Ambition Coffee & Eatery, Inc

Came around 12 on a Saturday. We were able to sit right away (it’s seat yourself) and didn’t need to wait for a table. I ordered a breakfast sandwich and it was great. The potatoes were were cooked perfect and the eggs were nice and fluffy. I ordered a cappuccino when I placed my food order. I wasn’t in a hurry and I expected to get it around the same time I got my food which I did but then when we got our bill, our server didn’t charge us for it. He said it had taken too long to come out. I told him non-​sense and it had come out when I wanted it to but he insisted. Our server was very nice and very professional. As someone who used to serve, you could tell he was a seasoned server.

First time here got a Taffeta Darling to go. Great service from the chef and the waitress behind the bar. Food was fast to come out and was awesome! The Brie Bacon egg and croissant combo was the best I have had in while, I definitely will be coming back to introduce my wife to this place.

I’ll preface this by saying the food is great. I’ve done nothing but sing this shop’s praise for a long time. But recently, I’ve been unable to get out of the house a lot because I was injured in a fire, so my fiancé picks up our food instead of going there in person.
I was going to an exam today and since I was right next door I figured we could stop in for a bite. We’ve had a really bad time recently and we could use the pickmeup. I go in there and after waiting 20 minutes the manager came up to me saying we’re always rude to the waitstaff and we never tip so she’s not going to make them serve my fiancé and I.
Now, mind you, when we went there in person we always tipped. Maybe not amazingly but things have been rough so we did our best and it was usually for special occasions or something to cheer us up when things have been particularly rough, we’ve had a lot of bad luck since the fire (the one that was also on jay street) and it was always something that put a smile on our faces.
I was not aware that tipping on pick up orders was evidently /​mandatory/​and gave them the right to refuse service. We weren’t being waited on so I didn’t know that it was something that was necessary. And the only time I was even remotely rude was when I was yelled at for asking them to include bacon on a burger via mealeo notes because they didn’t have any option to add bacon and it costs extra, which I didn’t know because it wasn’t listed on the page. But since I loved their food, I let this slide and just started ordering a stacy’s mom instead.
It breaks my heart that this would happen, as it was literally my favorite place in Schenectady to eat for when I was feeling really down, so them doing that to us after making us wait/​completely ignoring us while we were already having a bad day is really disheartening. I won’t be ordering from them again and it’s upsetting because their food is really great.
If you can look past that, then go for it. But clearly make sure you have enough extra money to leave a weighty tip, because if you don’t, they might end up denying you service in the future.
Edit 1÷29÷2016:
After the response from the manager below, I sent a message to them privately requesting that they cite this alleged abuse, as my fiancé and I both keep to ourselves. I’m offended that they would claim that we were abusive when all we did was eat, pay and leave. It was highly unprofessional in my opinion, and the mudslinging just further punctuates that it was likely entirely about tips as they couldn’t site the alleged abuse. If you’re in the area, I suggest Pizza King or Johnny’s. Both are polite. Below is the note that I sent them, for reference.
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If you wouldn’t mind, could you please give me some examples of this rudeness?
I say this, because we haven’t been there in person until today, since before the fire. I have not been able to get out and about just for leisure since then and when we went in before all we ever did was order the same thing, keep to ourselves and talk to each other, pay and leave. We barely spoke to the wait staff beyond the initial order and accepting our food because we always knew what we wanted the second we came in.
This also seems odd because we haven’t been there since the fire to be waited on but we were personally invited to the breakfast with our faces seen while we were down in the area discussing housing, even though we were evidently not welcome to be waited on by this point, as I have pointed out since we haven’t been in since before the fire. And we were not able to make it to the breakfast either, due to the location we were housed at and my injuries preventing me from actually making my way to that area unless it was absolutely necessary.
The only other time I spoke to waitstaff was the issue with Mealeo, when I was yelled at over the bacon being requested via note because there was no checkmark option for it on the All American Burger. I didn’t like how I was being spoken to in this case because I was being treated rudely so I was slightly short back, and I do apologize for it. That and we didn’t tip on Mealeo and we were also given an earful about that, but the only reason we didn’t was because it was only about a 15 foot walk given our location and it was a large reason why my fiancé just started picking it up, because we couldn’t afford the extra pay when we were already only getting it when things had gone poorly or on very special occasions.
As for the offer to continue picking our food up, I’m afraid after how we were treated today, we don’t really feel all that comfortable walking into the establishment. So we’ll have to decline on that front, especially since I still have no idea what the staff is seeing as rudeness when we were largely quiet and just kept to ourselves. All I can think is it’s a matter of tips given how we were lashed out at over not tipping on Mealeo. So I apologize, we’ll just have to find another restaurant to fill that role.

Two of us came here for brunch on a Saturday around 11:30 AM. We sat at a booth and work promptly and efficiently served by a friendly waiter.
What we had:
Spanish omelette
Pancakes with peanut butter and honey on the side
Coffee

It was my first time trying out ambition café today. The set up of the café was a bit strange. We entered the open door and it was the bakery side of the café. So we were told to casually grab any open seats available so we did. The lunch menu sandwiches tasted okay, it wasn’t anything special but the coffee was a bit expensive in my opinion and it was just regularly coffee. Then I found out once I pay for the check that there’s an open coffee bar and the beverage prices on that board was different listed prices than on the lunch menu. Slightly cheaper. I was really confused by that.
Overall, the café had a friendly environment, the food was nothing special and the café set up was confusing to me.

I have been here twice for breakfast and it was great both times. I ordered a breakfast sandwich and was very happy to see they offered a pretzel roll. The atmosphere is really fun and inviting.
The bonus was having SmooveJ as the chef!

I’ve been to Ambition three times now — once for brunch, twice for lunch. All three times were outstanding.
Brunch service was super efficient. We were in and out in 45 minutes. My French toast was superb, and the coffee was perfect. I love the hand painted coffee mugs. My Bloody Mary needed more spice, but it wasn’t the worst.
Good food, good variety, friendly servers, and quirky décor. Can’t get much better!

I frequent this establishment often. Always great coffee and food and a relaxed atmosphere. Looking for a low key breakfast? This is a great place!

This place was JUST okay. We had the cuchi cuchi (sp?) and the flavor was there but the sourdough bread was soggy. Then we had the jeremeys package which was recommended to us by our waitress. It was sadly… not good. It was a strange combination of flavors. Turkey, some type of cranberry spread, balsamic reduction, Apple and cheddar. Sounded iffy, yet promising, and we wanted to try something new however it ended up being too sweet with unbalanced flavors throughout. A little disappointing! Not to mention they came with maybe 5 tortilla chips on each plate as a side, with literally no other options as another side or appetizer of sorts. Maybe it’s just the type of place where you need to know what to order! Oh well!

I am not a big fan of Unilocal as i find that many reviews have people complaining about petty, small things and bash people excessively. however I may be becoming one of those people.
we were up in the area for parents weekend at Union College and we were searching for a nice place for brunch with the kid on sunday. we called and they took a reservation that morning over the phone. we came on time and were seated. they were crowded.
then the nightmare began. we ordered. then we waited. and we waited. and we waited some more. they kept saying they were backed up. even after most people had left. our food showed up almost an hour after we ordered it. this was not complicated stuff; pancakes and breakfast sandwiches. they were mediocre.
this was more about the service than the food. they could have warned us and we could have made an informed decision. they could have not taken our reservation given how crowded they were. the kitchen is small. but this was a big weekend given all the parents so they could have staffed up.
however, even if the the wait was normal we would give the food a 3 ½.
so i have become what i detest but we had a really bad experience

I like it here. It’s quaint little place with good sandwiches. It’s nice to come here for lunch. I’d love it more if there coffee were good.

I’ve been here a few times (finally giving my Unilocal account some attention) and each time it leaves me feeling a bit less… high-​strung (if that makes sense). It’s such a chill (people still say that word, right?) environment. Cool photos, memorabilia, music, furniture, etc. I love bee-​lining it to the back of the building to the sunken in couches to enjoy my coffee (from a house mug). Their lunch menu is unique and flavorful… always making it tough to narrow it down to one choice.

Sandwiches made to order are awesome. Fun place to grab a quick bite. Breakfast is tasty too!

We’ve been here twice in the past month for lunch. I think we’re both addicted to the house made black bean sandwich. It’s amazing. Ambition had always been a quirky/​relaxed place and it hasn’t changed. I do wish they would repurpose the back lounge space for proper dining. It’s always busy and the could use the tables for sure. It feels awkward back there.
The addition of Sprinkleista baked goods was a good one. I stop in regularly just to grab a cookie or some other goodie. Never disappoints.

Horribly disappointing as they do not have wifi for free or for purchase. Maybe a nice place to hang out and have a chat, but inadequate for an afternoon of work.

The place has a cool vibe about it, seems like it’s run by some cool young hip locals. But it’s all about the food, basic breakfast menu, Had a bagel sandwich and OJ, no complaints it was good. Give it a try.

Cute and hip with an awesome selection of food. More importantly BRUNCH ! 9−2pm Sunday!

Love love love this place and its vibe. You walk in, seat yourself and your immediately greeted by a server.
It’s quaint– not fit for large parties– like more than 6
The coffee is amazing. Always different flavors and choices. There are always other drink specials as well if you want a little more than coffee. I usually always leave with a pound of the coffee that they make and sell in the store.
The food is different. What I mean by that is its FRESH FRESH FOOD. The sandwiches usually have fruit in them or fresh avocado or some sort of homemade mayo plus they have different breads. The menu is intoxicating if you love fresh, healthy foods.
If your in the area and can spare a half hour, stop in!

Ambition has made considerable improvements across the board! It’s looks great. My wife was dying for a coffee, so we stopped in to find that most if not all of the complaints in my previous review had been addressed. How can I not change my review?!
I glanced in the kitchen to see crisp fresh apples being sliced, and everything just smelled clean and delicious… I was truly blown away. I almost wanted to sit down and eat even though we had just finished lunch. I will be back!

Went here for Sunday brunch today. I got a delicious mimosa (could’ve been colder though) and the Jeremy’s Package sandwich — grilled turkey, cheddar, apple, & cran pesto on a super soft pretzel bun. I got it without the tomato and bacon, and added fresh spinach. It was really good. I’d get anything on that pretzel bun.
It’s always hit or miss when I come here, so it’s hard to write an overall review. But based on today’s visit, I would come again. And I always enjoy their soups.
Our waitress was the sweetest. We used the $ 15 for $ 30 Unilocal deal and there were no issues.