Kapow Coffee

I love KAPOW…
I hit it up every morning that I work…
Angela and Co. always have it down when I walk in… The coffee is always great and affordable compared to some other coffee shops in the area…
The Breakfast Burritos are always a PLUS…(when they have them).
they are located next to a Taco Del Mar and I think they make them for them but I’m not sure… Either way they are KILLER… One sign said «Sorry Mayor Nickles ate all of our burritos»
Their drink chart is made out of the alphabet letters we used as kids on our fridge…
This place has won the Peoples Pick Awards from NwSource for Best Independent Coffee Shops for the last few years

This is the S.L.U.T. shirt headquarters. I have 5 shirts… that’s only cuz we know the makers… AND support the S.L.U.T. (Wow, it’s so liberating to say that a lot without it being a ridicule)
Plus awesome coffee in this tucked-​away garage down the street from Taco Del Mar and steps away from Paddy Coyne’s and the actual… S.L.U.T.
I’d go here every day if I could. But I have to get my latte iced as it’s definately a kick-​in-​the-​ass strong for me.

I go to Kapow every morning. And there’s a reason I do: the espresso is great and the baristas are, too. My $.02 on the espresso is that it rivals any in town. That’s a bold statement, I know, but I think it’s a true one.
The coffee shop itself is tiny, but what they lack in size, they make up for with the quality of their espresso.
Kapow has a great thing going. Keep up the good work you guys!

Kapow is easy to overlook, but this is a quintessential coffee shack. There isn’t much of a seating area, unless you count two old chairs. But the coffee is good, and the Americano I had was fine, a little smoother than Vivace. Both Vivace and Kapow are two fine options in the neighborhood, although the two are polar opposites in terms of style, décor, and coffee. But, both do a good job of what they do, and Seattle is a big enough java town for both to do well. As others have mentioned, they also have a nice collection of SLUT t-​shirts and mugs, although I guess it is technically now the SLUS :).

Located right next to the S.L.U.T — seems like they are focused on selling their t-​shirts this holiday season. They do close early around 4ish. Parking can be a bit of a problem due to its proximity to REI.

It’s a friendly neighborhood place serving passable espresso drinks. Like most coffee carts and stands in seattle, it’s totally competent but nothing to get excited about regarding the coffee itself. It does indeed have a nice neighborhood feel to it, in spite of the rapid disappearance of anything like a neighborhood in the vicinity. If you are unfortunate enough to find yourself stranded in Seattle’s armpit area this is a pretty good place to grab an espresso drink.

Best coffee you can get at a storage unit. Hands Down!

I can’t wait until I can ride the S.L.U.T. to Kapow from downtown during the workday. For now, it’s difficult to visit, since it’s in an out-​of-​the way location surrounded by construction, and they are only open until around noon on Saturday, and are closed on Sunday.
Delicious, smooth Americano and friendly service, great community vibe, and the cutest lil’ garage location.
They’ve even gotten some press over their Ride the S.L.U.T t-​shirts:
Update 12÷13÷07: Today I fulfilled my dream of riding the S.L.U.T. to Kapow. (It took me an hour to get from Westlake, to Kapow, and back! Seriously.) In addition to the t-​shirts, they have Ride the S.L.UT. coffee mugs for $ 6. And Ride the S.L.UT. blend coffee beans. I love that this indie coffee shop is milking this to their advantage, I really do.

BlaM! WhaMm-​o! KA-​POW!!! Loud noises!!!
This place is comically small, but their coffee packs a punch.
The barista I’ve experienced (so far) was so friendly and accommodating that when the other patron asked for an iced Thai coffee, no eyelashes were bashed. Not a one. Just whipped it up based on her years of experience. Just like a comic book hero. Suuuuper Barista to the rescue! Bam!
I’ve heard rumors of their magical Mexican Mocha and their veggie breakfast burritos. I’ll investigate further into these mysteries of the unknown. Wham-​0!
Oh, and when it’s nice weather, you can take a seat or two outside. KA-​POW!

Now see here — Kapow rocks. No, you can’t really hang out and yes there is a Vivace, an Uptown and a couple three Starbucks in the vicinity — also, Moka’s (ick). But Kapow has something they don’t — THE MEXICAN MOCHA.
LOVE, PURE LOVE. Dark chocolate, vanilla, and cinnamon. I normally hate mochas — they are like umbrellas to me; for wusses who can’t deal with the true experience they are being offered. But I love this chocolaty buddy! Perfect in the winter and fall — worth walking a couple extra blocks from my undisclosed office location.
The venue is basically a concrete closet — the entrance is a roll up garage door that opens into maybe 300 sqft. They have a little bench in front of a fireplace thingy you could chill out on if you wanted to, but I have to say I am a little too claustrophobic to hang.
The wondrous little extra with this place is that the walk-​in behind the counter leads to a space that is several times larger than the shop. It’s a very Alice in Wonderland like feeling that you get when you first witness a newly arriving employee entering through that door. I was filled with curiosity and awe! It was explained to me by the always friendly barista that they share the walk in with the Taco Del Mar next door. Ahhhhh… sooooo.
Also, they have breakfast burritos.

Always friendly barrstas… great Americanos. Ever since Jump closed, I’ve been looking for an early morning alternative to Starblughs that’s kind of on my way to work. I’ve definitely found it.
Now, if for some reason I can’t make it to Kapow (read: couldn’t drag sorry self out of bed in timely fashion), I don’t even bother with the drive thru at Westlake. I have been ruined… well… depending on how you look at it. I like that the two baristas I’ve seen working there really seem to know the majority of their customers and always have something to chat about (god knows I can’t be bothered to come up with anything remotely interesting at that hour…).
Yay for baristas that make me want to tip!!! :-)

I’ve been hearing a lot about how great this coffee shop is here on Unilocal so I just had to go check it out myself since I didn’t know any of the reviewers.
I must say I was a tad disappointed.
I was expecting a cozy space where I could get some work done while I had a latte that was going to kick Vivace’s ass. Let’s just say that Vivace does not have a black eye and this is more of an in & out type of place than a sit down and stay awhile type of place.
There are plenty of great walk-​up coffee places: Monorail Espresso for instance, and the gone but not forgotten Jump! Espresso and plenty of places in the vicinity where you feel comfortable staying awhile.
I’m not sure I’d go back to Kapow, but I wouldn’t discourage anyone from going if they were looking for coffee in the SLU.