Zoka Coffee Roaster & Tea Company

Zoka’s is a sanctuary study café. No longer do you have to squeeze between rows of single tables or worry about mooning your neighbor in this spacious café (unlike the cafes on the Ave). Here you can enjoy your space and the pleasant tasting coffee (drip fanatic).

I live nearby and come here all the time. Tea is good (though I wish they had a bigger variety of black teas), jam dots are good, sandwiches are ok. Music is usually good. Bonus points for lots of tables and outlets. Bonus bonus points for reliable and free wifi!

Love this place! The staff is always friendly and full of energy. It has great coffee, wifi, lots of seating, and a good atmosphere to work. I really love coming here.
I want my ashes kept in a cofee urn here when I die!

First time there — I order an americano. The woman behind the counter says «what size?» — I say a medium — she repeats «what size» — I say a «single» — she says that «all americanos are doubles — what size» Having not been there before, I say a «medium» she says AGAIN — «what size?»
Rather than simply tell me the basics of the drink, I had to listen to «what size» 6 times. This is Seattle so every coffee shop does things different — why couldn’t she just have told me how they serve an americano and how they refer to their sizes??? I felt like I was ordering from a parrot.
And, after all of that, I wish I could say it was a great americano. But, I can’t. Flavor wise, it was a step above Folgers but I can’t say it was one that I would ever recommend or want to have another.
Fortunately, next time someone suggests coffee in that area, University Village has a few Starbucks available.

This is my favorite coffee shop in Seattle! The coffee and tea are amazing and the staff are always super helpful and knowledgeable. The décor and ambience is great and there are plenty of tables and outlets if you need get some work done (Note: Beware… college midterm/​final season makes finding seats inside extremely hard… so either come early or get your drink to-​go).
Love this place!

In agreeance with most people here, I think this is a really solid place to work or study. I’d even go as far as to say that I don’t mind spending a bit extra when there is usually a comfortable, quiet place to work.
However, if you’re just here for a quick drink, you might do better elsewhere. The coffee and tea are by no means bad, but I do feel like there is a lot of foam, and probably, too much milk. Latte art doesn’t usually do much to impress me, but I can appreciate the effort — which is why I would dissuade anyone from spending $ 5 for a drink if they plan to walk back out the door.

I think this is probably one of my favorite places to study. I like that it’s hidden from the hustle and bustle of U-​Village but still nearby. Don’t have to deal with stupid people who can’t park for shit. 6 hours of free wi-​fi, no password required. It can get a bit crowded and noisy at times, but nothing headphones can’t amend to. Lack of seating is never really an issue. I like the large communal tables and that there are a lot of outlets.
The coffee is pretty good, they seem to have a wide selection. I had a Japanese style pour over once, it was strong AF but really unique and flavorful. You can also select two different combinations when ordering a chai, options are: lavender, ginger, spicy, sweet, jasmine.
On a recent Saturday, an older woman stole my drink from the bar as I was reaching for it… smh…in any case, the barista was super nice about it and made me another right away. People need to be more attentive and wait their damn turn.
There are other Zoka cafes in Greenlake, SLU, and Kirkland.

I come here for the caffeine and to hit the books. Zoka is a good distance from UW: Far enough so that it’s not swamped with chattering college kids, close enough for there to be a nice study vibe. I love how huge this place is, there’s always a seat and outlet available! On to the food/​drinks: I normally go for their hot latte and spiced mocha, and both are always rich and full in flavor. There’s also a small selection of savory and sweet eats up front, nothing amazing, but the salami caprese sandwich did fill me up! Overall, I do feel like it’s a tad pricey here, but with the 6 hours of free WiFi I can’t really complain. I also somehow always leave Zoka with a funky smell on my clothes, not sure if it’s the ventilation or what…

I recently stopped in Zoka and was immediately impressed. This place has a welcoming vibe. It’s cozy and warm and the staff is fun and friendly. My iced mocha was absolutely perfect. You can’t beat organic coffee and house made chocolate sauce! I brought some fresh roasted coffee home with me and went through it too quickly because it’s so danged delicious! I’ll also be buying christmas presents from here from now on. Great stuff!

I got a latte and a blueberry scone, both were great. The place is also very nice big and the people working there are very friendly. I would come back and suggest people try it.

I’ve been to this Zoka multiple time when I am sick of studying at the cafes in the U district. I dont know why but I really dislike the drip from Zoka, it is sour and has a weird taste. I normally order Americanos or drip from every coffee shop I go to but it was awful here. I did like their chai and sitting.

Love stopping by Zoka for their fabulous lavender chai latte. They always make my drink nice and hot – the way I order it. Baristas area always friendly, even when they are slammed with customers. And, I can’t ever leave without buying a «Zoka Bar» (think HUGE blondie dipped in chocolate) to bring home.
If I ever have to meet a client, I usually opt to come here as there is a nice quiet back room to have meetings and there are enough folks quietly working that you don’t feel overwhelmed by noise.

The ham cheddar melt is better than starbucks and the lavender coffee is exceptional! Great music and lots of tables to study ore hangout. Also they have a water station not only with ice water but room temperature water!

I came in for a quick coffee. I ordered a latte, and it was nothing special. Simply put, I have tasted better lattes but this latte wasn’t bad either. Though, I wouldn’t mind coming here for their spacious setting with outlets everywhere.

I frequent seattle at last twice a year I never miss my favorite coffee spot. Great service The best coffee wonderful fresh baked zones. I cannot think of one bad thing to say about it. I’ll be back in July can’t wait to get my zoka on.

Not sure why there are a lot of ⁴⁄₅ star reviews talking about their drinks, but I definitely did not like the drink I got here. Before I had a chance to try this place, my friend also said that he didn’t like the coffee here. I guess I should’ve listened to him! But that’s not the only reason why I didn’t like this place.
The barista I talked to was pretty rude and curt even though I was my normal friendly self. I asked about the Aztec mocha (which is apparently a mocha with habanero peppers) and had to figure out what I wanted and the barista seemed pretty impatient. After I said I wanted the Chai, she mentioned the different chai flavors pretty quietly, so I had to ask her to repeat them. She seemed pretty annoyed but repeated them and placed my order. I said I wanted a 12 oz and she rang me up for a 16oz and swiped my card before I could even tell her she charged me for a 16. I didn’t want to cause too much trouble, so I just paid for it.
The drink was made pretty quickly, but I was surprised at how bad the drink was. The iced lavender chai I got was pretty small and half of the cup was ice. When I tried it, there was no chai or lavender flavor, and I feel like I just paid $ 5 for a small cup of iced milk.
So I’m pretty annoyed at this point, which is why I really don’t recommend this place. The service isn’t the best and the drink I got was pretty bad. Maybe you’d have better luck with one of their other overpriced espresso drinks. The only thing they got going for them here is the environment and the décor. They have a lot of tables and outlets here, and the coffee shop itself is very spacious so it doesn’t feel cramped. Plus, there’s free Wi-​Fi for 6 hours. But man… I would definitely not come back here again after this experience.

Delicious coffee. When I was younger I couldn’t understand why anyone would drink coffee black — then I tried Zoka coffee. Their coffee has so much flavor and body. It slows me down, and I chew the drink.
Baristas are funny and friendly. The ambiance is nice. It can get a little loud, but it all blends in to create that sort of cozy white noise unique to coffee shops. There are a couple of big tables there that are great for doing collaborative work as well as comfy chairs for nestling into a book, but as a warning, it gets BUSY on weekends. Demographic is mostly students, young families, and some older ones.
The location is amazing. I used to live a block away and whenever I’m in the area I stop by. It’s right by University Village and just off the Burke Gilman Trail. I know there are like 4 Starbucks’s’es’s’ (plural?) at University Village, but next time you’re there, take a walk over to Zoka. You won’t be disappointed.

Great spot! We love walking here from our house! Baristas are great and drinks are awesome! Jam dots are great!

Nice coffee shop behind University Village. Lots of space and a quiet, productive ambience. Not always easy to find a seat right when you arrive because it is a pretty popular spot, but I have never been without a table for more than a few minutes. Nice service, decent prices, and a good selection of baked goods. I don’t really drink coffee, but they have a couple good chai tea options.
Great place to post up if you are studying or need to get some work done. I work remotely and have been successfully productive each time I am here. Good wireless connection as well, free for the first six hours. I have never stayed here longer than that, so I don’t know if it kicks you out after six hours :) Most of the parking nearby is a two hour limit without a zone permit.

First off, the coffee is to die for. Particularly the Aztec mocha. This is the kind of place where the coffee is so great they just HAVE to make the foam beautiful.
The pastries — yum! They have all the standard affair: coffee cake, muffins, croissants. They also have paninis!
The space is very extensive as well, with patio chairs strewn across the side walk, plenty of inside small tables and a large space for groups. It’s very open and even with a lot of people inside it doesn’t feel awfully crowded.
Speaking of space — you can reserve meeting tables for your group. I help run a non profit industry group that meets here monthly and we reserve tables for 3 hours at a time.
The parking situation is the only thing that’s not so great. If you have a meeting — arrive early. Parking is sparse, even more so during home games for the Husky football team.