La Prima Tazza

I’ve been coming to La Prima Tazza, out of all the excellent coffee shops in Lawrence, since I was 12 years old. Of all the places in Lawrence, when I come back to visit, this is the first I visit, and usually the one I visit most frequently.
The atmosphere is aboslutely perfect to me — big windows in the front perfect for people watching, small tables for intimate conversations, and a big table for groups. I love doing work at Tazza, and there are plentiful outlets and fast wifi. The ceiling looks like an old bank ceiling, and the floor and tables also have interesting patterns, as an extra perk. And of course, they always feature talented local artists as well.
As for the coffee, perhaps because I started coming here as a kid, I tend toward their specialty drinks. I am now kind of an adult and drink black coffee, so I have tried their house coffee and am very satisfied with it. However, my two favorites will always be the Iced Morrocan and the Iced Snow Tiger. The Morrocan is the perfect combination of coffee and spice, and the snow tiger is creamy as can be.
Also, I can’t leave out their pumpkin bread — a staple at Tazza since I was 12, and they still sell them! It is moist and delicious and anyone in their right mind would love it.
As I’ve moved on to new places, I still hold all my coffee shops to the La Prima Tazza standard, and I must say, none have quite met that standard as of yet.

Always good! When I worked downtown I came here at least twice a week (which is a lot for someone as cheap as me). The staff is always very friendly and hey always work swiftly.

Hands down my favorite coffee shop in Lawrence. What LPT lacks in size it makes up in charm. Personable baristas and quality, affordable drinks. The free wifi and outlets are also a plus… half my dissertation was written here.

I have been going here for coffee regularly for the past 10 years. Every drink I order is well made. Whether it is a latte, cappuccino, or iced drink, it is always excellent!

Great coffee and tea! Great baked goods! Cozy atmosphere-you’ll never feel out of place here. This is where I bring people from out of town to get coffee!

I went to this place for the first time today. I was looking for a nice place to study and get coffee. Other reviews recommended the Grasshopper drink, and it was delicious! The man who served me was very friendly, and chatted with me while he made my drink.
I stayed for a little over an hour working on my computer and it was great! The atmosphere is nice, and the coffee was delicious!
I will definitively come back again

Nice, quaint, local coffee shop. Good selection of hot and cold drinks.
The barista was friendly and she offered good advice on what she enjoys from the menu. Typically I prefer drip coffee, an americano, or an unflavored iced coffee, but on this occasion, I took her advice and ordered the iced grasshopper. It was of course delicious, and true to her description of tasting like mint chip ice cream.
I enjoyed the atmosphere — naturally lit from the store front windows, the music was at the right volume to be recognizable but not distracting from a book or conversation. And the clientele was diverse (as is often the case in Lawrence).
There was a Starbucks across the street, and I was not disappointed that I opted for the local coffee shop instead. This coffee shop is a nice place to stop and relax while spending a day on Mass St and I’d definitely return to try one of their espresso drinks.

This is a nice cozy café that provides a quiet atmosphere for students and people who just either want to read or have small talk.
I loved the subtle sound of Frank Ocean playing in the background as I hear coffee being made by the espresso machine. I felt a neighborhood vibe to this café. I can definitely tell there are some regulars that come and have been coming for years.
Their menu is just enough to have variety for everyone. There are their specialties too which is nice to have and try. I suggest asking your barista about the drinks and what goes in. The lady who was serving us had a lot of knowledge. She explained to me what went inside an Indonesian and what went into a Moroccan. I ended up having the Moroccan which had cinnamon syrup and cinnamon powder on top of this latte type drink.
This café kind of reminded me of some of the cafes in Berkeley, CA. It has a hipster vibe but still has that neighborhood go-​to feel. This is a must try when in Lawrence.
A special thank you to my lady who had me try this place. This café means a lot to her and reminded her of her old hangout spot during school. I can see why anyone would come here. I felt warm and cozy all around. Thank you Mimi.

I went in for a cappuccino and pastry this morning. The barista was very friendly and made a pretty good cappuccino. She was very meticulous and her care for her work shows. I ultimately settled on pumpkin bread sourced from the local Community Mercantile. It was pretty good as well. I thought my takeout styrofoam cup was a little peculiar but other than that it was a good experience. I’d definitely return if I wanted a good coffee and a place to sit down as study or relax for a few minutes

This place is dangerous.
It’s dangerous because I would consider making this place my go-​to coffee spot even though I live an hour away, I liked it that much after one visit.
The food selection isn’t mid-​blowing, but it gets the job done. I enjoyed a delicious lemon and blueberry muffin on my visit but was torn between that and their scones, of which they sweet and savory ones. I had two drinks, an iced Black Forest Mocha which was good but even better was the Iced Cocoa Cloud – zoo-​wee-​mama! It was a wonderful combination of cold-​press coffee, delicious and sweet chocolate, milk, creamy froth, and delicious hints of cinnamon throughout. So good.
I appreciated that the barista took the time to stir together the chocolate, syrups, and milk to ensure that they were combined well. I also loved the European-​feel, and at 9 in the morning they had NPR on their radio. It’s like they knew I was going to be dropping by! As another reviewer lamented, I think it’s tacky that they still use styrofoam cups but that’s a very minor issue for me.
I liked everything about La Prima Tazza – the drinks, the service, the atmosphere. Luckily, with their amazing business hours if I *just so happen* to be in Lawrence I might just swing by. Just maybe.

Big
Windows
For working
And quick service
For the morning coffee. Why styrofoam???

La Prima Tazza may arguably have the best coffee in town (Lawrence, Kansas)… They certainly have one of the coziest cafes, with a nice, open space and a refreshingly friendly, welcoming staff. It’s an easy place to hang out in while you have a good cuppa java.
The only weird thing about La Prima Tazza is that they still use styrofoam cups for their to-​go drinks — kinda tacky, VERY bad for the environment, and banned in many other progressive towns. This is really the reason I’m writing this review: I wish they’d ditch the styrofoam. Indeed, on mornings when I have to get coffee to go, I’ll even walk two extra blocks and pay twice as much for a cup at the Bourgeois Pig, just so I don’t have to gunk up the environment with non-​biodegradable crap.
For their coffee and their pleasant lack of ‘tude, La Prima Tazza deserve five stars — if I was grading them on their eco status, I’d have to give them a one or a two.

I have never had cold pressed coffee before so my face brightened up like a kid receiving a huge ice cream cone when I noticed the shop had maple cold pressed iced coffee as a daily special… and it was absolutely amazing! The bean was so delicious and it wasn’t too sugary like other flavored coffee but I was still able to drink it black. My company got a hot chocolate and amaretto iced latte and they couldn’t have raved more about it! The customer service was good, nothing spectacular. They had a couple of pastries and scones from local bakeries too. I highly recommend it!

Great coffee & specialty drinks! They have limeades in the summer and great iced teas of the day. A perfect place to take a large group of picky people. The staff are friendly and helpful, unlike lots of places in Lawrence.

This coffee shop reminds me of Baked & Wired in Georgetown. The coffee is truly outstanding. It was a great find on a cold Kansas afternoon. It will be two more years before I return. This place could have been in Smallville. There is nothing like a great cup of coffee!

The beverages were REALLY great. My lavender latte was phenomenal. I’m giving 4 stars because the barista was kind of pretentious and short with us. I told myself maybe her boyfriend broke up with her, poor girl. Anyway! The coffee drinks were so good I’d totally go back and chance a snippy barista (if I weren’t from out of town which I am). Sacrifices have to be made for lavender syrup!!!

I was so young and naïve when I wrote my last review!
Maybe it’s something in the water here, but I’ve now become one of those Lawrence locals that adores LPT. Their espresso admittedly isn’t the most spectacular I’ve had, but a soy latte just hits the spot. I do stand by my previous review — simple latte/​cappucino is the way to go here, rather than a sweetened mocha. They also now have almond milk — though I still recommend getting soy if you don’t need gluten free, because almond milk lacks richness and just doesn’t foam up quite as nice. And B1G1 Tuesdays are a ridiculous deal — I wonder sometimes how LPT manages to survive, but then I realize the effect it’s had on me in the past couple years — and I can breathe easy again knowing that LPT is definitely here to stay.

I used to frequent La Prima Tazza quite often when I lived out in Lawrence, and finally found a chance to come back for a quick visit and grab a cup of joe.
The place is fairly close-​knit with their European-​style seating. I’ve been blessed, however, to have always found a place to sit. For the most part, patrons grab their drink and go, come alone, or come with one other person. I think there may be an unwritten rule to not come in with a crowd greater than three persons. I personally wouldn’t recommend it, since again, seating is limited. But if you are going solo, or studying with a friend, this is a great place.
In my opinion, La Prima Tazza attracts more of a mature crowd. Perhaps due to the size of the coffee shop, the low-​level background music, the type of patrons that come, or a combination of these, I have been able to get some good, focused time to get things done. I appreciate that everyone uses their indoor voice and is mindful of others – overall no loud, garrulous conversations or boisterous laughter, and especially, no making out (I witnessed this at a Starbucks last night).
I’m all about saving money, and do enjoy the fact they help promote reuse by giving customers a 20% discount for using their own mug, cup, or tumbler.
On the downside, the place does continue to also be the choice coffee shop for flies, as the shop does often keep their door open. I would recommend they invest in getting several sticky traps to get rid of those nuisances. I imagine as winter approaches, they will be more keen on shutting the door. Also, the lack of window shades may lead to uncomfortable glares if you’re seated near the entrance. Lastly, the bathroom could use a bit of improvement and upkeep – it seems more of a lazily kept storage area than bathroom. Not sure if this is a plus, but the large mirror sitting on the floor helps me notice the wrinkles in my pants as opposed to the wrinkles in my face. Although, rather I prefer they just hang the dang thing.

Been visiting La Prima Tazza more lately. Hard to be a regular patron if you’re wanting to hang out for a couple hours and study, surf web, read newspaper, etc. Place is not sit up for that with the limited seating and the STILL growing popularity of the place (even though it’s a Lawrence original coffee shop). In fact, there is a sign affixed to the cash register so much as saying be considerate of others and don’t camp out there all day sucking up internet and space. No problem with this policy at all, as long as Tazzo doesn’t turn into the next Java Break of Lawrence which I know they won’t. Of all the coffee shops in Lawrence, I’d have to say the lines at Tazza are consistently long and you normally have one Barista (sometimes two) attempting to serve the crowds. I’ve noticed a slightly higher than average turnover rate amongst the Baristas here. Could speculate, but will leave it alone. Other petty complaint is their opening hours of 6:30am on weekdays. Wish it was more along the line of 5am but not a big deal.
The Baristas are still a little moody on occasion, but usually pretty friendly. Yes, there tends to be an older regular crowd that frequents the place early mornings. Other than that, you will find a diverse range of people who love La Prima Tazza. I don’t know what it is, but this place attracts folks who love to bring their dogs and sit them right in front of the door more times than not. Weird, but true.
Quality of the coffee and espresso based drinks are still top notch. What I continue to notice is that the Baristas stack 10 – 15 coffee filters with the beans in them on the back counter in order to keep the coffee flowing throughout the day. Most wouldn’t consider this a big deal, but ask any die hard coffee aficionado and they will tell you that air/​oxygen and fresh roasted coffee beans don’t mix. By sitting the beans out throughout the day, some have wondered if a small portion of the freshness is lost. Again, prolly not a huge deal but something to consider.
Latte’s and cappuccinos are delicious delicious delicious! Like I stated before, try to drink the espresso based drinks from the La Prima ceramic cup because it imparts such a wonderful flavor compared to the paper cups. Yea I know, another example of a coffee snob mentality (Ha). Looks like pastries are brought in from the Merc. Never a bad thing. Hoping for oatmeal one day. With limited labor on hand, it would be kinda difficult to keep adding items to the menu.
Don’t forget about the frequent card program either. Always a big plus with coffee shops. Still can’t believe they run the Buy 1 Get 1 free Tuesday specials. Unheard of in the upper end coffee shops. Major props to Tazzo for keeping this intact.
Recently, Lawrence’s annual «Best of» list had La Prima Tazzo ranked #1 again for coffee shops. Hard to argue if this is based purely on the quality of the commodity at hand. Maybe it’s just me, but I still think Lawrence has yet to witness a great all-​around coffee shop with the right product/​quality, atmosphere, ambiance, customer service, seating, music, lighting, etc. La Prima and Henry’s come close. Maybe one day, me or someone on here will realize this dream and give Lawrence the coffee mecca they deserve.

A veritable downtown Lawrence institution and one of the «anchors» in the 600 block of Massachusetts Street along with Free State Brewery and Liberty Hall. They all blend together to form the perfect combination for a great entertainment area.
In spite of changes in ownership over the years the quality and service has remained consistently high… geez, has it been close to 20 years? Someone check my math. First business in town to offer espresso drinks if memory serves correctly.
I brought some Italian musician friends here a few years ago as they made a stop in Lawrence on tour. They told me the espresso was the best they’d had in the 3 weeks they’d been in the states. «Perfect crema,» was their response.
To me this is Lawrence’s best destination for the highest quality take home ground coffee. The house blend Café de Tikal is a superb roast that’s in fairly consistent rotation in our house. They’ll grind to your specification and watching customers stealing a whiff of the aroma of freshly ground beans on their way out is a common sight.
Not a complaint but I’d like to see them offering higher quality single brewed coffees. Only one espresso shop in town has ventured there to my knowledge. The «pump your own» is good enough for the to go and in-​house crowd but once in awhile you’d like the full treatment.
Tip: best hot chocolate in town for our money, and bringing a youngster along for one of those is a sure way to please them. Lets hope when those tiny hot chocolate drinkers grow up La Prima Tazza (stands for «the first and best cup,» or similar) is still around for them to enjoy.