Barnes and Noble Cafe

I’m a huge fan of Barnes and Noble. Luckily this one is really close to me as there aren’t a ton of locations in general. Free wi-​fi, coffee if needed and all of the book knowledge I could ever ask for. I just wish this location was open more hours like the one in Grossmont Center.

Google Maps led me to this shopping plaza the other day when I was looking for a Starbucks to set up shop at. I couldn’t find a standalone Starbucks so I went here instead.
Jacob rang me up. Super friendly dude and I appreciate the attention to detail to get order right – from how I wanted my coffee to how I spell my name. Jennifer, the café manager, also came out and chit chatted with me for awhile. The staff was just really personable which isn’t what I normally expect from a chain. Walked away with a good latte (which wasn’t watered down or too milky) and some unexpected restaurant recommendations.
Random, but I guess they also serve Cheesecake Factory cheesecakes and can even get you set up with a whole pie if you order in advance. They were up selling it, but pretty cool if you have a gathering or, you know, want to let yourself go.

This café is located inside the Barnes and Noble Book store and it featured Starbucks’ coffee products, some of their pastries, and desserts from the Cheese Cake Factory. The also make sandwiches and gourmet food products such as chocolate covered nuts and popcorn.
I stopped in after browsing the store a bit for some books I was interested in and ordered a grande café latte and walnut maple scone (
). The latte was well made, at a typical Starbucks quality, with it strong yet smooth flavor. The maple walnut scone was great and had a nice glossy crusty exterior (
). Its maple flavor was on point and the walnuts tasted fresh and were crunchy. The scone inside was moist for the most part, but the ends easily crumbled away (
). Although the cheese cake slices were beckoning me to indulge, I resisted this time around (
).
Service was upbeat, although we had a little trouble getting a receipt out if the register, the manager stepped in and acquired one from the back office. The two individuals who were running the café were very friendly and expedient. The only thing I would suggest would be to provide sturdier chairs inside.