Stickman Coffee

WTF? You’re gone forever? Your coffee was so good it could stop traffic. I was looking forward to filling my stamp card. You were the North Amercan Barista Champion and it showed. I used to walk from north Wallingford to South Fremont for your coffee, and now you are gone? Suck!

No! Why are you gone! Where will I go for my coffee fix!
I guess it was kind of a bad location. I only found in on accident initially. I hope he’s able to cut his losses and start over in a better place. Good luck!

Stickman Coffee is pretty nice if you can manage your expectations. Drinks may take a few minutes, but they’re worth the wait. I’ve been here several times for a short latte — sometimes hot, sometimes iced — and it’s great every time. Stickman has what I call the «two-​shot standard» for espresso drinks, even though it’s not mentioned on the menu board.
The ceiling is rather low, so watch out, tall people! On the other hand, there’s plenty of space inside, so it doesn’t feel cramped. The inside seating area is pretty spartan, though I haven’t tried the outside seating area. Also, I haven’t tried the baked goods.

Yes, your latte will take a few minutes to make. But it will be tasty. The sign on the door says that they house an award winning barista, but something tells me it wasn’t the young guy who has made my coffee on both occasions that I have visited. I mean it was good, but not THAT good.
The atmosphere could use a little help. The seating area isn’t very comfy, and with people walking through to get to other businesses in the building, it feels a bit like you are sitting in a hallway.
There is an interesting outdoor courtyard sort of area to sit on a nice day, but it is completely enclosed by high walls, so not much sun gets in.
It is overall an odd little space with great coffee.

We decided to try this after hearing all over the place about how FANTASTIC the coffee was. Sadly, we were disappointed.
First off, the layout of this place needs some help. When it’s not easy to figure out where you go to order & pay, there’s a problem. Second, even though we were the only people in there at the time — it took about 20 minutes for us to get our drinks. And sure, good coffee does sometimes TAKE time, but unfortunately: what we got was not good coffee.
I took a sip of my latte and was… treated to something that I would never label fantastic, good, or even ‘ok’. I couldn’t finish it! And people, when I can’t finish a cup of coffee, there is something VERY WRONG. My boyfriend also noted that his mocha was not-​so-​tasty.
Anyway. It’s too bad, because it’s close to home and I do like supporting small businesses, but my experience was so bad, I don’t think I can give it another «shot».

This is Seattle defining great coffee. Not five stars because it hasn’t got couches or really a lot of seating, it’s sort of in a lobby, which in some ways is O-​So-​Seattle, but that’s what it takes to get the 5^th out of me.
I got an americano but Jake K picked up the mocha and it looked amazing. Super foamy foam.
The’ve got the wi-​fi, of course.
And they sell the beans, from a Everett, and the bag I looked at was only a day old.
Top Noch, as they say.

I ordered a straight espresso early in the morning before going to a job interview nearby. The young barista (the owner guy was off site, roasting) took the time to dial in the grinder, pulled and tasted a calibration shot to make sure everything was good, and then talked with me about the coffee while pulling and serving me mine. A fantastic cup and a fantastic service experience. Seems like they’re still getting started and ramping up the business. The interior’s cold, both aesthetically and thermally, so it’s not yet the sort of place where I’d want to hang out for an extended period of time. But the espresso is the best in Fremont. I give it 5 stars on speculation that in six months, they’ll have these things figured out.

I’ll need to retry, because the coffee I got was sub-​par. I should have listened to a fellow Unilocaler that said if a young guy was working, just turn around (she’s so smart, why did I even attempt?).
No one else in there, and my hubby and my drink took the good part of almost 10 minutes. Good coffee takes time, I know — I could understand if it was a molten chocolate cake, but good god, man, speed it up already!
Also really, no register? You’re lookin’ to get robbed, ASAP. That girl scout cookie money box that you keep the money in was my reach the entire time.
I’ll give it another shot later on, as my Unilocaler friend says, «Wow, wow, wow!»

Am I serious enough about coffee go here? I’m not sure.
They don’t take cards.
Nice n’ quiet tho. And good coffee.

Super friendly owner, fantastic coffee!
Kinda chilly when the door is open, but a great place to grab a cup of joe to go!

It’s a cozy and friendly place in the middle of Fremont that hopefully, in due time, will have a strong local following (and they deserve it!). Service was absolutely fantastic. Dismas, the owner of Stickman, also co-​owns and roasts for Borogove Coffee in Everett. He is also the 2002 North American Barista Champion (before they delineated U.S. and Canada into individual categories) and makes every drink with professional precision. Visit them during slower time and you can learn all about coffee, espresso, and everything related. If you really care about coffee, this is one of the «must» places to go in Seattle (this coming from an industry insider).

Went to Stickman this Saturday after reading all the favorable reviews on Unilocal.Sure enough, the coffee was excellent! I just got a mocha but it was so refreshing to actually taste coffee in my drink rather than some super sweet chocolatey goop at the bottom of the cup. The barista there was also telling me about some interesting looking chocolate bars they sold that were from Africa as well. I didn’t get one but maybe next time.
The space is a little hard to find as it is tucked away in an alley but just look for the signs and you should find it. Kind of a cool space and looked like a nice patio area but seeing as it’s cold as **** outside I didn’t get to take advantage of it. Seemed like they could use some customers as there was only one other person in there so stop by and support a good independent coffee house! I know I’ll be back.

It took me about three attempts to find this place and it was worth it. The owner took a few minutes to craft one of the best americanos I’ve ever had. He’s all about the coffee and this americano was so good that I drank it without cream and sugar. larger or more is not necessarily better when it comes to coffee so when I order my americano, I order them in an 8 oz cup, which to my surprise he had. The americano had some crema on the top, full bodied and a nice aroma, really good, especially for a decaf. I ordered that because I work nights and I had just gotten off work. The place has fairly high ceilings and odd tables and chairs, and feels more like a place you can go and read or have a quiet conversation with someone. The owner, Dismas, has brought in some space heaters to thwart the draft, and it was warm and cozy. The private outdoor patiio will be great, when the warmer weather finally arrives. His prices are low, he is neither pretentious or low brow. Finally, a great alternative to the corporate coffee giants down the street.

Like Borat said, ‘Wow wow wow!’
Pretty much echoing everything everyone else has to say.
Excellent big flavor, superb mouthfeel. Smooth and subtle, but slightly bold at the finish. When it was all over, found myself just wanting more.
Yep, still talking coffee here, people.
Minds out of the gutter, please.
ps– Ca$h only.

This is a very special place for the coffee lover. It gets the reverence it deserves– treated with care by people who possess vast coffee knowledge.
I came here last night to get a doppio cappuccino and some beans, and ended up drinking WAY TOO MUCH COFFEE late in the day. I think I ended up there for over an hour. And I’m much more knowledgeable about coffee now, too.
Dismas, the owner and roaster was gone for the day, but Joe, the barista was super cool. He pulled a few test shots to get his grind right and made me my drink. MMMM so full bodied and chocolaty, with nice fruity brightness on the front of my tongue. It was made with the espresso gitano blend, so I ended up with a pound of that to take home.
Then, to my delight, Joe demonstrated the clover machine, which produces a drip –style coffee (though far superior to drip) — and I got to try a Brazilian bean that won first prize at some competition. It was delightful. No acidity at all. I could drink that all the time.
Then came the single origin chocolate. He just kept the samples coming. One with raisins, one with ginger, one with orange, one that was pure cacao. I was really blown away by the 75% bar, and if they had one to sell if would have come home with me too.
What a great place. Great service. Great coffee. Great chocolate. Yay!

Oh, this is the ultimate espresso, smooth, rich, chocolate-​y with perfect crema. I wish it was a little cozier as a place to hang out in the winter, but in the summer the atrium-​like location is perfect.

«Drink Espresso Here.»
Wow. Best espresso I’ve had since returning a week ago, hands down. Chocolaty, earthy, a little bit of fruit, rich and complex with a great rounded finish. It made me think of Rochefort 10 or any other good Belgian Quad… and a little bit of a good imperial stout (think Old Rasputin, or Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout). Mmm-​mmm good.
Alas, I can only allow myself one doppio at a time.
The shop also sells chocolate from the Plantacao de Terreiro Velho. There’s no way in hell I can pronounce that, but that’s not important. What IS important is that it’s single-​source chocolate with value added by the producer. In other words, a step is skipped and more of the proceeds go to the farmer, something that’s good to support.
Dismas seemed like a nice, unassuming guy, so I can only assume that someone else told him it wouldn’t be tacky (or necessary) to advertise «home of North America’s champion barista» or whatever it says on the sandwich board and the signs at the shop entry. A little cheesy, I think, but it won’t stop me from enjoying the doppios!

Promising new place in Fremont, just behind the Lenin. It’s only been open for a couple weeks, and is owned and run by former North American Barista Champion Dismas Smith. He roasts his own beans under the name Borogrove Coffee, and you can get espresso drinks or a brewed to order single cup of coffee from the Clover machine.
I had a short latte and the foam was noticeably superior to other cups I’ve had around town, really creamy and smooth. The coffee was great, too; I was a bit thrown off at first, because it was so strongly, well, coffee-​flavored in comparison to the drinks Vivace puts out. By the second or third sip, though, it had fully grown on me. Nice stuff.
It’s pretty tucked away and they’re still fleshing out the café area to make it cozier and add wifi, but for now it’s definitely the place to stop if you’re in the area and want a coffee. One other thing: It’s kind of absurdly cheap: $ 2 for my espresso/​milk drink.