Higher Grounds Organic Cafe Coffee Shop Market

Was excited about a gluten free, vegan bakery and coffeeshop. Stopped in when i got to town on vacation. 2.50 for quarter-​sized macaroons. 3.00 for iced chai made from half a teaspoon of tazo chai syrup and 24 oz of water. It tasted like barely spicy water. I got hosed.
Note: i just found this review draft written from July 2013 but didn’t post it until April 2015.

I loved this place! Very organic and healthy! had the salad with quinoa and chicken and it was amazing with the sesame dressing. There is a cute garden to sit in as well to eat and they had a live band on Friday in the afternoon!

This place has a very cool outdoor area. I like that they use all natural stuff, down to the handsoap. The problem is that they are super slow. Like, ridiculously slow. The garden has a stoner feel and maybe this is all a part of the vibe. Come here, relaxed-​super relaxed and full so that you can spend the time working up an appetite. I did really enjoy my small piece of vegetarian quiche (spinach, basil, feta and tomatoes) with a side salad even though it cost $ 9. The tomatoes were out of this world-​the highlight of the meal. Surely they were organically grown nearby.

I grew up in this area, but I had never been to Higher Grounds. After this weekend, though, this place will become a regular spot for me when I visit my parents. The chill atmosphere here is relaxing and the food is delicious. I was more than satisfied with my tofu scramble and I thought the portion was decent, given the $ 9 price tag. The garden in the back is charming and playful and I recommend sitting there if the weather allows it. I’m not sure if the live music is an everyday thing, but it was a nice touch to our Monday morning brunch. My only complaint here is that it’s a little confusing when you first enter the restaurant. I had no clue where to sit! The service is also slower than normal, but the food is made-​to-​order and they warn you that it will take a little longer.
Bottom line: good food and beverages, great vibe, and the perfect place for a laid-​back meal. I will most definitely be back.

I have to give thumbs up to Higher Grounds. They seem to be one of the only places in Cape May focusing on organic/​vegetarian/​vegan food. They turn out some great food and make a mean cup of coffee too.
Upon first walking in, we were both a little confused. We entered on the left side (while facing) and had to ask about seating. There was no formal hostess or reception area. I could see that on this side of the establishment was where people would just order coffee or bites to go. We walked around to the outdoor seating area expecting to be «received» by someone but instead we just asked a waiter and he told us to take a seat anywhere. He was extremely friendly and promptly brought waters and menus.
Both of us settled on the tofu scramble because it just looked to good to pass up. I opted for the toast while she got the bagel. Coffee for me, tea for her. Our waiter let us know that «the food would take a little while but that it was made with love» This was a perfectly fine explanation to me and I took my time looking around their really nicely decorated garden area. The outdoor seating is a mixture of tables and picnic benches all with very fun decorations everywhere. After about 5 – 10 minutes a guy with a guitar started playing music and he was quite good. I sort of felt like I was in an episode of Portlandia but I just decided to go with it.
The tofu scramble rocked. It had carrots, celery, red onion and that yellow tinge that probably came from some curry/​turmeric. The sprouted toast was also awesome and had either margarine or some vegan spread on it. The kale salad, carrots and apple alongside of it just made this dish great.
I’ll be coming back here again. I enjoyed my experience very much and I want to have lunch next time.

Coffee is decent. If you order food here be prepared to wait. Sometimes up to half an hour! Not fast service for food at all! They should let a person know it will be such a long wait! I will not be going back which makes me sad because I do love the organic food and supporting local businesses.

Excellent organic coffee where you least expect it.
Kind of quaintly furnished and has a «real» feel about the whole place.
They have breakfast as well — which I didn’t try.

Loved visiting this place so much (especially since Cape May doesn’t have any other vegan and gluten free places) that I went back everyday for lunch! Great customer service with a smile every time! Amazing Grilled Cheeses and delicious crumb pie! I see all the reviews about the prices being expensive but actually if you’ve gone to other all natural (vegan and gluten free places) they are relatively CHEAP! Keep up the amazing work!

Love this place. Friendly service with wholesome organic and fair-​trade food. And the outdoor seating area is comfortably quirky. I like good coffee and I found it here. It was the perfect post-​bike ride coffee place as I could find a seat outside and not worry about being a bit sweaty. We also had a raspberry smoothie with almond yogurt — so fresh and tasty. I wish every city I traveled to had a place like this. It’s like being at home when you’re away from home.

My experience at Higher Grounds has to go down in my own personal record books as jaw-​droppingly awful.
Synopsis: incredibly overpriced, unbelievably stingy, amazingly slow, below average in taste…
but the garden is nice.
My cousin and I stopped in to get sandwiches to go. Since the sandwiches were $ 14 each, we asked if they were particuarly big. (Answer: yes, they are big. Reality: no, they are ordinary size.) We got a vegan BLT and a turkey club to split among 4 of us, since there was no way we were going to pay $ 56 for 4 sandwiches to take to the beach.
I got a coffee. it was good, but nothing to write home about. My cousin got a smoothie which she said was awful. And then we waited forty minutes for our sandwiches.
40 minutes. On a Friday afternoon. Before the season started.
Then we got the sandwiches. They were messily made, not particularly appetizing. And — pretty astounding given that we are in Jersey in the summer and it is a vegetarian place — they were stingy with the vegetables. Once half of the VLT had a piece of tomato on it no bigger then my thumb. It was on slightly stale whole wheat bread with a few pieces of lettuce, a few strips of vegtarian bacon, a few slices of brownish apple and a handful of tortilla chips: $ 14.
We pointed this out to the girl running the place. She asked us to cut her some slack since all her staff was new. Not for $ 14 and 40 minutes! She did add more tomato and some cucumbers to the sandwich and threw in some (not good) vegan muffins.
Then at the beach I opened up my turkey club. No lie: two very thin slices of turkey. That was it. Bread to turkey ratio: well, three slices of bread and two slices of turkey. $ 14.
Someone on the beach told me there was a cute vegetatatiran café on Broadway. I’ll try that next time…

Fantastic. I was served a quinoa dish made special just for me as they were waiting for their tofu delivery. I couldn’t have cooked it better. Lovely folks working there. Great cappuccino. Perfect stop on the way back from my bike ride to sunset beach. A must if you enjoy organic healthy food!!!

This place has a cute outdoor seating area. and FREE WIFI. just what i needed to do my work outdoors on a beautiful spring day!
Pricey. Didn’t order coffee since I already had my cup for the day. Instead we got some lemonade/​limade/​cider concoction. It was good but super sweet. Kind of expensive.

Pros: As far as I know, this is the only all-​vegan café in Cape May. The backyard garden café is whimsical and unique. My tempeh sandwich was flavorful and satisfying.
Cons: The food and beverages are overpriced, and we had to wait for about 20 minutes for two sandwiches to be made. I find this to be unacceptable, but my attitude might stem from the fact that I come from the busy-​busy-​go-​go-​go New York metro area.

If you like paying $ 20.04 for coffee and two mini bagel sandwiches, and if you like waiting forty-​five minutes for said bagels (seriously: 45 minutes), and if you’re looking for details about the next Community Drum Circle, boy, have I got a place for you!

This little Cape May haven saved our vegan selves from eating french fries all weekend at the shore. A total hippie vibe, decent coffee with alternative milks, and a kitchen that cranks out simple, healthy veg-​friendly fare draws us in year after year when we visit the shore. If ever a place could be too laid back, this might be it… but if you’re on vacation, that should be just fine!
Highlights include the outdoor garden seating (so pretty), ever-​expanding natural foods menu and the cook/​owner who is really sweet and dedicated to her shop. See you again next year!

Go for it, Higher Grounds! So much more than a coffee shop: Higher Grounds is placing a stake in the ground, saying «THIS is what the shore CAN be». Funky and quirky and staunchly independent, it is the ultimate antidote to the varying levels of intense crap-​ola found all across the Jersey Shore.
Cape May is already far-​and-​away my favorite shore town… in fact it’s the only one I can really tolerate for more than 15 minutes. Thank you Higher Grounds for doing your part to keep CM’s character intact and decidedly anti-​commercial.
I can’t even remark on the quality of the coffee, which is usually of paramount importance to me when, say, reviewing a coffee shop. In this case it simply doesn’t matter. Higher Grounds’ purpose and value are… well… higher!

Food: This seems to be the only all vegetarian restaurant in Cape Cod. The options are unique, made to order by the staff, and feature all organic ingredients. Vegan options are available as well. The food was nicely prepared and presented and was delicious. Appetizers, soup, and sandwiches/​wraps are available. The sandwiches all came with either pickles, or chips, and blueberries sprinkled on the plate, or all of the above. A great place to go for a vegetarian lunch at the beach.
Price: The prices are a little expensive both for lunch and for the size of the portions. Having said that, we were definitely full when we were done. The higher prices are likely due to the organic and unique ingredients.
Drinks: This is a coffee shop, and they have everything you would expect in that regard.
Atmosphere: Very Bohemian, but comfortable, with a big doggie that is super friendly to all of the customers. Soft music (Radiohead, Simon and Garfunkel) played in the background. There is indoor and outdoor seating, and the seating ranges from picnic tables, to lawn tables, to recliners and couches, and regular dinner tables. The only negative her is that there aren’t many options for groups of 3 or more, so at times it may be hard to find seats together.
Service: The service was very friendly. The staff forgot one of our meals in the oven. It still tasted good but everyone was done eating by the time that meal came out.
(+): great vegetarian options, unique menu choices, great ingredients and taste, low-​key setting, the doggie
(-): a little pricey, not a great location, somewhat long wait to get food
Would I go back again? Yes.

Kate and the gang at Higher Grounds were so gracious and warm that I didn’t want to leave. Firstly, as a vegetarian, I was surprised to see that ALL the food was veg and/​or vegan. I had the pulled pork (the «meat» was gluten, kind of like seitan) on a sumptuous bagel with tomato and veggies. I also had a cup (big cup) of a roasted red pepper/​eggplant kind of bisque. My buddy had a fantastic grilled cheese and tomato soup. I split my sandwich with my pal and had an entire half left over.
Sitting in the dining area it was comfortable with various sofas and old granny chairs. Books on sale for $ 2.00 and musical instruments available to play. Free wi-​fi and the best coconut/​vanilla iced tea I ever had. Kate was happy to serve us and was so laid back I didn’t want to leave! Oh, I’m a musician down in NJ for some gigs and Kate hired me on the spot for a lunch gig! How cool is that?

Absolutely great spot and a welcome find in Cape May.
I live in San Francisco but am in Cape May a few times a year to visit family, and am hugely relieved to have found a place that offers free wi-​fi, great food & coffee, great music, and an atmosphere that is as welcoming, cozy [and, just between us, conducive to getting work done] as anything San Fran has to offer.

I go to cape may once or twice every year, and since becoming a vegetarian, I’ve had a hard time finding guilt-​free food. The last time I went to cape may I stumbled upon higher grounds, which has been open now for a couple months.
The atmosphere is like you’re sitting in a friends house (complete with outdoor seating in a garden) and they’re cooking you food. The two girls who run it are really nice, and open to any requests you have for your food. I had a grilled cheese and tomato soup here two days in a row, as well as an apple muffin and some other products. The food is TERRIFIC and being able to have a casual conversation with the owners is a plus.
This business is great for cape may, and I hope this review will get more people in there so it sticks around.