needed some strong coffee and the cortado really hit the spot.
The affogato with vanilla ice cream is also delicious!

I must preface this review with a clear statement that I am an espresso fan. I love great, dark espresso. This coffee shop is a bit more than an hour from my house, and I drove here specifically to try out a new high-​end coffee roaster in the area.
It’s definitely not bad! In fact, it’s certainly better than average. If there were ‘half stars,’ I would very comfortably rate it a 3.5. But to me, a 4 star review would be something that I would drive an hour to visit again. I’m sorry to say it, but unless I learned of an advancement in their roasting, I would not drive that far. Stop by if I’m in the neighborhood? ABSOLUTELY!
Décor is great. Lots of coffee shop personality.
My breakfast sandwich was ok. I had the egg, roasted pepper and Kennet mushroom sandwich. It was very sweet, and I don’t care for sweet sandwiches — but that’s probably my own fault for ordering the peppers.
My espresso was incredibly light. That is not my expectation for espresso, and I don’t think that’s my fault at all. Most folks expect a very dark, robust drink when ordering espresso.
To the credit of the counter staff, I asked to buy their two darkest roasts, one pound each. One of them said «everything we roast is very light.» …yup!
I sure do wish them luck, and I’m sure that tons of folks will adore the super-​light roasts. But for this coffee but, I’m more than a little sad it wasn’t on par with La Colombe or Ultimo. Hopefully they grow into that!!!
Addition: I don’t read other reviews before writing mine. After posting, I read a few others. Service issues were a common theme for a few. There are three young workers here on a Saturday morning. They are totally just ‘hanging out.’ Not a bad vibe if you are looking to attract college kids who don’t really expect much in terms of quality service. For a more high end place, they need better training and supervision. A great manager or an owner looking over their shoulders would probably mean fewer dirty tables, a cleaner back counter area, and more of a «we want to WOW you» approach. Definitely another area for improvement.
I think the problem is a disconnection from the look of the place and the running of it. So much potential, short on results.

The interior of this place is very contemporary, and obviously someone has been following trends. The coffee looked promising, but it ended up just being ok to my tastes — I usually go for the creamy espressos that do not require any sugar.
I guess there really isn’t any similarly contemporary places around here though, so I was still glad to find this place. At least it looks spiffier than a Starbucks!