Local Mocha

I just called to find out f they were open. the guy was extremely rude. hung up twice. not going there regardless if they are open. I am in for supporting local business but not paying a dime to rude ones.

Very rude service by the older gentleman that served me the coffee! Then I attempted to divert the conversation to something positive and the man gave me one short answer to all my questions. Aside from that the coffee was good, not good enough to overcome the unpleasant feelings I got from that guy.

This place is so lovely! My boyfriend and I are traveling through Grand Rapids from NC for our first time. We woke up early this morning and went to find a specific coffee shop for breakfast and drinks. After getting to the place we found, and seeing it opens at 10 (which I think is crazy for any coffee shop on any given day of the week including Sunday), we noticed this place already open.
They have a chalkboard sign out front and it gives you a great first impression. It’s neat, colorful, and very thorough with most (if not all) of their menu and prices. It’s run personally by a family. We knew exactly what we wanted, ordered quickly, and had our food in maybe 6 minutes. The way you order they make sure you know all of your options and get everything exactly how you want it. Everything was made right there to order and came out fresh and hot. The presentation isn’t fancy or anything, but it does look yummy. We got a BBLT (BLT on a bagel) and a ham, egg and cheese sandwich. We also got chai, and a peppermint mocha. The chai was the second best we’ve had (and I’ve had lots from up and down the east coast), and the peppermint mocha was better than anything similar to it that I’ve had.
Along with everything being delicious, the atmosphere was warm and cozy. Local artists art hangs on the walls while you can plug up your devices and enjoy food while listening to and being in conversations with locals. As we sat down for breakfast and people rotated through, you could tell that most of the people were older local regulars that are super friendly.
All in all it was perfect and just what we were looking for: p We stopped back by just now on our way out of GR to get a hazelnut truffle drink. I was between that and the mocha this morning and since everything else was so good we couldn’t pass it up! Very affordable/​delicious drinks and food. Deserves more than 5 stars!

I discovered this place recently when visiting Grand Rapids for work. Great quick stop for breakfast.

Guy behind counter is RUDE beyond belief!!! I had to laugh as I walked out! No one should patronize this business! He will be gone soon if he keeps up his piss poor attitude! I would never buy a cup of coffee from someone so argumentative!

I am all about supporting local businesses, but something wasn’t right about this place when I went in yesterday. It started with the smell. It didn’t smell like a coffee shop and when I go in one, if it doesn’t, I get worried. It smelled a little sour. The barista said hi when we came in, but then stared awkwardly at us, waiting for us to order. It was also very dark inside, like a cave, with low ceilings and something about it made me want to leave. I made some excuse to my party and left without ordering, something I rarely do.
I’m sorry Local Mocha but maybe get some brighter lighting and fix the smell and I’d be happy to try you. I know it’s hard when you are right next door to Madcap.
Update: daughter of the owner left me a very rude message due to this review. She said I should not compare them to Madcap and that I was apparently ignorant. I believe owners should show integrity when a poor review appears, especially when my review was not at all rude and offered suggestions. Beware the daughter of the establishment!

The coffee is better then starbucks. The prices are just right. They are Grand Rapids owned and use Grand Rapids organic coffee. Stop by when your Rosa Park circle, it’s just a block away.

About the only thing good I can say is that they were open on a holiday. Otherwise the coffee is subpar, threw it out after a few sips and went down the street to the only other place open, Biggby.

I place this coffee between MadCap and Starbucks. Not because of price, but based on the quality and taste/​bitterness. Madcap is smooth, Local Mocha is a little nippy, and Starbucks just flat out bites you. Do you see what I’m saying?
Local Mocha is great coffee shop.
Bravo!

Blah. I go here frequently because it’s absolutely silent at all hours of the day, and extremely small (not many people even know that it’s right there on monroe), making it perfect for a study binge.
However…
Every single time I go there, there’s either one person working alone who is very confused and has to ask me how to make the drink that I want (and I got a vanilla latte, so that’s saying something), a child tagging along with the mom who is working, or a non-​english speaking barista. I find it to be a generally awkward experience all around.
There certainly isn’t anything special or interesting about this place. Being right next to MadCap, they pretty much get the life sucked right out of them. A little depressing, but I somehow find myself choosing them over more popular locations every once and a while. Maybe it’s the guilt!: /

I almost feel bad writing a review of a coffee shop without talking about their coffee. I can’t help it, they serve food — and it’s pretty dang yummy!
They have great prices on lunch specials. The chicken sandwich on a croissant is really good. The tomato soup & grilled cheese deal — super cheap & super good. They use great bread and have a few different cheese choices.
There is a super nice lady who is working most afternoons when I stop in for lunch. Her friendliness always makes my stop in better.
One day when I got the grilled cheese/​tomato soup deal the guy working insisted on giving me some money back because he said he didn’t have enough soup to fill my container. Honestly I had plenty in there but I really appreciated the gesture.
This place is close to where I work so on days where I just don’t feel like bringing my own food I usually drop in here for a bite. I am very thankful they are there!
They serve some interesting pastries and ice cream too –I haven’t tried any yet but they look good!

We live right down the street so we’ve tried this place a few times and they’ve all been bad. Twice when we’ve ordered coffee there was a young child working the counter who was clearly too young to be in a customer service position. She struggled with taking our order and then served us the wrong coffee both times. We also tried the pancakes one morning and they took forever and were pretty blah. With all the great coffee shops downtown, do yourself a favor and skip this one.

I don’t even know what to say about this place other than no. The family and I stopped in for a quick (ha) bite to eat and coffee on a Sunday morning while staying in town overnight. Never again, that’s for sure. The coffee itself was pretty good, but the service was a joke. The creamer out on the counter for the house coffee was powdered, so my husband requested half & half. After waiting 15 minutes, he finally resorted to using the gross powdered stuff. This place was way too understaffed ~ only one person was working and trying to work both the counter as well as cook the food orders. We waited over an hour for what ended up being microwaved pancakes and a breakfast sandwich. While we waited, we watched the employee working turn away customers, clearly very frazzled. They definitely needed more than one person working that Sunday morning. The place wasn’t exactly hopping, but she couldn’t keep up and ended up spending even more time at the counter giving refunds for food orders never delivered. I felt bad for her, but even though the coffee was decent, I definitely would never, ever be back.

If you’re talking about wonderfully awesome organic and rich coffee every single time, you must try Local Mocha. Small business owned by a sweet couple. Dossee brews only organic coffee, and if you want it made or customized any way, she’ll build it just how you like it. Organic coffee that is just so damn good. They even carry soy milk/​cream.
There are a ton of coffee shops in the vicinity. I like Local Mocha because the service is always so good, plenty of outlets for my laptop.
They have Hudsonville Ice Cream, too! I haven’t had breakfast here yet, but they have pancakes, sausage/​eggs, veggie/​eggs, etc. When I have some of that, I’ll be sure to update my review. They’re open later than some of the other coffee shops here on Monroe Center, too.

Great coffee, good prices, and they serve ice cream. The woman who served us was very nice and has a generous arm with the ice cream. All in all, a valuable addition to the Monroe Center strip.

The coffee was good. Service was not. I can’t say if the food was good because we never got it.
We ordered breakfast sandwiches and coffee — total came to $ 18 for 2. After finishing our coffee and waiting for our sandwiches for 15 minutes, we asked if they would be coming out soon, and the barista said that she completely forgot. It’s not as if there were a lot of customers to cause a harried environment — we were the only ones there other than 1 man who was sipping his coffee at the bar. How do you forget to do the only thing you are there to do?
The ambiance and general cleanliness of the place need to step up a bit — the newspapers were from 3 days ago, and there was a general messiness that didn’t play well in a restaurant. In fairness to the barista, the coffee was decent, and they do serve Hudsonville ice cream, but I much prefer Madcap next door.

I’ve stopped in for lunch a few times and am always very pleased that I do. Prices are right, service is very good, and the food has always been excellent.
Really, it appears to mostly be a coffee place, and I’ve heard fabulous things about their coffee, but I’ve only ever had lunch there. They sell coffee ‘hardware’ — French presses and the like, and whole beans as well. I’ll try some out and update my review then.
Homemade soups and delicious sandwiches are the lunch fare, but they have breakfast sandwiches as well. I’ve heard people ordering the breakfast sandwiches at lunch, so I’m guessing you can get them anytime.
Ambiance is pleasant, 104.1 has always been on in the background. In fact, it hardly ever seems like anyone is there at lunch. I’ve only ever seen maybe two or three other customers in there at the same time as me. That’s ok, since its small, but I really like the place. Of course, I’m not really a noon is lunchtime person either so that could enter into it. Its a definite recommend.
3÷20÷08 update — I’ve stopped in several more times since I wrote the original review, and my opinion hasn’t changed. I’ve ordered beans to take home, and the guy is pretty knowledgeable. They’ve only ever had a couple of varieties, and he tells you if he thinks they’re good beans or not. I’ve also had the breakfast sandwich. Its big, but very delicious. Still a definite recommend.