Common Ground

Enjoyed the Jedi mind trick latte, liked the option of almond milk and was impressed it’s their foam skills. Also had a fresh everything bagel with what tasted like home made veggie cream cheese, holy yum! Small space but super sweet and helpful employees with coffee skills serving good snacks.

I used to eat lunch here until they started offering wifi or something. Now you can’t find a seat because every table is taken up by 1 person and their laptop while they nurse a bottle of water. Too bad too, I was going to eat the shit out of some quiche.

Just ran in for quick coffee to go. Barristas were quick and friendly, and the coffee was great. Soy milk not a second thought which is comforting for the dairy-​free. Nice, warm, comfy vibe in the place. Earliest hours on the block. Looks like a great place to hang out if there is time. Same feeling that I’ve had when I’ve been in over the past few years. Affordable compared to the shop down the block.

Common Ground is my go to breakfast spot when I have a day off. Recently moved to the area and remembered coming here (actually at CG right now) with friends awhile ago. I get the Sausage, Egg, and Cheese on a plain bagel with a Mocha. Absolutely delicious!

Place overall is fine, coffee is good, love the organ donation coffee cup jackets! One word of warning, the chai latte is made from powdered chai! I don’t think this was always the case, but today spent $ 6.10 for an almond milk chai and was super disappointed to get a sugary, powdery chai. No better/​worse than a usual powdered chai, but at that price I would have expected a real chai latte. Love the outdoor seating out back.

I love this place! Cheap coffee, good food. Thank god it hasn’t gone all hipster on me and changed over to over-​priced, pour over coffee. Don’t ever change! I have one suggestion though– your muffins are awesome but the liners sometimes stick to the muffin, spray your muffin liners with non-​stick spray before you put the batter in. (Specifically the lemon avocado one, I literally could not get the paper liner off.)

I had the best muffin ever.
I can’t even remember precisely what kind it was… I’m thinking carrot cake?
But it was great.
Order a muffin.

I bought the Unilocal voucher to try this place, as I am always on the search for new coffee shops.
The atmosphere is kind of crowded and the menu is confusing to read. The front area is also crowded and the back area was kind of tacky, but luckily it was a nice day so we sat outside on the patio.
We both got lattes that came in to-​go cups even though we were staying that were both alright.
I literally don’t know what is on the menu and didn’t want to stand butt-​to-​butt with someone in line to read the menu so I’d recommend going on an off-​hour if you decide to try it out.
Other random things: There was wifi with a password, and parking is free down some side streets.

I really love the atmosphere of the place! It had a nice cozy, coffeehouse feel. Their menu is also great. I like how they offer plenty of drinks and food items.
I got the peanut butter banana mocha chai smoothie and a peanut butter banana cap’n crunch muffin. Both (unexpectedly) tasted really good!
I’ll definitely try to come back again!

The ambiance here is very dark but cozy. The space is a little crammed, but they do have many seating options in the front dining café room, front outdoor seating, back room, and back patio. I had their black bottom brownie muffin, and it was extremely delicious. The muffin wasn’t too sweet but was extremely filling. I would definitely get more of these muffins! I paired this muffin with the famous Chai-​Banana-​peanut butter smoothie. The chai wasn’t extremely strong in the smoothie and the flavors were extremely muddled in the smoothie… I think the proportions might be a little off, but overall I enjoyed the taste the smoothie left in my mouth!
I felt like I was extremely lost in where we put out plates after we finished eating, so I’ll try to explain where the plates go when you finish: there is this little alcove in the front dining café that leads to the kitchen. There’s a dig that points to a bucket that says «dirty dishes» or something like that!
I think this place is very good for studying and just a small get together with a small group of friends! I will definitely come back here again, bring a few assignments and try out more of these baked goods!

A cozy little artsy café on The Avenue in Hampden. I enjoy sitting by the window and watching people go by. Free Wifi! I love the hummus salad and the variety of baked goods available. The vegan chili is delicious also. A great place to sit for a while and just relax and enjoy some yummie food!

This is a great coffee shop– tiny but the food and drinks and smoothies are amazing. Service is fantastic. The bagel sandwich with house-​made hummus and veggies is always perfect. The chai peanut butter and banana smoothie is sooooo delicious. They also keep a great ginger beer that I’d never tried before. And the muffins: regular deliciousness plus ones that are vegan, some gluten-​free, some savory, some sweet. You could make a meal off of any one of them.

I haven’t been here very many times, but what I’ve gotten has been good. My most recent visit was solely to get an iced chai. They have amazing chai! I barely made it a block away before it was gone. I also got a muffin, and it left a little to be desired. It wasn’t quite what I expected, and was a little dry. Maybe from sitting out. I would definitely recommend this place for its drinks.

Just found this cute joint.
Funky and comfortable atmosphere, staff with just the right balance of efficiency and friendly work.
Eclectic crowd with range of ages hanging out or having a quick snack.
Good locally roasted coffee and homemade baked goods (coffee also sold to brew at home) and fast wifi.
Highly recommend for coffee lovers with no pretense.

I smelled something great while walking along 36^th street and it lead me into to this place! Got to love that Zeke’s roast scent. I’m also a sucker for great puns so I thought the name was great off the bat and had to walk in.
The atmosphere is a little dark inside but feels cozy and warm. There is a 50% off your first coffee/​tea/​cookie offer on your first check in which I really liked and I will definitely be back! The coffee is brewed great (local Zeke’s) and as an organ transplant researcher, I loved the coffee sleeves that have information on donation through Donate Life.
Great spot in Hampden.

This is one of my go-​to café’s for a bite to eat and to do some school work. The staff is friendly and generally efficient. It’s a grungy little place with tasty food and happy people. The coffee is tasty and cheap. Bring your own mug for a further discount. The lox platter is super delicious. The baristas are in charge of music and you never know what will be playing. The clientele is delightfully varied. In the warmer months, the back deck is a wonderful place to sit. I really like this business.
Two thumbs up guys. Keep Hampden weird.

Second of all, Wi-​Fi and low-​key, friendly Boheme atmosphere. Third, the music can sometimes take a left turn from oldies or folky to heart-​palpitatingly drumbeaty to annoyingly high pitched bluesy.
First of all, add up the dedicated staff, quiches, panini, coffee, tea and desserts – plus the ability to hang out and read or work on your laptop, at least until 5 p.m. – and you have one of the better places to have a bite in this slice of Baltimore called Hampden.
Speaking of slices, I got two of them for the Spinach Pie and side salad (instead of chips), with the world’s thickest plum-​colored balsamic vinaigrette that you literally (has Rob Lowe completely killed legitimate use of this word?) have to spread with a knife.
Did I say huge slices? The server (you get on line to order) cooly steered me away from my original choice of gluten-​free spinach and feta quiche as a better size and taste deal. This was a thicker phyllo (if that’s the term) sandwiching beaucoup de spinach between – and easier and less messy to cut than thin phyllo pies of this sort (pet peeve). The slices were so big, I literally had to take the other slice home.
Space water is free.

This is my favorite neighborhood coffee shop… I totally dig the vibe of this place.
nobody’s mentioned it yet but when i was there last week my iphone noticed that they finally broke down and got wifi.
Other than the off day, everyone has been super nice everytime. Try their decadent blueberry muffin or their lox sandwhich platter.

My favorite coffee shop in the neighborhood. The coffee is decent, the muffins are good and the bagels with cream cheese are perfect. I haven’t tried the sandwiches but they look great coming out & many people are ordering them. This small
Coffee shop sometimes gets backed up with line to the door but everyone working is very nice & takes the time to get the order right.

I had to really debate whether or not to give this place 3 or 4 stars and I just could not justify giving a café without WIFI 4 stars. The worst part of the no WIFI thing is that behind the counter they have a sign that reads, «friends don’t let friends drink Starbucks.» I just want to grab the owner by the shoulders and shout, «in the non hipster World, where people have real jobs and where students study for real degrees where they need more software than iPhoto we need the internet.» I asked the cashier why they don’t have WIFI and he said, «well no one on the Avenue does, it’s not just us.» That makes sense considering their competition in the entire city of Baltimore is local to one block in Hampden.
Despite my first paragraph, I actually do like it here. They have good hummus, which is a plus when I’m trying to be healthy. It’s a great tranquil time to sit on their deck with a cup of coffee and a plate of hummus and vegetables and just relax.
My experience with the service was mixed, but not bad. When I checked in on Unilocal a notice came up saying that I get half off coffee and this blew the baristas’ minds because they were completely unaware of the promotion. It took some convincing to actually get my half off promotion, which shows some sort of inability to use discretion by their staff. I mean who would give the guy who is pretty much telling you, «I’m going to review your business on the internet after this» a hard time over like 50 cents. They spoke to their manager and confirmed it was a real promotion, no big deal, but seriously tell your staff when you’re running an online discount.