Caffe Umbria

It’s classy atmosphere and open space looked very inviting, and I walked in for a coffee and croissant. I was surprised to see eggnog latte on the menu, but sadly it wasn’t offered at this time anymore. It seems seasonal section hasn’t been updated. I asked for chai but was told it was dragon fly brand, which I do not like. I wanted something that would stand out for this particular business, but obscure names even my spell check won’t recognize was making it hard for me to look up names.
I finally chose Nocciola freddo, a creamy drink with espresso on the bottom. It didn’t take long to make, but moment I reached out to get it, it was very light. As in 20% liquid and rest is a foam. I tried mixing it but heavier liquid stayed at bottom while foam stayed at top…
I tried drinking it moving the straw vertically to no avail. It was unique but not a fulfilling experience. Customer service was so-​so, made a mistake as in the house rather than take out. I was the only customer in line so it wasn’t busy.
Croissant was dry and flavors were bland. I prefer Nuvrei for same price. All this for $ 9. Overall, not impressed. Just the interior was nice but service and products didn’t meet the standard — so felt like false advertisement.

I’ve now had three different drinks here and they have all been stellar.
Umbria is my first choice for coffee in Portland.
Their cold brew is smooth and caramely. Rich and no hint of bitterness. It’s not milky like a nitro cold brew and it’s not buzzy like an americano. It’s it’s own animal and it’s phenomenal. As if that weren’t enough, Umbria is the only place I know that does brown sugar simple syrup. A little cream, a little BSSS and I’m in heaven.
Their drinking chocolate is smooth, rich, thick and pleasing. It’s sweet but not quite as bad as brownie batter. A little goes a long way but it’s a nice treat on a cold winter day.
And their affigato was my newest sampling. I did a single shot but was asked if I wanted two. The frozen cream (I wouldn’t call it gelato, it wasn’t sorbet, and it didn’t seem to be particularly high quality ice cream) was slightly icy, like maybe it was beginning to burn or wasn’t that great fresh. But the shot poured nicely and I really enjoyed this treat. Obviously not an every day drink but a nice reward for braving the snow today. I also wish it had been served in a nicer dish. I think my dish was disposable, a plastic lime dish. It didn’t really make cohesive sense with their other décor and aesthetic elements. But the flavors of the shot with the creamy frozen concoction was really pleasant. I’d be curious to know what kind of ice cream they use and maybe if I’d specified I wanted it for here (not to go) I might have gotten a little nicer looking cup. It looked like a kid’s snack cup. Just my $.02. For $ 4 island the rest of the vibe in here, it was a slight mood killer. Flavors were pretty good but not perfect.
Umbria is still my fave joint and I look forward to exploring more of their offerings.
Staff have been polite and pleasant. I’ve sat inside and out and stayed here for up to an hour at a time. One of the best places downtown to get coffee and less (read: no) coffee sass unlike some other joints in the area.

Some of the pretentious comments on here are hilarious! Some of you people are better off at Public Domain with the rest off the snobs, get a life! Lol Anyway, Umbria is an awesome place! This place serves a doppio espresso just the way they do in Europe, with an added side of sparkling water to wash it down. They serve a classic espresso which I like way better than the sour tasting espresso that most Portland companies roast. I always leave feeling better than when I came in! Staff, cleanliness, atmosphere and quality 5 stars.

Went here because I know their drip coffee is amazing! I like it better than Starbucks. Honestly he people here are SO friendly and classy. They make you feel special!

I know there are a lot of words here. I’m sorry. It’s because it matters to me. But TL;DR: It’s a-​ok. Head on in there.
Here’s the thing. I regularly park myself at places like Ringside and El Gaucho and order a ribeye. I have no problem with fancy. And actually, fancy is part of the fun of the place. There’s a fancy cold brew machine. When I ordered my to-​go americano, it was presented with a fancy spoon over in the prep/​cream/​sugar station region. On a saucer! It was impressive.
And it was good. It tasted good. It’s the experience you want, I suppose.
And maybe it’s wrong to not give more than an A-​OK because of my lack of knowledge. I feel kind of bad about that, except nothing is wrong with A-​OK. So, I’m gonna live with it, because I’m probably not going back. There was a menu of almost 10 drinks that I couldn’t identify. I’d never heard of these drinks. And I’m a paying member of the Oregon Coffee Board. I attend the monthly meetings. I tour roasters. I attend cuppings. I can identify Costa Rican coffee. I read Fresh Cup magazine. I go to Coffee Fests. I just watched Barista – the movie. I go to barista competitions. This does not make me an expert, but, sheesh, it ought to put be above average at least. And I didn’t know what these drinks were all about – I took a picture so I could look them up.
But I’m not afraid to feel stupid, even in a fancy coffee place. I asked if they had descriptions of what those drinks were. And to their credit, the person who took my order looked for them. And she seemed apologetic about it. Moreover, when I was preparing my americano, someone came over and offered to explain any drink I had a question about, but when one has very few clues… well, I didn’t have time to hear about nine drinks, and I wouldn’t have taken her time, anyway.
My above coffee-​related experience is not to show off my knowledge – obviously, I didn’t know a lot! I couldn’t identify almost 10 drinks! But my point is that if I don’t know and can’t easily find out what those drinks are, then something isn’t working. Now, I would TOTALLY give them five stars for product, at least four stars for service and attempts at service, but overall experience, because that menu made me feel like an outsider, was just A-​OK. It was A-​OK, though. I mean, I wouldn’t dissuade a person from going. And after I look up those drinks, I MIGHT go – so I can try something new! And the espresso was smooth and good.
I just like to feel invited into an establishment, and though they tried, that menu knocks two stars off for me, because it’s the opposite of inviting a coffee-​loving patron in for a delightful beverage experience.
EDIT: I have googled all the drinks! And some aren’t even really drinks. But anyway, at least two (and I think there were three) only had search results at… Caffe Umbria. There was a FourSquare review, a blog post, and one other thing, I think. The point: It’s not just that I wasn’t educated. No one would have expected to know all those drinks if they’re Caffee Umbria specialties. I would also like to add that someone in a review somewhere said she was provided with a menu of specialty drinks (with explanations), so this clearly exists. But it didn’t at the Pearl district shop, and… I’m still put off by having to ask for it. That said, I now know I don’t want any of those drinks, so when I pass them on my walk to work, I might stop in for an americano. For now, I prefer Nossa Familia or Barista.

One of my go-​to place to work in the Pearl. I highly recommend their Moca! If you are looking to get some work done and then get some groceries from Wholefoods nearby, you can’t beat this place.

Apparently pointing at something on the menu isn’t enough to actually tell the staff what you want. The «you have no idea what you’re talking about» attitude didn’t help and definitely ensures that I won’t be back.

Great food, great coffee, great service. I recommend the tuna sandwich and vanilla latte. Service is always quick and friendly.

I visited Caffe Umbria on a Monday at lunch. I was meeting a friend for lunch and coffee and this fit the bill. Parking was on street and relatively easy to acquire. The ambiance was wonderful. The café was light and airy with plenty of seating scattered inside and out. In the back corner was a lot of people working alone while enjoying a cup of coffee quietly. In the front and outside were a lot of people meeting for lunch and talking.
I had a dark roast drip coffee upon the recommendation from the barista and it was a good suggestion. The coffee came in a cute cup with saucer and was paired with a piece of dark chocolate. I also ordered a toasted BLT panini (it had avocado!) and it came with a little ramekin filled with olives. I thought the panini was on the pricey side was it was very delicious.
I’ll definitely visit Caffe Umbria again!

The worst experience ever. I ordered one café marocchino today. I was sitting by the table all the time and talking to friend. I finished about half cup of this. Suddenly, I felt there was something in my mouth, i spited it out! I saw a fly! It was literally came out from my cup! I felt so disgusting! I couldn’t even look at it! My friend checked my cup, there is another fly in my cup also! By that time i almost finished my drink. I tried to calm down. I brought my cup, and I went to to counter. The coffee maker looked at my cup, and he saw the fly in my cup. He took away my cup, and said to me. It was just cocoa, not a fly!!! I asked my friend came over with the fly I just took out from my cup. This time, he had to say, okay, I guess this fly may just come from outside! There was no reason, two flies came to my cup and I didn’t see any of it. Finally he said, I can give your money back which is ¥3.75. I am not asking for a 3 bucks refund! Two flies in my cup is not acceptable, and what they have been telling me is this is not their fault. I can’t believe they can open a coffee shop like that! Most disappointed trip ever ever! Please be aware if you ever want to try their coffee. I wish i should take a pic before I gave them back my cup!

Awesome café in a convenient location. The coffee/​espresso menu covers all the bases plus a few rotating «specialty» drinks with helpful photos. The baristas are happy to explain any drink you aren’t familiar with. The tea selection is limited, however, and they don’t have matcha. The few times I have ordered food (slice of quiche or some other egg dish), it was outstanding.
I come here many weekday mornings to work for a few hours. They have rock-​solid wifi, but limited access to power outlets. The atmosphere is a mix of folks like me and people chatting with friends or colleagues. Plenty of tables and chairs so you can almost always find a place to sit without feeling cramped. The corner location has lots of natural light and the noise level is usually perfect as «background café noise» for concentration. Thanks to Caffe Umbria, I may finally finish my PhD in the not-​too-​distant future.

My impressions from a Sunday morning visit:
1.Nice jazz music playing, not too loudly.
2. Very clean, with soft natural light through the large windows.
3. Large TV screen on the wall but not intrusive since it was in adjoining, smaller sitting area out of sight of main room.
4. They heated my croissant on request without batting an eyelash.
5. Friendly barista.
6. Newspaper and magazine rack.
7. Pretty good mocha.
8. 90% of patrons were over 60 yrs age.

Love the specialty Italian drinks here! Their drinks also come with chocolate which is a plus. The ambiance here is very classy, but at the same time comfortable. I’ve come here to study a couple times and its nice! I’ve also gotten breakfast here and I only got a fruit parfait but it was delicious! I don’t quite know why but it was really good! Maybe it was the granola but I’m not sure. I really like this place. This is one of my top 5 coffee places in Portland

Caffe Umbria is a good place for coffee with some friends or co-​workers. It gets you away from the Starbucks vibe adds a change of pace to getting a good cup of coffee. When you walk in, there are tables and chairs throughout. Most of the seating areas are 2 to 6 people and are laid out well. You order your drink up at the front and they will bring it out to you. While I was here I also had a small hot sandwich (Brie and prosciutto on a baguette). It truly hit the spot. There are also pastry and good deserts there too.
I was there conducting an interview for a job I had open. The open environment was relaxing and made the interview more conversational over the typical stiff office interviews. So this space worked out well. It is right in the heart of the Pearl District too and close to shops and other entertainment. Good place to stop in and grab a cup o’ Joe or a fancy cup with froth.

I found this place on Unilocal after I searched for «quiche» while finding a coffeeshop to have breakfast at. I actually planned on stopping by here anyway based on initial Unilocal/​Tripadvisor reviews, but at the last minute decided I wanted a quiche for breakfast.
Anyway, when you walk in, you notice how spacious everything is. There is ample seating throughout the café — which is a plus. I hate cafes where space is limited or tight. I looked at the pastry display and to my dismay did not see any quiche. The clerk that greeted me was friendly and I asked her if there was a quiche dish. She told me they normally have it out for lunch, but «let me see what I can do.» A moment later she returned with the chef who told me they just finished it. How nice of her to check rather than just tell me «nope, don’t have it.» I wouldn’t have known better since I’m not from the area.
I also ordered the Espresso Fredo which was delicious. It’s pretty much espresso and milk froth over ice. Very rich, very smooth. Came with a piece of dark chocolate too.
The quiche came with a small salad, but the quiche itself had a creamy rich filling with fragrant mushroom pieces. The crust was buttery and tasty. Will definitely try to stop by this place one more time before I head home to pick up another slice of quiche.
Café has other offerings as well including gelato — but I already have a favorite stop nearby for that (Cool Moon).
What’s interesting is how some of these reviews claim the place is snobby/​pretentious. I never felt that coming here. Of course I didn’t really pay attention to the patrons — but the staff was friendly, efficient and attentive.

I’ve tried to like this place, it has an ok atmosphere & the employees are nice. But the coffee. it’s just never good. Watered down, tepid, bitter, no flavor… for my money, I’ll go to Barista or Nossa Familia, where the drinks are always delicious.

I do not know why people think so highly of this place, it is an OK place but nothing special. it really has some kind of pretentious vibes. mostly very young crowd using their laptop, I do not think they even think about what kind of food they are having, they go there just to use the laptops. it is supposed to be an authentic Italian food café, however, there is not any real Italian food item served here, even if the owner is supposedly be originally Italian. I had heard about their fresh Mozzarella cheese & prosciutto sandwiches, that they were delicious. However, I could not find them, and the sandwich I had was made with some stale cheese and tomatoes, which was tasteless. Even the coffee was not that good and the people behind the counter are not that friendly either. I might try coming back again, see if I might have a better experience next time!

I have a soft spot for Caffè Umbria… does anyone remember Torrefazione Italia? I always stop by when I am in the Pearl District and have my standard Americano or an espresso. I buy there dark roast Arco Etrussco blend it makes a bold cup of coffee. The four stars is for the service… attitudes are always hit and miss. SMILES ARE HARD TO COME BY!

I really like this place! A good place to meet with others (have meetings) and post up on your laptop. The outlets are not that plentiful, they are only in the back by the TV.

We stumbled upon this cute little café completely on accident. We were actually pretty hungry for some salty food, but the wait at Piazza Italia (a few blocks away) was ridiculously long so we decided to get a snack before we went to dinner.
I’m really glad we did stumble upon this place, as I really enjoyed the yogurt parfait I got here. Unlike other parfaits, the fruit wasn’t processed and dried. Instead, it was real, fresh raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries. The parfait tasted positively ambrosial.
I will definitely stop by this café in the future if I’m in that area of Portland.