Take Five Coffee + Bar

Support local + indy. This place has great vibes and cool staff. Good music selection and a lot of tables and chairs for the rats to race on. Again, the music choice on the stereo was stimulating but not distracting. The WiFi was decent, and the java was good.
My only beef was the recommendation of the baristas to order an iced Chai Tea for myself. My wife ordered a latte, which was pretty stinkin’ good. When my Chai came out, I took a sip from the straw and was rewarded with lukewarm Chai. Dude. Total barista faux pas. In my humble but experienced opinion, when making an iced beverage, you can either cheat the customer and fill the cup with ice so that the entire small amount of Chai wiil be cold, or you make the dang drink in a martini shaker, then pour it over a reduced amount of ice. The latter is the most generous offering to a customer in my opinion.
My solution was to pull the straw up to the iced layer and quaff the remainder of the drink in that fashion.
Otherwise, great local java joint. I’m sorry I can’t offer any input on the food available. I am fat and had my wife there to make sure I didn’t order a platter of bacon and sausage to eat by myself in the corner. That would probably come out lukewarm too. Just kidding.

Decided to do a Unilocal coffee shop hunt today and chose Take Five and try it. We just went for an afternoon coffee and snack so it wasn’t to crowded or live music which is ok. Nice set up to have the music though. On to the coffee. To be honest we were a little disappointed with it. After reading their website which boasts that the coffee is served in ceramic mugs no matter what size because they want you to «take five». Or coffee came out in a paper to go cup. About that coffee we ordered a French press and they turned around and pumped it out of a holding container. To me if you order a French press it should be made to order or at least tell you that it is pre made sitting there waiting. The taste of the French press was like a normal dark roast, nothing like a true French press with that heavy coffee residue. The snacks we got were the chips and salsa and the hummus with pita. They were both ok but nothing to write home about unless pace picante (or at least that is what it tasted close to) is something to write about. Overall won’t make a special trip back but if we are in the area we may pop in.

This is my «coffee home.» The coffee is always spot on (order the Take Five latte, trust me!), the owners are great and their staff is excellent. I have never had a bad experience here. I hear the Jazz can’t be beat but I can’t confirm that since I haven’t been able to listen to some tunes in the new place but I would love to in the near future. Thank you for always delivering the best in everything!

A lot nicer and more comfortable than a Starbucks.
The drinks were good and strong. The staff were very friendly and also came around to ask if we would like refills.
Also, a lot more space to spread out than the average Starbucks.

I absolutely love this place. Courteous staff, incredible breakfast menu, awesome atmosphere and terrific jazz music. With all of the overly commercialized coffee places around, Take Five offers a great option.

Nice laid back Sunday brunch with jazz! You go to the counter to order and they make great mimosas. Had the burrito and it was simple and good. The music and casual atmosphere lent to good conversation and relaxed atmosphere– and not pretentious at all. Also had some dessert — chocolate cake which was tasty. It’s not the kind of place where someone waits on you so you get your own water re-​fills or ask for them. Some of the seating area isn’t great for «eating» more for snacking– but it’s nice to have comfy armchairs to curl into.

If you’re looking for a conventional breakfast, this isn’t it. However, the music is good and the place has a lot more seating than the previous location, but unfortunately, the ambiance is lost in the self-​serve cafeteria look of the counter.

Not impressed with this place. The concept is very confusing when you walk in, not sure if you get seated by a hostess or seat yourself. For being «Upscale» there are no waitresses, you place your order at a counter then are given a name card, then wait even longer. Since there is no organization I watched the food runner walk around the entire restaurant with my food looking for my name placard. Food was decent, potatoes were Luke warm and the sausage patties were chewy and underdone. Also for priding themselves on their coffee my cappuccino came out sloppy but I guess that’s what you get when you have 4 baristas and no waitresses. Cross between a Panera bread and a Starbucks except slow. Either raise your prices and increase the food quality or lower your prices to be in line with your food quality so people know what to expect. Will not come back and would not recommend.

The staff was very friendly, especially to my children. That made me an instant referral. The selection is sparse but otherwise good. I would return with or without kids.

As usual. The coffee at this place is the best. Unfortunately the service and attitude of the staff doesn’t match up. It’s a bit out of my way but make it a point to get coffee and breakfast at Take Five — at least once a month. Today — once again the service was average to below average. I purchased a coffe, cinnamon roll and quiche — all of which came out at the same time — which is perfectly fine. However the staff did not make the effort to bring any of these out to the table as they came up. Instead they just called out a description and waited for me to show up. This wouldn’t have been so bad however every customer before and after me had their food delivered to their table when it came up. I tipped the bill when I ordered the food and coffee — which was clearly premature.
Additionally there is an air or attitude or even arrogance that seems to permeate the staff — almost like I’m putting them out and they are doing me a favor by providing me with food and coffee. Very dissapointed. Love local coffee shops but I expect more not less than from the chains.

We went to Take 5 on a Thursday morning with our kids. A previous reviewer mentioned the setup was confusing, and I agree. We ordered breakfast and coffee at the counter. I thought the coffee was average, but I’m not a coffee expert. The breakfast sandwiches were not good. The bread was bland and had entirely too much butter. The scrambled eggs took entirely too long and were undercooked.
The food was below average and our total was $ 28. That’s too expensive for the quality. The space is nice and I’m sure it would be relaxing to listen to jazz and sip on coffee, but this is not a place for food.

Overall experience was really nice. Brunch on Sunday was a cool opportunity for some live jazz with our daughters, ages six and eight.
We both had the shrimp breakfast burrito special with thick-​cut hash browns. It was quite good, though a tad toward the dry side. Very fresh ingredients though, I’d order it again. The little salsa side with hash browns was actually quite good as well. The mocha was good, and I had a solid, horseradish-​forward, Bloody Mary.
The kids had the American Standard breakfast, and fruit cup. The fruit cup was ok, but nothing you’d remember.
Everyone was super nice and the atmosphere was great. We’ll likely be back…

Loved this place & really want to go back over the weekend since they told me they have live music! Fun fun, good coffee & I gave my mom the cinnamon role I purchased and she loved it! They look like they had lots of fun food to try but was only in there for the coffee, cinnamon roll was a bonus.

Take Five does it again, only this time off of 135^th street instead of their old digs on 151^st Street. The new location has some similarities to the old one, but has greatly expanded with some beautiful interior décor. With the expanded space comes an expanded menu as well. A full kitchen in the back serves up great tasting food (including some well priced breakfast options).
What hasn’t changed is the coffee. It’s still top notch and served by experts with a touch of awesome. The old favorites are still great — lattes, cappuccinos, and au laits. The pour over options are outstanding as well and they’ve ramped up the choice of brews.
I’m hoping the new location behind Von Maur in the ever expanding 135^th and Metcalf corridor will shine some new customers Take Fives way. Outside of Revocup on Quivira, there really aren’t any coffee joints in JOCO that are in T5’s league. Throw in some great food and live music and you have a recipe for success.

Interesting place that I think will require multiple visits to determine the final Unilocal rating. Mrs Chad and I were looking for Sunday morning brunch around 11:00am and didn’t want to go to a place where we would have to wait for an hour or have to fight with a mass of people just to get a little breakfast. I remembered that this place on the South side of the Corbin Park shopping center recently opened. They do offer brunch, but it is really just their breakfast/​lunch menus. Concept was a little confusing because there was a stand with menus and the restaurant is divided into two sections. A lounge type area with couches/​chairs as well as tables. They had a 2 piece jazz duo playing; one piano, one bass. I did see a woman who worked there walking around, but wasn’t sure if she was just asking how things were or was waiting tables. The other side has a counter with stools, a few tables/​booths, and was laid out more like a Panera.
Once we figured out what we wanted you have to go up to the counter to order. From there you get a placard and they will bring your food to your table. It was nice to have the jazz duo playing. First time in my life I’ve had live music at BREAKFAST! I ordered the biscuits and gravy w/​hash browns. My daughter went lunch with kids mac n cheese, and Mrs Chad had 2 eggs, hash browns, and toast. Mine was good, but it was just 2 small biscuits, a smattering of hash browns, yet cost $ 9. My daughter liked the mac, but for $ 5 the serving was so small she went and ordered another ($ 10 for a cup and ½ of mac). So while we liked what we ordered, the prices seemed quite high considering the cost of ingredients. Coffee was pretty good!
I am a breakfast junkie and take it seriously so I’ll reserve judgement until we make a couple more visits, then I’ll update this review. First impressions were mixed, but they do show promise.

I was introduced to Take Five last year when a friend suggested meeting there for coffee. I was drawn in by the warm and inviting atmosphere, ample food and beverage selection, and friendly, unpretentious staff. I love their hot chocolate, and my kids really enjoy their brownies and cinnamon rolls. If you are inclined to visit Take Five in the evening, check them out at this new location in Corbin Park on a Friday or Saturday night when the place is jumping with live jazz! Selfishly, I enjoyed Take Five when they were a well kept neighborhood secret, but I have been to the new place several times as well and really enjoyed it.

I have the unique perspective of having been both a customer and a musician at Take Five. While I can’t vouch for this new location, I’m sure little has changed, and if anything, they are probably better able to serve their customers and musicians. I received the utmost treatment from everyone there. The quality of service was top-​notch, and the degree to which these guys support the jazz community in KC is phenomenal!

Great music, good food, good service & the owners are some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet.

Take Five is THE place in south Johnson County for live jazz. Doug & Lori have carved out a great niche for themselves in the coffeehouse market. But, Take Five is not just a coffeehouse, but also a place for wine, beer or mixed drinks… desserts and good food. And JAZZ!
The sound is great in the new space! My only criticism would be that the bigger venue lacks the intimacy of the original location, feels a bit barny. BUT… hopefully that can be improved over time.
It is a great place to go for live jazz, food & drink.

A great little oasis in the middle of the suburbs just got better. Owner Lori has taken her coffee bar and jazz joint up another notch in a newer, larger location that now has a proper stage for the excellent jazz acts that come in as well as an expanded kitchen and bar selection. The coffee is, as usual, excellent. I have not yet had a chance to try the expanded menu or the Sunday jazz brunch offerings, but I expect they’ll be up to the same standards as they were at the previous location.
The internet connection could be faster but that’s not Take Five’s fault, as AT&T is the only option there, and they don’t offer anything but basic DSL.