Coffee By Design

I’ve been going to the original Congress Street location since it opened many many years ago. I don’t go there out of habit. I go there because the coffee is great, the staff is always friendly and helpful, and it’s turned into a neighborhood favorite. Sure I’ll go to another coffee shop now and then but I always go back to Coffee By Design.

I ordered the iced tuxedo latte. It was so good! At first, there was only one barista who was doing it all but thankfully a second person came out to help.

got a blueberry matcha latte, 1. could barely taste any blueberry in there and they upcharge for flavor syrups so that was a complete waste 2. the matcha was not even mixed? there were full on chunks of matcha floating around and sticking to the top and bottom of the cup, so i would sip and get grainy chunks of matcha powder in my mouth that absolutely ruined the drink, do they not know how to make it? 3. i got a small, which was 3.50 on the board. not a bad price is what i thought, but when i paid it magically jumped up to 6.30. they didnt give me a receipt either and i was too shocked to even ask how the heck 3 dollars got added to a drink when all i did was ask for syrup, which shouldve been a $0.75 upcharge at max if they really are scammers. TLDR: DONT GO HERE there are way better and cheaper options in the city

Good place to meet or get work done. Espresso drinks are better than the brewed coffee. Have tried the drip coffee several times and it always tastes burnt or off.

Coffee didn't taste good at all, I took a couple of sips and ended up throwing it out. Do yourself a favor and go anywhere else. Plus, what's the point of a coffee spot if you have to make your own coffee?

This experience was pretty meh in my opinion. First, seeing the name "Coffee by Design" made me assume I'd receive a nice cup of coffee, regardless of the order. I assumed that it would a fresh, flavorful and quality Coffee. I bought a 12oz coffee that they said was made fresh a little while before I got there, and it was one of the most bitter and burnt flavored coffees I've drank, and it was a light roast! I don't take my coffee a little light and sweet, but I had to add twice the amount of milk and sugar I would normally, and it still was bad. I drank half of it before I just threw it out. I don't know, maybe it was a bad brew, or what but I'm not planning on returning for more coffee.

The saving grace was the decent turkey sandwich and the great Donut I had on the side! But I think I'll stick with other cafes

Nice coffeeshop and staff. Iced latte was good but too milky, not enough espresso

Stopped in to grab a cappuccino and was so pleased with the quick service, atmosphere and the beverage itself! The individual was working by themselves and "tackled" a line of ~6 people within minutes! They were positive and cheery, greeting each individual as they walked in. Very clean, had great mugs and other gift ideas for the coffee lover in your life! I also thoroughly enjoyed the blueberry doughnut that was also available on the menu 😋 I'm not from the area but when I'm in town I will definitely make it a point to stop in and grab a cappuccino again!