Mocha Cafe & Pastry

A hidden small place which turned out to be a treasure. Great variety of products and very good coffee and hot chocolate. very good breakfast and lunch We strongly recommend it!

First time here and let me tell you this will be the last time. I requested an iced tea and asked if they could add simple syrup to which the lady replied they had no simple syrup, as I literally was staring at simple syrup behind her. I am a barista myself, I know what simple syrup looks like so don’t tell me you don’t have any in a café.
Second it took me and my two friends TWENTY minutes to get 3 drinks and then FORTY-​FIVE minutes to get 3 dishes. The store was almost empty with only two other customers, so it’s not like there was a crowd with many orders to make. One hour later we finally have all our orders. My friends and I had ordered Crêpes and a brioche sandwich. The Crêpes were cold as if just out of a refrigerator and mine, the «Jam crêpe and fruit» HAD NO FRUIT?! My friends brioche tasted like a stale dinner roll as well. I am from Paris France, that was NOT brioche. It could easily have been day old bread from Safeway.
Being this unsatisfied with our experience we asked the lady for a refund, she then called the manager who told us we would get a full refund for everything we ordered. The lady then proceeds to refund ONLY the food. I’m sorry you can’t even properly refund us for a horrible experience? I’m at loss for words.
I will add the lady at the register was in training and was polite and tried her best to satisfy us so no hard feelings there. But come on, this whole thing was just absurd.

To begin, this café would be an ideal candidate for the show restaurant impossible:
In reference to a previous review for Mocha Café cautioning of the ice cold presentation and the obscenely long wait time for orders; I was on that trip into mocha and spoke to the manager on the phone and was given a subpar refund. My friend wrote a review, which the owner of the café responded by offering commiserable excuses and in deplorable grammar no less, rather than making a clear effort to stay clear of the problem in the workplace. Like the owner said, this is a new business, and employees are still in training, therefor one would assume some authoritative figure would be there to ward against unpleasantries of the likes. When we first approached the staff with our concerns with out experience, the staff didn’t pay too much attention to understand what we were actually saying, forcing us to be short.
On the phone I was told, by the owner, that my friends and I would be given a full refund, and that’s not what we got. Debating that with the staff was taking too much time out of our day, considering what should have been a half hour trip turned into an hour and a half.
This got one star because no stars is not an option. My friends and I will not be back.

I tried their iced mocha for my first drink there and was pretty disappointed. It was a little bitter, which happens when a hot mocha is poured over ice. I’ll be back to try out a different drink and hopefully can update my review.
As an aside, they have a cake case that had an unusual cake in the shape of a woman’s figure with an opened shirt through which you could view cake-​nipples.

I’d like to give a 4-​star to update my previous review. The owner of Mocha Café acknowledged the fact that they had some issues with their phone and was very responsive to my review. Aside from their customer service which could use some improvement, the Persian Pizza is still the most delicious and well probably the only place you can get your hands on it in the area. The only improvement I would recommend is lowering the price of the pizzas to 10−12… other than that, keep up the good work, and I will continue to be a regular, especially since the phones will be working!

I had this
coupon for a while and just for this reason went to try on a Saturday morning for brunch with my husband. The lady at the counter was rude and straight away declined saying the coupons cant be used on weekends. I read a few comments where the management says about the rules of using the coupon. I checked the coupon a couple of times and no mention that it cant be used on weekends. I have been using the coupons at many other places and never faced such a issue. There were total three ppl out of which one was rude, one with a depressing long face and another in his own world that he forgot to make my drink.
The ambience was good and we were the only ones. Looks like they dint get enough business that morning and hence denied our coupon: p
Talking about the food. We got a Nutella crêpe which was very sweet and with loads of crème on it, a fresh lemon mint drink which i liked but i guess it was made from concentrate and not fresh lemon. The server had actually forgotten that i ordered the drink and was in his own world. I had to call him again and remind about my drink. My husband liked the latte and brie.
For food i would have given this place a 4 star but the rude management and customer experience was bad, hence knocked out 2 stars.
I have purchased the coupon through my corporate market place that is linked to
in Jul ’15. I still have the certificate and it no where mentions in the terms and conditions. However, i did check directly on the
and i see that its not valid on Fridays, Sat and Sun.

I come here for breakfast all the time and always have a good experience. Their pastries are delicious (try the chocolate almond croissant!!) And the food they prepare is good as well (especially the egg wraps).
There are usually only 2 people working there, so don’t expect your order to be out immediately. Sit down and relax for a bit — this isn’t Starbucks. The employees can be hit or miss, but a couple of them are really efficient, helpful, and personable.
Overall, good atmosphere, nice people, and quality food.

Their pizza is amazing but their management is awful. I have waited over 45 minutes for someone to make my pizza, once a manager had to be called in to make it because one of them didn’t know how to make it. Another time, it was a fair attempt but the server burnt the pizza. I’d be willing to overlook it if the pizza wasn’t so expensive, but it is. And I have been there many times and never received any type of loyalty discount. I have promised many of my friends that I would take them, as the pizza is very appetizing and delicious but I don’t want this to be a reflection of what persian customer service and culture is like. I’m rooting for the success of this place but they really need to get it together.

Fresh seasonal pastries. Try the pies and the macaroons. Ask for the scoop of ice-​cream. SOO GOOD with the warmed up pie

So my husband and I went to this place and we ordered an apple pie. Guess what we found, a staple… My husband almost lost his teeth… Be aware…
But their honey cinnamon was good!

I pass this place everyday, twice a day, so I decided to go in. What a mistake that was!
I called for dinner to go one night. Rude girl behind the counter, coffee was way too sweet, I went for the first time to use a
card and the girl clicked 2 of them $ 10 each. She wouldn’t give me store credit and still made me pay $ 11. My total for 2 wraps and a latte ended up being $ 35 instead of $ 25 since she messed up the card.
Such a disappointment! The inside is super cute but the food is mediocre, takes way too long to make and super rude service.
This business doesn’t know what they are doing and I won’t be back.

Kiel L. @Mocha Café & Pastry
To all the Customers and even to the people who never been to my job, I want to say thank you for even reading, appearing, supporting us here @Mocha Café & Pastry especially to those wonderful Customers I see everyday and I promise to continuously give you the best of service that is possible to my experiences in life and hope to continue to learn to more serve you at the best @Mocha Café & Pastry …
And to all the wonderful Customers who did have the opportunity to come in and have a bad experience with us, I wish there was a way I could make that experience change or give us another chance to make your experience one you won’t forget, On behalf of the owners and all the employees @Mocha Café & Pastry I want to send out my apologies and if you would like to further get more info on how we can make a difference for you please be more than welcome to forward us an email at

Many People do not understand the struggles of small businesses and how to deal with an\or support them, I myself is a strong believer in small businesses and give the utmost respect to their owners, It’s very difficult when you have unfair and non understandable people who wait to prey on the weak especially when the small businesses that you claim to support and root for your waiting to see fail or have something negative to say when all that most small businesses ask for is feedback to open the door for more improvement to better your experiences at their Restaurants, Café’s, Shops and Stores…

To conclude on my review I just want to say again how much I love and appreciate all the support of all the customer’s who continuously come for our wonderful pizza and our unique Turkish coffee and fresh pastries and sandwiches fresh out the oven and if there is anyway you could consider improvement for any of staff or food enhancement please be more than welcome to forward an email to us here at


. Thank You, See you SOON!!!
SPVR: Kiel L.

Yikes. Probably the most overpriced place I’ve been to in Arlington, and that’s saying something.
Full disclosure: I tried this place four times before writing this review.
First time: I had a mediocre egg and bacon sandwich and coffee. The bread was stale, the bacon was undercooked. Including coffee (the espresso machine was broken), I paid almost $ 10 for the privilege. Okay, I thought, bad choices. Order something else next time.
Second time: I had a pastry and an espresso drink. The pastry was also stale (it was clear that they don’t get daily pastry deliveries — I don’t know how long they let their pastries sit in the case) and yet I still paid over $ 5 for it. The espresso was so-​so. Total bill again approached $ 10.
Third time: I just had a regular coffee. I didn’t have to take a second mortgage for it, which was refreshing, but it was still just so-​so. I should also mention: the place doesn’t smell good. To me, it smelled of an uncleaned bathroom, but it might have been too many microwaved eggs. Also, the barista is very friendly, but he is often practicing that friendliness with his buds along the strip mall. I twice had to exit the café to find him to get service.
Last time: I ordered tea. It was a Persian version of Earl Grey. They wanted to charge me $ 5 for a tea bag and hot water. Are you kidding me? I walked out.
Wish it were better; I’m always rooting for small businesses. But this one is just silly.
TL;DR
STALE FOOD
BAD ODORS
MEDIOCRE COFFEE
and yet
HIGH PRICES
Save yourself the trouble and don’t go.

Amazing Turkish coffee. On point. With a touch of sugar and perfectly roasted grounds. Small but good atmosphere. Very friendly service with a smile and a sense of humor. Lots of character to the place. Cool silverware and cups. Something different.

Came here for the first time with my wife and we ordered a saffron shake with skim milk (her) and an iced coffee (me).
The shop is quaint with Persian accents and beautiful tea and coffee sets we want to use on our second visit. My iced coffee was good and we both were surprised by the saffron shake and the incredible customer service thanks to Kiel. After giving us our order, he brought out half a serving of the full fat saffron shake to show us what it is meant to taste like (delicious!).
We will definitely be returning.

Lovely local business with a personality. Small and homey, there are cozy little chairs and tables that are perfect for a quiet coffee with a book or a tête-​à-​tête with a friend. Lots of distinctive touches from the playful, quirky décor to the idiosyncratic offerings: you can pick up a bracelet to ward off the evil eye along with your pastries!
The pizza is good, and a bit different from standard pizzas. It has more toppings, so one dish could be enough for two people. Most interestingly for me, they have truly unique kinds of tea you won’t find anywhere else, sourced from their Iranian roots — things like saffron tea, which I have never seen before anywhere else in my life! I tried it and the closest thing I can compare it to is chamomile — pleasant and mild.
Lastly, the staff (when I was there, at least) were really nice — easy to talk with if you felt like it, but unobtrusive if you didn’t. They clearly know their regulars and have a rapport with them, which is always a positive sign in a local business.
There aren’t a ton of independent coffee places around Arlington, and this is vastly superior to the big chains of the world — great to have as a go-​to café!

The saffron tea is something unique (and AMAZING) here. I get it every single time. I love that they have loose leaf tea, and the pistachio baklava is my favorite dessert. The dude that I’ve seen a few times there, I think he is the owner, is a really cool guy and very patient when it came to my scattered brain while ordering. This is a five-​star little café with a warm and intimate ambiance. The only reason I nicked a star (I can’t nick half a star) is because the veggie pizza had more meat than veggies. Nonetheless, it was fresh and delicious.

I had a hard time deciding to finally write this review because I’ve been going to mocha café since they opened and when it’s good I LOVE their breakfast an dcoffee. However, I do believe mocha café has a problem with providing a CONSISTENT quality of food and service.
I always get their egg and cheese brioche with no bacon because back in the day it was served on huge fluffy brioche slices with a large serving of delicious scrambled eggs and cheese. However the last four times I have ordered this it has either been cold, the bread has been stale, it has had bacon put on it, or the serving size was so pitifully small that it really pissed me off to pay $ 7.15 for it.
Another problem they have is that depending on who rings you up the price for your order can vary by $ 2 – 4. I still don’t understand how this happens but it’s annoying.
I’m disappointed because their breakfast used to be unbeatable and my go to place. I will continue to go a few more times with the hope that this has just been a fluke and the quality of mocha pastry will go back to what it was 6 months ago.

«Life is short, eat dessert first.» Nice statement, I’d just go do this somewhere else. Otherwise, the more appropriate statement may be, «Eat dessert first, and die trying to here.» Okay, we’ll that was just a tad melodramatic. But you’ll catch why in a sec.
So I’d like to start off with a positive note because by the time you read eeeeeeverything else below, I’m sure you may have moved on. So the place is REALLY cute inside. Not made for large groups but a very cute coffee shop that you catch yourself walking around checking everything out.
So the problems?
— The place says opens at 7. I got there at 720 and still completely closed. I wait 5 minutes and of course the guy pulls in as I’m pulling out. Sees me come in and says nothing. Anyway, moving on. everyone has an off day. I just wouldn’t come on the way to work right at opening.
— Tried to use my 10% off Unilocal check in. Not sure how .42cents off $ 16 is 10% but I kindly asked her if she could check again. Same look as I got when I walked in! and she had to call someone else.
— Bacon, egg, and cheese croissant. The cheese and croissant wasn’t good sadly tasted stale.
— Their cream cheese brioche pastry was literally two slabs of bread with what looked and tasted like a clump of Philadelphia cream cheese mobbed in the middle.
— The almond chocolate croissant was probably the best order of them all and it was just okay. Same with the pumpkin macaron which was a little hard. I think issue is they’re just not fresh. Since I was there right at the opening I saw they’re left overs from the day before.
I didn’t order any coffee and the few customers that came in after me ordered coffee so maybe that’s what keeps the place going. Other than that, I was a little sad I went out of my way to make a stop here.

The owner is a therapist and so am I. So, that’s a bonus in my book.
Good strong coffee. Tasty breakfast sandwiches. Tasty lunch sandwiches as well. If you have a sweet tooth, get the cream cheese brioche.
Friendly staff.

I was really excited to see this place open; I can never have enough coffee and tea options in the area to study or bring a book.
My husband and I went for dinner on a Friday. The parking lot is a disaster zone. There are very few spaces, and it’s so narrow that it’s hard to navigate past already parked cars. We found street parking right on Washington Blvd, but my husband had to wait for the light to turn red before he could open the door and get out.
The café itself is tiny and cute. I love the décor; fancy chairs, and local art decorating the walls. The tables have a cute little cupcake candle in the center.
I ordered the turkey pannini, and my husband ordered the reuben. Originally he wanted something else, but they were out of chicken, which seems a little odd. I ordered the honey tea latte as my drink, and my husband a mocha. I loved my sandwich and my tea. I could’ve sat and drank multiple cups of that tea. My husband’s reuben was okay. The meat itself was perfect, but the bread wasn’t completely toasted and eventually the sauce made the bread fall apart. We decided to get desert to go; I asked for two macaroons that ended up being pistachio and strawberry (they couldn’t tell at first which pink macaroon was strawberry and which was red velvet) while my husband got a brownie. My macaroons were okay, but I got the feeling that they’d been frozen and thawed.
All in all, I think they still have kinks to work out with being a new business, but that they have promise. I’d like to update my review in a couple months when they’ve got their mojo going.