Purple Cow

The coffee was really bad. Enough said.

Having just moved to Shilshole Marina, I was excited to see an independent coffee shop right next door. I love my weekend morning newspaper or maybe my laptop, a great cup of coffee and a pastry, and to lounge around for a few hours in a coffee shop. The Purple Cow, which we’re now referring to as the «Bruised Cow» failed on every level. Our americanos were watery and the bagel’s are from Costco, so they’re nothing special… but adding insult to injury one bagel was stale and the other was rock hard.
The barista was beyond rude throughout the course of our visit. As she approached our table with our stale bagels, she interrupted our conversation and then snapped at us for not immediately answering her question as to «who got the wheat bagel?»
I’m usually an easy going guy and will give an establishment a few tries before putting them on my barf-​list. But the Purple Cow might just be a one time try.

It was a warm day. I needed a natural pick-​me-​up so a nice fresh-​squeezed fruit juice or smoothie was calling my name. I was in Ballard and going to Golden Gardens Beach. I checked my handy Unilocal app for something nearby, and discovered The Purple Cow. It was almost too perfect. I went. I saw a wide selection of items available — food, coffee, beer, smoothies… cool. There’s a nice little deck outside that had 3 or 4 tables, and there were 3 or 4 tables inside. This is good too. The guy behind the counter was very nice. I ordered a smoothie. It tasted really good. Then it was brought to my attention that the smoothies were sweetened (like with sugar or god forbid, a sugar substitute). SON OF A… NOOOO!!! So while the smoothies are tasty and they have a nice range of options, this didn’t quite satisfy my need for a natural fruit beverage. A fruit smoothie should be sweet enough without added sugar.
If this place specialized in smoothies, I’d probably give them 2 stars, but since they have other offerings I’ve yet to try and may never try, I’ll play nice and go for 3.

I hate to hand out low reviews, I do. My coffee here was good as was the service, but this is a far cry from Vivace or other spots in town. The people working the counter were very friendly and very helpful though and if I’m in the area I don’t see why I wouldn’t stop in for a bite or a cup of joe.

I like the Purple Cow because its quick, easy and a little bit of quirky that is a must in our hectic lives. The service is always friendly and the hot drinks are a great accompaniment during a cold walk through Golden Gardens.

A little off the beaten path for Ballard, The Purple Cow is one of the classic old underrated coffee shops in Seattle that you can stop by on your way to Shilshole Marina or Golden Gardens Park.
Usually, The Purple Cow is a stop for me on the weekend mornings, so I haven’t tried their lunch items yet, but I’ve had many of the breakfast items, which are all tasty.
First off, their staple, the Purple Cow and other fine smoothies are fantastic. They are the perfect thing to get your morning going. The egg sandwich is great too, and I like the american cheese on it, which gives it a great texture.
Stop by, grab a cup of coffee or smoothie, and walk to Golden Gardens for a great morning activity.
And remember, if you’ve passed the purple cow on the roof, you’ve gone too far.

I had a very pleasant experience here this morning! It opens early and the coffee is cheap enough. There is a great quiet patio to sit outside at, and over all i was really pleased. The barista was nice, although maybe i can see what people mean about the stand-​offishness. It just didn’t really bother me. But also maybe people should give them a break. Anyhow, i would definately recommend stopping by and figuring out your own opinion on the place!

I’m pretty sure you can bounce a quarter off those tight, tight jeans. Also that beard can stop traffic.
Counter guy is super nice, one of my favorites actually. He makes a good cappuccino, and the smoothies (and the jeans) are something to keep coming back for.

I stopped in here on a whim yesterday and got myself a milkshake, er, um, «smoothie.» Sorry.
It’s a cute little place. It seems like a little neighborhood joint, albeit too far a jaunt for me to turn into a regular. The smoothie was dee-​licious. Banana Royale: peanut butter, banana, chocolate. I have a feeling I won’t be ordering anything else in the future, unless I develop a peanut allergy.
I thought the guy at the counter was fine. I guess he wasn’t a chipper chipmunk, but, dear God, do they all have to be? That would get annoying fast. Maybe my burgundy hair gives me a little hipster cred, but, nevertheless, he flashed me a couple genuine smiles and made me a tasty treat. I can work with that.

We live aboard our boat at Shilshole so we’ve been to the purple cow 5 times now due to it’s proximity. We will not be returning, which is too bad since the coffee is excellent. The building is cozy and has a warm feel to it. But the service ruins it all. Our experience from two different people there has been cold, unwelcoming, uncaring, and unresponsive. It’s so bad as to be almost comical.
From now on we’ll go a little further up the road to Kiss Café, where they are always super nice.

I don’t care about you, Mr. Aloof Hipster with overly tight jeans that make your butt look like the one I want when I loose weight. Keep blasting Bob Dylan’s early works and keep ignoring me (and I’ll take a star off for that), but please, go straight to the blender. Keep your empty, lifeless look, but don’t mess up my order.
*WHIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR*
Oh, great! You got it right! Good boy!
«Thank you!», I said.
(No answer. Blank stare).
Yes, Mr. Aloof Hipster I’ll leave you alone as soon as you hand me that «better-​than-​crack» Peaches N’ Cream devilish, creamy, luscious, feathery, heavenly, divine smoothie.
The service will make you frown. The cows will make you smile. The posters around the shop will make you want to go out and pursue a social-​cultural life. The smoothies will make you moan. And go ahead and do it loud, as the robot working there won’t care. I mean it.
Ahhhhhhhhh, Peaches N’ Cream!

I came in here to get coffee yesterday cuz I was freezing while waiting in line for Paseo. Like a jerk I thought that it would be warm out just cuz the sun was out… WRONG.
Well my coffee was great but the guy behind the counter needs his head checked. How many people are jobless right now? Would it hurt you to say «hello» or even «thank you» to your customers? I awkwardly did all the talking!!! On top of that I always tip. at least smile. Just cuz you were kinda cute doesnt cut it!

You would think I would like this place.
Its on the way to a favorite place, Golden Gardens. It has coffee. It has other food which is not hamburgers. Some food is organic.
Everytime I go in there is a group of LOUD rude people. Not calm, sip your coffee and smile people, but yelling I am the biggest one in the room type. And its a small room.
I left the last time without getting an order in. I waited for a place to park while a guy with 2 dogs on long leashes watched his dogs play in a space I was waiting to get in. I persisted, parked finally. There was some yelling at door. I persisted. I went in to end up behind a LONG order. I sat down to read the paper. The loud group came in and a man demanded that since I couldnt read the entire thing by myself he wanted some of it. I looked at him, assessed the situation. I have no coffee, no peace, no food, no for sure newspaper. I am sitting next to a demander.
I handed him the entire paper and left.
I have been there before and felt cramped. I think… 1.) if they removed some tables it would feel better 2.) some customers are regulars and feel privileged to hog parking places, yell, have the paper, expect long orders in front of a one single unknown from a single employee. It’s sad. I do not wish to put this onto boat people.

The Purple Cow Espresso shop is located on Seaview Ave next door to Ray’s/Anthony’s, and across the street from the new Paseo location. It’s a small, cozy little shop that I hadn’t noticed until the other day, and figured I’d give it a shot.
They serve coffees (organic, free-​trade), pastries/​breads, sandwiches, smoothies, juices, and soups. All of it is made fresh daily right there in the store. The coffee is tasty, and I had a slice of the pumpkin nut bread, which was delicious. EXTREMELY moist and flavorful, definitely fresh.
There’s a deck outside where you can sit and sip on nice days. It seems like a quaint and forgotten place (not in a bad way). It seems to be dodging all the craziness with the Ballard growth, as a lot of people in the area, around the docks and marina stop in and get their cups of joe. When I visited, there were 2 old men sitting together talking about boats, and another old man came in and the nice woman behind the counter started making his daily drink without even having to ask what he wanted. There aren’t any young, hipsterish baristas in this joint. Seems like the kind of place where the regulars pop in, say Hi, and have good conversation with each other and whoever’s behind the counter as they sip on their coffee.
It’s a small space on the inside. I’d say maybe 10 people can sit around at the tables and chairs inside? 15 tops. They have wi-​fi, but I doubt a lot of people come here to do work or study, since the size inside is a bit intimate with no corners to hide behind (although sitting out on the deck and doing some work would be nice). I probably pass about 10 coffee spots on my way there; it’s a bit out of the way, but that kinda makes it nice. It’s definitely a spot where you can go to disappear and be forgotten, hang out near the marina, away from Market Street. Or grab something on your way to Golden Gardens, or while having a nice walk around the Locks.