The Curly Wolf

I’ve been a huge fan of The Curly Wolf ever since they opened and brought some semblance of normalcy to the coffeeshop vibe in town. I love the atmosphere, the art, the lighting, the selections of board games, the TV in the back with the Nintendo 64 and old VHS’s — love it all! Definitely the kind of place to hang out as opposed to just somewhere to get a quick caffeine jolt and then leave. I don’t prefer their regular brewed coffee, but I always get either a mocha or some sort of chai. I’m type 1 diabetic, so I love the fact that their standard mocha has no extra sugar added, and their chais are loose leaf sweetened with honey (which I usually ask them to leave out). I’m seeing the pictures on here and reminded of how much I love the extra touch of the mason jars used as water glasses, and a huge pitcher with which to serve yourself water. Oh yeah — and taco night rocks!
Having said all that, there’s only a couple things that keep me from giving The Curly Wolf a 5-​star rating. It is EXPENSIVE! Five dollars for a mocha as I recall. Like I said, I don’t prefer their drip coffee, but there’s a lot of things that go into that. Lastly… I’ve never received poor customer service there, but… I’ve noticed a lot of the younger employees visibly «slacking off.» When you have to interrupt an employee (assuming he’s an employee, as there’s no uniform or name tag) who is watching a movie in the back room to ask for service… there’s just something wrong with this picture. I mean, I’ve worked at coffee shops before. I know it’s hard to stay busy when business is slow. It just doesn’t look very professional when employees are watching TV, playing video games, or standing around behind the counter talking. I have noticed a couple guys, maybe the owners or managers, who are a little older and who are good about keeping themselves busy, always cleaning, restocking, etc. when it’s slow. I definitely prefer it when they wait on me or make my drinks.
All that to say, I still love The Curly Wolf, and it’s one of my favorite places to come relax and hang out and play some games with some friends on a Friday night!

Absolutely love the ambience and tea selection. It was a bit late of a day for me drink and I went with tea instead. I definitely want to try coffee next time. Love this place!!!

Rudest, most condescending barista I have ever met. Have never been so poorly treated in a coffee shop in my life. The espresso is bitter and poorly pulled to boot. I will not return.

Curly Wolf Kills it! Been twice, first time I was in town for a wedding second time a drove into Nevada City (which is over an hour drive) just to grab a Cortado. Super complex and flavorful espresso. Awesome atmosphere! Super friendly staff!

So, I go into Curly Wolf tonight for a coffee, and as I’ve done countless times over the last year, bring my service animal.
I usually get my drinks to go in a thermos and wait with my dog beside the counter, however, this time the owner eyed me from across the room, said «there’s no dogs allowed in here,» and when I replied he was a service animal, the proprietor answered, «that’s not a service animal,» implying I was a liar in front of everyone in the establishment, and asked for papers documenting what my disability was. When I reminded him it was was illegal to ask me that, he quipped, «I know what the laws are.»
He then went on to say he’s had problems with the cops as a result of dogs being in there, but that he’s «a dog lover,» and it’s nothing personal.
Funny — I felt it was distinctly personal, unprofessional, and discriminatory.
Good job Curly, you lost a customer tonight.

Try the flat white! Great décor and service. A great addition to the Nevada city coffee scene.

the dirty chais are quick and the wifi is strong. favorite place to stop in when I’m
visiting friends in Nevada City.

The Curly Wolf is hipster coffee bar incarnate in downtown Nevada City. They operate in a dark and classically old environment with enough decoration to make any steampunk reality possible. Once you order and receive your drink, you can snuggle up in one of the large sofas or chairs or get down to business at one of the plentiful tables. The seats by the window are perfect for people watching.
I had a good espresso at a reasonable price, but the atmosphere was just cool. This is like a coffee shop you see in the movies or just hear about in some far off place. Just mosey on over to Nevada City, and make sure to bring your mustache and leather-​bound journal.

Positives:
Creative vibe inside
— Hipster as F*#@
— Delicious drinks
— Almond or Coconut milk available
— Plenty of seating
— Friendly staff
— Healthy snacks available
— Cool name and good logo
Negatives:
— EXPENSIVE
— If you order a mocha, latte or any other specialty hot drink you get the SMALLEST cup in the world. And it’s the same price as the iced equivalent that is 3x the size
— Very dark inside
I’m not sure if the positives outweigh the negatives. The drinks ARE delicious, silky smooth and made with high quality ingredients (especially the mocha made with HIGH-​end chocolate and absolutely delicious) but at a hefty price and again, hot drinks are about 6 oz drinks — at the same price as a 12 or 16 oz iced equivalent.
I suppose this place is worth checking out, as it is unique and interesting inside but just know note what you order and what you actually get.
Drip coffee — totally worth a return trip.
Good luck!

Need a coffee in Nevada City? Definitely drop in here.
Pros:
* Delicious coffee. They use beans from Four Barrel in San Francisco.
* Great staff
* Great hours: 7am to 12 midnight every day
* Great WiFi
* Cool décor
* Good music
* Tacos on Friday night are delicious
* Breakfast burritos are great
Ways to improve:
* Offer more food options
* Staff could bus tables more frequently
* Breakfast burritos on weekends too
* More taco nights
* Do something about the houseflies in the summer

I love the Vanilla Berry Truffle Fog!

Lightning-​fast wifi enervates surfing here.
The house coffee served to me, Four Barrel Guatemala Retana, I wouldn’t wish upon my worst enemy.
Pseudo-​intellectuals in Nevada City? LOL
The Friday night tacos are tasty bites if you enjoy cilantro. [Before & after photos featured.]
Eugene sez check it out, for a hoot!

Beware: despite its name, there is no curly wolf here! (–1 star)
With that important factor out of the way The Curly Wolf succeeds at being a trendy coffee shop in a way that it fails at being a bent canine emporium. Upon entering the establishment you are enveloped in the warm embrace of a Victorian-​era coffin. Bram Stoker would feel at home here with the deep purple wallpaper, paintings of skulls, and dim lighting.
The mocha I ordered was delicious! It’s too bad it was barely larger than a thimble of virgin’s blood. Seriously; this is an obnoxious trend in coffee shops to serve an espresso-​based drink in a cup no taller than the cardboard thermal sleeve you put around it but still charge ~$ 5. My girl got a almond milk iced latte which was also good but in a reasonably-​sized vessel. Sigh.
I’ll definitely be back but will give them a piece of my mind on un-​American serving sizes…

Candied Orange Espresso was amazing/​unique and the décor is nice, extravagant and comfortable!

Sweet and friendly staff. Great coffee. Wonderful ambience. I got the hot chocolate because I get excessively hyper when I have caffeine. It’s a nice and dark hot chocolate that feels more grown up than most others. Light on the sweet and packed with flavor. Love it.
My SO ordered the special lavender coffee with almond milk. The lavender isn’t overpowering and gives the four barrel coffee a light lift in your taste buds if you’re into that sorta thing.
The barista forgot the lavender at first, but remembered before we even picked the cup up. We were being chatty with them, so we probably distracted them. The drink was fantastic. The drink was mild and tasty. The espresso wasn’t bitter and the lavender wasn’t overpowering. Perfect.

Beautifully prepared mocha crafted from micro roaster Four Barrel Coffee beans of San Francisco. Friendly staff with moody, but welcoming décor … this could substitute for the first Gold Country Apple Store.

There’s a lot to love about this place. I love the ambience that is in line with the old National Hotel.
And you can get your chai with any type of tea you like. It’s the real deal!

Had a mocha and hot chocolate — both were beautiful and delicious
Service — when my bf asked «should I leave the glasses here?» (On the counter instead of leaving on the table) she replied «or you could put them in the glass bucket in the back» very condescending If were spending $ 10 on coffee you can at least be nice

I’ve gone here several times and every time it’s a disaster. Everytime I have ended up waiting half an hour for my drink. On one occasion I ordered a dirty chai the girl making it gave it to me without a shot of espresso and when I asked about it she told me I didn’t pay for the shot. Um, no I did she just made it wrong. She finally put the shot in and I left. When I tried it, it was AWFUL, seriously I’ve had a better dirty chai at Starbucks and I hate Starbucks.
Everytime I go there is someone behind the counter that isn’t working but he’s making himself drinks while the people who ordered wait for theirs to be made.
I’ve even tried the regular brewed coffee and everytime there is grounds in it.
Gave them plenty of chances and now I will not be going back. Going to stick with Café Mekka, way better service and coffee.

What a nice place. I got their Curly Wolf signature drink: a lavender latte. It was delicious, very mild and not too sweet and it smelled/​tasted like lavender. My mom got the Americano and it was much milder than coffee typically is with two shots of espresso. Everything seemed to run on the light side of caffeine/​coffee, after finishing our drinks we all went back for a second Americano. I would recommend an extra shot of espresso in any of their drinks.

The latte designs were beautiful with a rippled tree heart in one and a second single heart in the other. We also got one slice of mango/​strawberry cheesecake and it was some of the best cheesecake I’ve ever had! It went perfectly with the lavender latte.
The atmosphere was excellent! The air conditioning was wonderful after being outside in the July heat. It was nice and dark inside with velvet couches and several wooden tables and chairs. We sat at a table next to the open window and watched people walk up and down downtown Nevada City. The people in the Curly Wolf seemed to consist primarily of late twenties/​mid thirty year old individuals trying to beat the heat or work on lap tops. My mom and grandma were the only over 50 year olds, but they enjoyed it as well.
The waiter who took our order was very gentlemanly and helpful suggesting the lavender lattes and patiently answering all of our questions. There is only one unisex bathroom at the back which remained steadily busy the whole time we were there, but there was never a «line». They also had a small bag of toys by a coffee table, so I would say they are kid friendly, but cater to the single young adult primarily.
Overall great experience; from the coffee, to the service and the atmosphere. I would highly recommend trying The Curly Wolf.