The Best Boutique Coffee Shops in San Carlos

The City of Good Coffee.

You know you're in a coffee-loving town when a population of barely 30,000 has three Starbucks locations, and even enticed the more conservative Peets Coffee chain to set up shop in a prime, Laurel Street location.

But what if the big coffee chains aren't your cup of, um, tea?

As a coffee fan, I tend to favor the smaller, boutique coffee establishments that offer not only a much better cup of coffee than the big chains, but also provide solid food options and perhaps a welcoming environment for meeting friends or just firing up the laptop and getting some work done. And who doesn't like supporting the smaller, family-owned businesses?

In this post, I will highlight my favorite boutique coffee shops in San Carlos.

My criteria for determining what is a worthwhile boutique coffee shop is pretty simple. It should check as many of these four boxes as possible:

• An excellent cup of coffee of espresso.
• High-quality coffee beans for purchase.
• Good food options to accompany the coffee
• An inviting environment to enjoy your breakfast, meet friends, or just dive into the laptop for a while.

Based on that, here are my favorites, in no particular order:

Plantation Roastery.

Plantation has been a fixture on Laurel Street for decades, and they have a very loyal following of regular clients who like to meet there and start their mornings nice and easy. Of all of the shops being featured in this post, Plantation probably boasts the best overall location, since it's located on the popular 700 block of Laurel Street.

Their coffee beans are excellent, and they are roasted on site, so you can't get them much fresher than that. Their espresso drinks are equally good (the result of starting with good beans), and there are also snacks and pastries to accompany your coffee.

Unique Features:

• Lots of indoor or outdoor seating. They definitely take advantage of being on the section of Laurel that has parklets and is closed to automobile traffic. It's a great place to meet or get work done while enjoying some fresh air.
• They sell Marianne's ice cream. What more is there to say, except if you've never tried Marianne's, you're about to rock your world.

Plantation Roastery is located at 784 Laurel Street in San Carlos.

The Groovy Goose.

This coffee shop is one of several food establishments owned by the awesome Conte family, who also run Drake's on San Carlos Avenue, the Highlands Sports Bar & Grill in the former Sneaker's location, and the SC Noodle House on El Camino.

Like Plantation Roastery, The Groovy Goose also benefits from being in a bustling downtown location, as it's right on San Carlos Avenue, close to Laurel Street, and it also offers ample indoor and outdoor seating. Being in the direct path to the Caltrain station certainly doesn't hurt. Their espresso drinks are also very good, and there's a limited choice of pastries and baked goods to go

Unique Features:

• Several options for outdoor seating. If you don't mind the bustle and love to people-watch, you can grab a seat right on San Carlos Avenue. If you prefer a little more quiet to enjoy the fresh air, there are also tables in the back and additional seating in the alley by Wheeler Plaza
• They also offer their own freshly roasted coffee beans for purchase.

The Groovy Goose is located at 1221 San Carlos Avenue in San Carlos.

Mints & Honey.

For the longest time, if you lived in White Oaks, you had to schlep it all the way up to the northern stretch of Laurel Street just to get a good cup of coffee or breakfast. Not any more — you have one right in your backyard at Mints & Honey. Located on El Camino Real close to White Oak Way, it's literally right in your backyard.

Most of their extensive seating is in the cozy indoors, but there are a few tables on the back patio for those who like to sit outside. Their espresso drinks here are excellent, and actually served in real cups, as opposed to the disposable paper cups you get everywhere else.

Unique Features:

• Of all of the establishments featured in this post, Mints & Honey has the most extensive food menu, with all kinds of unique and eclectic choices for both breakfast and lunch. Their avocado toast is divine (be sure to order it with an egg on top).
• With all of the seating and the free WiFi, it's a solid place to park out and get work done. But note that they have a “no laptop” policy for Saturdays, presumably to keep the tables rotating. Not a horrible idea.

Mints & Honey is located at 1524 El Camino Real in San Carlos

Papachay Peruvian Coffee.

Just as Mints & Honey provides the White Oaks neighborhood with great local coffee, Papachay Peruvian Coffee does the same for the Greater East Side of San Carlos. Located on Old County Road, it's super convenient for those residents to not have to cross El Camino to grab an outstanding coffee.

As the name suggests, Papachay features Peruvian coffee beans that were grown at high altitudes. They are roasted right there on site, so freshness is never a problem. It's one of several places where I make a point to buy beans for home consumption.

Their coffee and espresso drinks are strong and excellent — again, the result of starting with great beans. There's also a short selection of pastries and baked goods for you to enjoy.

Unique Features:

• Unlike the other three San Carlos coffee shops, seating is much more limited at Papachay. There are just a couple of tables outside, so parking out and getting work done is not optimal here. But grabbing a great coffee to go without battling Laurel Street parking makes it more than worthwhile.
• On their food list, they offer empanadas, which might seem a bit out of place for a coffee shop, but I can tell you firsthand that their empanadas are outstanding — the breakfast versions are an excellent complement to your morning coffee.

Papachay Peruvian Coffee is located at 1431 Old County Road in San Carlos.

What's Your Go-To?

Which one of these excellent places is your favorite when you need a killer cup of coffee and a snack? Register your vote in the poll below. I even included Starbucks and Peets in the poll to see how they stack up.

Did I miss one? Let me know in the comments below!

Friday Coffee Hours With Chuck

If this post was not enough motivation for you to try out one of the places, then this will be! Starting this Friday, I will be hosting Friday Coffee Hours with Chuck from 10:00 AM -12:00 noon at one of these great establishments, rotating every week. Come down, and I'll buy you a coffee, and we can talk real estate…. or sports…. or weather. We will post each week's location on our Instagram page. Come down, and have a coffee on me!