Carmel Coffee & Cocoa Bar

Quaint little coffee shop with pretty good coffee. Nice selection of pastries and quiche. Staff are friendly and know their coffee. Beautiful little court yard to sit for a spell. Plenty of room for a group of friends and not the crazy computer gang you might find at others coffee houses.

WHAT A GREAT FIND!!!
This place is a hidden gem~
We were looking for a good place to feed all kinds of appetites for kids and adults alike.
Everyone loved their meal and plates were CLEAN when we left!
We had:
Chicken ramen
Greek salad w/​chicken
Chicken salad
Ham panini with fruit and salad
Croissant ham sandwich
Lemon bar
Coconut bar
Chai ice tea
Hot tea
We tried each others meal and we loved them all!!! Their service is amazing and cheerful. Their food is SO fresh! The ambiance is nice and casual.
I felt their portions and quality dictated fair pricing, especially for the area!
Please check out this little café while in Carmel. I hope you’ll love it as much as we did!!! I love small «ma & pa» owned business that Care this much and want you to have a wonderful experience and care about their customers!

Perfect inexpensive spot for lunch or breakfast in Carmel. All the food is fresh and full of flavor. Very prompt and attentive service. Really nothing to complain about at all.
Delicious coffee as well!

Traveling through town and looking for a bite to eat and a delicious coffee? This place is a great option! I had a delicious meal and a very delicious iced latte. The customer service was amazing!

Great spot with a lot to offer.
The place is an odd mix — coffee, asian noodles, classic american meals, treats, etc.
I had a salad, and it was delicious — very fresh and tasty ingredients.
The staff were also super friendly and it was clear they have a large base of locals that come in, which was nice to see.

5 Stars! I was first impressed with how clean this place was & then I was greeted by a friendly young lady. There were so many options; from fresh salads to kimchee ramen and beautiful pastries to Brussel sprouts! I decided to go with the ramen (SO YUMMY), it was perfectly spicy. Then I grabbed an iced coffee & pineapple coconut cake to go :). I can’t wait to come back & try more goodies!

This is my absolute favorite coffee shop in Carmel. Every time we come to town, I make sure to come here to get my Americano that is perfectly prepared exactly how I like it. The owners and staff are so friendly and accommodating. And the food is wonderful too! My kids love their custom made hot cocoa, pastries and fruit, while my hubby gets the breakfast burrito and I order the Carmel Sunrise that has spinach and poached eggs. Yum! I highly recommend it!

The rice bowls and ramens are really, really good. Great coffee too. Great place for a fast but high quality lunch.

Love these guys. So many chocolates to choose from and only one mouth to drink with! Take cash. Mexican hot chocolate or truffle hot chocolate are out of this world. Great food too!

Great local spot in Carmel for coffee, sandwich and ramen noodles. We tried the noodles and they were fantastic! My chai latte was delicious. The coffee shop has a great feel to it and a relaxing outdoor patio. They don’t accept credit cards so bring cash. An ATM is a few steps away if needed.

Your average coffee shop. Had decent coffee and smoked salmon bagel. Didn’t like that it was cash only and also didn’t like that the latte I ordered for here was not served in a ceramic cup. Just alright overall.

Cozy little coffee shop in the touristy and affluent Downtown Carmel
The sweet:
— Caramel latte art is very pretty
— Down-​to-​earth décor
— Neat concept of the cocoa bar with several specialty hot chocolates
The bitter:
— Anything besides the caramel latte lacks latte art
— Food is even more overpriced than SF
— They serve ramen… it’s like finding dim sum at Starbucks
We got an almond latte and a large soy latte ($ 8 total). It was decent coffee though in retrospect, I think a cocoa bar drink would have been more unique and memorable. (I’m just a little too addicted to caffeine to consider hot cocoa in the morning.)
Side note: my latte was filled to the top and I accidentally created a mini explosion when opening my lid. Handle with care to avoid looking extra clumsy and touristy!

Definitely not the place to go if you are seeking a quality shot of espresso or any sort of quality coffee — I’ll tell you that much.
They pulled my shot of Espresso first into a dirty metal pitcher, something which is almost always a sign of a total hack Barista, that knows nothing of coffee. Nothing worse than someone pulling your shot into an intermediate cup that has been used all day and is coated with the stagnate residue of the last 20+ shots they have pulled. The shot was then poured into a cup and served to me. It was sour as cat piss; one of the all-​time worst shots I’ve ever been served.
Either the women working behind the counter have received absolutely zero training on how to use their multi-​thousand dollar espresso machine or they just don’t give a shit. I suspect the latter, because when I rejected the shot and gave it back to them, neither of the staff really even bothered to ask if something was wrong or offered a refund. Just comically poor service.
I mean really, even Starbucks can do better… and that ain’t saying much.
Unless you are just seeking coffee flavored drinks, I would proceed with caution or check Unilocal for another coffee shop in the area.

The Carmel Coffee & Cocoa Bar has been a staple in the plaza for as long as I’ve been working here. Mira makes by far the best coffee drinks in town, using only the best ingredients. It’s also a great place to he lunch, I’ve eaten the tuna sandwich more times than I can count and recently her addition of Ramen bowls have been one of my favorite things to get!

The young lady who took our order today was very impatient and unfriendly and clearly does not want to work there. She rudely told us it was cash only (there was no sign anywhere near the register we were at, how would we know?) Our 2 drinks took a VERY long time for not being very busy in there and they told us (again, rudely) to stay inside and wait for our name to be called. That would be fine except that there is no waiting space inside which is packed with tables so you end up all crowded around the door confusing new people trying to find the line.
Of all the coffee choices during our weekend visit in Carmel we felt like we chose the worst by far. I would never go back here.

Pretty good. Get a smoothie because they are very good not to sweet but not to sweet.
I really wanted a kimchi ramen but considering it was 5pm I thought rather not. I would recommend the smoothie once again it was quite good. The ramen looks so good I really regret not getting it

I always love finding a local coffee bar that not only serves up a great cup, but also has a nice relaxed vibe. Carmel Coffee and Cocoa Bar fits that bill perfectly. It’s located downstairs in the courtyard of the Carmel Plaza and features indoor and outdoor seating. This is a nice, welcoming spot to take a break in what can sometimes be a somewhat pretentious town.
I’ve not tried any of the food offerings aside from a small pastry with my coffee or hot chocolate, but they do have a variety of items to choose from. The hot chocolates and coffees are just the thing needed on a cool Carmel afternoon. I’ve tried the blended coffees, mochas, lattes, cappuccinos and of course the hot chocolate. I’ve enjoyed every one with the exception of the cappuccino which was just too foamy for me. I also found the cappuccino just a touch bitter.
Service has always been friendly and prompt when I’ve stopped in. This is a regular stop on my visits to Carmel!

This shop is located in the courtyard of a shopping center. Interesting mix of coffee shop, Chinese restaurant, and other Asian selections. Plenty large menu with pictures too.
Came in for a cup of coffee. Staff was quick. Coffee was reasonable priced. Not overly bitter was the coffee. Little acidic after. Good was the coffee though.
Good experience. Will have to try the Asian food offerings next time through.

Echoing everyone else: cash only.
This place is charming and very open. Inside and outside seating. Large menu with food and drinks, iced or hot. They also offer a lot of delicious bakery items, from soft, sweet apricot bars to mouthwatering croissants. I definitely recommend the apricot bar — SO GOOD.
I got the soy chai latte, sweet, which was so creamy and perfect for a cool Carmel day. My husband got the spicy chai latte with almond milk, which was less sweet but every bit as delicious.
This place is a perfect pitstop if you’re wandering around Carmel. It’s a delightful little place.

First and foremost, CASH ONLY.
\This cute coffee spot is in a beautiful plaza right off the main street in Carmel. It is very cozy but still with a decent amount of seating. There are a few seats outside, though being inside is more than good enough, because the large windows let the sunlight pour into the store.
The service is very good. They are pretty fast with getting things out as well as making sure the area is very neat and tidy.
I get croissants in every city, and the almond croissant at Carmel Coffe & Cocoa Bar is phenomenal! It’s the perfect amount of sweetness and flakiness. I was surprised to see that ramen was also on the menu. I can’t wait to come back to try the ramen and the breakfast items!