Suzzallo Espresso

As an UW math student, espresso is a general brain drink, however, I barely get my coffee here. Short tips for perspective tourists: lib is the only charming point. Don’t expect too much on everything. The coffee shops on UW campus have trained me to be a better barista at home. If you have to grab some coffee here, go to Gowen Hall or Bagley Hall, or make yourself as I do.

Never had the coffee here before, but it’s a great place to just chat with friends on campus. Nice place for a study break as well!

Not only is it expensive for shitty coffee (whenever I have gotten it, it tastes burnt), but the last time I got a drink (tall soy chai), my drink was only halfway and I pay about $ 4.50 for a tall!

I actually used to work here and can’t believe how horrible it’s gotten! Service is awful, not only do they mess up the drinks constantly, but when you ask them to remake them, they roll their eyes and act like its a huge inconvenience. Baristas look unhappy and disgruntled, and groan at any request. Not friendly whatsoever. I have worked in the customer service industry for years and the customer is always right. Suzzallo Espresso does not communicate this message in any way, shape, or form.

There are a lot of pros and cons to this place. At all the other university’s that I’ve been to, I really wished there was a coffee shop nearby. I think U W has as great idea here by placing a coffee/​food shop within the library. Students can easily grab a snack and relax here.
People are relatively respectful at this shop. Generally, the students don’t talk too loudly. I managed to squeeze in a hour of study time and also took a nap here.
The coffee was decent and was priced about the same as Starbucks. The reason why they get such a low rating on my scale is because their food is terrible and overpriced. Make sure you bring your own snack from home or from off campus. I bought a $ 7 salad that was tiny. It was probably the equivalent of a Trader Joe’s salad that is usually about $ 4. I bought it out of desperation because I was hungry and didn’t want to walk too far away from the library. However, I felt regretful that I did because the sale was definitely a rip off.

I’m just mad today because I come here every week to get my fix before my lab, I don’t always get the same thing but I’m always VERY specific with my order. It’s Starbucks so my order doesn’t get too complicated to make –
Today I was for a vanilla soy chai latte– extra vanilla. Having experience working at a Starbucks, all you really have to do is repeat my order to me and write it on the cup and have it made.
She repeated it back to me and I said «extra vanilla» and she goes «YEAH I ALREADY WROTE THAT»
I get my drink and there was NO extra vanilla lol. Bye with your vanilla skimpin ass! Don’t charge me for extra pumps of vanilla if you ain’t gonna put it in my drink. And when I got my cup, it wasn’t even indicated. Byeeeee! I have to come back cus I’m a student and it’s the closest thing. Just don’t charge me if you ain’t gonna put it in my drink after I have to say it three times…

If you’re looking for a café to enjoy your coffee at in The U District, this isn’t the place to do it. Go to any of the other amazing coffee establishments on The Ave.
If you’re looking for a place to study, this isn’t the best place to do it, but it’s one of the better ones. First: there’s a lot of seating, but it somehow always gets filled, so get their quickly and snatch one in between the break periods. Second: it’s really easy to plug your headphones into your laptop and get into a «working mood» where you can crank out the last of your paper or study up on that midterm. This is especially good for people like me who can’t focus in silence. There’s a constant white noise in the background, which is perfect for me (and I’m sure many others like me).
Lots of small tables for 1 – 2 people, but there are also larger tables for groups of 3 – 4. If you have a large party, go somewhere else. You will not be able to hear yourselves talk, especially during the lunch rush.
The coffee is sub-​par. The food choices are depressing. There is nothing really healthy there (they offer parfaits and the occasional fruit salad, but really?), but they do offer ready-​to-​make meals like Ramen. Or a giant bag of chips. Or maybe yet another overpriced luna bar (really — everything is vastly overpriced, so be careful!).
The baristas and cashiers are always nice though, sometimes a little dead but I can’t really blame them.

Suzzallo Café is really nothing special or remarkable, it is really only worth going to if you are a UW student and on campus trying to kill time or study. Inside the «café» (its really just a big room without any features or character) are many tables, great for meeting a friend or spreading out many papers. Suzzallo barely deserves 3 stars, especially compared to «real» coffee shops~ but they do always have a sweet playlist. I found myself grooving this evening as I waited for my hot chocolate and heard «Stayin Alive» caressing my ears.
Now, lets get to the food and the coffee. I recommend the Cougar Mountain half-​dipped peanut butter cookies paired with a hot chocolate. The drinks are made with Starbucks recipes, so they are essentially the same thing as going to Starbucks on the Ave.
Because this espresso station is in the library, it is a bit quieter than an actual Starbucks café and is therefore better to study in at night, especially because the Starbucks on the Ave often has multiple schizophrenic, homeless, «Ave-​people» wandering through the café talking to themselves and being generally creepy.
I wish it stayed open until 12, I always find myself getting kicked out at 10 and having to head to Odegard.

All the coffee on campus is terrible. But this is bad. ALMOST as bad as the By George café coffee. Sick… And it’s not cheap either! Bleh. I’d rather walk 3 blocks to starbucks to get a real coffee.

Since the HUB is back open again, Suzzallo Espresso has downsized big time. They used to have a TON of chips, snacks, and food options… but now I am usually disappointed. I mostly go in for bagels and cream cheese, which aren’t the best… in taste or price.
It’s still a convenient and quick-​ish spot to get. (Just don’t go 20 after the hour during the school year.) When meeting someone for coffee, I’d rather go to Molly’s, Orin’s Place, or the HUB.
They do have 2 ATMs here, including Chase bank… so I guess that’s a plus.
(I give 2 stars to say I’ve experienced better on UW campus, both in service and variety of options.)

While the HUB was under construction the past couple years, this was my favorite place to go to grab food. That has generally changed.
I’m not into buying coffee at a kiosk, but if I do, I’ll head to the Think Tank in Bagley or the one in the Paul Allen Building (not Jolt — the other one). The main draw here was the food selection. (And the ATM to my credit union.) They had a really good selection.
Since the HUB reopened, their selection has greatly decreased, but so has their traffic. The selection is still pretty good. They have a lot of choices for vegans, which is great. You can get bagels, or cookies, or entrée-​style things there.
The staff is hit and miss on the friendly. I’ve had some great conversations with the baristas about stuff but I’ve also been ignored and treated as though I have leprosy by the cashiers.
The cost is high. Everything is too expensive and you can go to District Market not too far away to get the same thing for less in most cases (and a larger selection of food items.)
If you happen to be in Suzzallo or really close and need a quick snack, this is an okay place, but I’d make the trek to District Market to the west or the HUB to the east if you have the time and are able to make the walk.

Suzzallo Espresso has downsized but its still the most convenient spot to grab a quick brew on your way through Red Square. While I prefer Parnassus’ vibe or Solstice’ music, Suzzallo gets the job done. The drip coffee is often scorched so go for the espresso drinks. Or fill up at 7:30 when they open.
The Cupcake Royale cupcakes may look delicious, they’re refrigerated so the cake is dry, frosting hard, and sprinkles inedible. Your sweet tooth is better served by the pastry case in the back.

It’s a long line but thats the reality of the UW student body. I was not a student so this place was really fun to go to. They have lots of your school-​mart kinds of snacks and also random asian things like Hi-​Chew or on-​the-​go kimbap. Anyways I don’t think the drinks are going to be that gourmet but at least there’s a bite to grab in the Suzzallo.

For an on-​campus café, this place is pretty decent. A nice grocery/​bakery/​school supplies section. They have the gummy octopi in the candy section! I can’t find those anywhere anymore. They have blazing bagels which are pretty good, and the baked goods are yummy as well, i dug my lemon poppy muffins. Lots of seating, a couple of toasters and bagel cutters. It would be great if they had microwaves. And this summer, every morning when i walk in, they got my drink going before i even ordered it (helps to be predictable). Can’t beat that. One thing is that it would be nice to have a second milk/​sweetener station, it gets real crowded. Also in the summer, opening at 8 am? I would time my arrival for when Suzzallo opened, would have been nice to get there and get my coffee a little earlier.

Meh. It’s like getting crappy pizza because you have to have pizza, and nothing else is nearby– the coffee here is a most exclusive Stomach-​Wrenchig Student Poverty Blend, a little acidic on the beans and a little light yet somehow burnt at the same time. That’s a blend for you.
That being said, the space itself is convenient if not a little noisy for finishing off that sudoku puzzle instead of studying French. And the campus coffee places, however weak the shots and overheated the milk, give the students a way to help pay for college besides illegal organ sales, pharmaceutical research studies (been there, done that) and prostitution.
But before you go here, know that there are two lovely independent cafes on campus: one, Parnassus, in the quad (art building?) and the other in the Architecture building next to Guthrie. Parnassus has by far the best vibe on campus, and the crowd is a little more enlightened as well. Add student art exhibits an you have one way better option than campus-​brand coffee.

The three stars is comparative to other places I’ve tried on the UW campus, not compared to a real coffeeshop. The coffee itself I’d rate just a two. It’s consistently prepared far too hot and chars both the soy milk and my tongue. It’s not delicious either. When I bring my own mug, it gets filled up to the point where I have to pour some out in the trash can to be able to put the lid on. Normally I’d just drink it, but I can’t do that when it’s so hot. I’ve tried ordering it «not very hot», etc. to no avail. When I first started I didn’t know to hand them the travel mug without the lid, so the lid would disappear and I’d stand around waiting for it.
However, every place I’ve tried so far on campus has mediocre coffee, and this one at least has compost and recycling bins vs. everyone throwing their stuff in the trash. They have a few snack options (Odwalla bars, etc.)