Storyville Coffee’s Locations in Seattle

A few weekends ago, my family and I visited Storyville Coffee’s locations in Seattle. Though Storyville has been roasting gourmet coffee for a long time, and mailing it to those who appreciate great coffee, their stores are new to Seattle, America’s coffee headquarters. They’ve made a very big splash.

Storyville has figured it out. Not only does it provide a stand-alone incredible coffee, it also has a menu that is untouched by any other corporate coffee company. All food is prepared within 2 hours or less of purchase, and it is head and shoulders above any other food that you will enjoy in the Seattle area.

It’s delicious, relaxing, the architecture is unique, and quite honestly, we’ve never encountered staff that was so willing to go the extra mile for their customers.

Let me tell you more about their 3 locations!

Pike Market.

Their mothership, located in Pike Market, is by far the most stunning decor we’ve ever seen, not only in a coffee shop, but in any coffee shop. It’s a feast for the eyes and your inner senses. It has a way of relaxing you and invigorating you at the same time.

Though it’s centered in the heart of so much activity (right in PikePlace at the Corner Market area) it retains its own privacy on the top floor and is situated just far enough away from the hustle and bustle of the big city that you still feel the energy of city life, but escape all that ambient noise. The view shows you are in Pike Market, but then you turn and have conversation like you’re sitting in one amazing living room.

Sunset menu.

They now serve a Sunset Menu Wednesday through Saturday evenings, with wine and beer, thoughtfully selected, and a menu that is perfect to nosh on, maybe even a little bit quirky. In fact, I wrote about it, here.

Being at Pike Market in the evening is like being on a movie set, stimulating yet relaxing to the eye. Certainly all day, but especially at sunset.

It’s comfortable, refreshing, a place where you’d want to meet friends for a light meal and speak for an hour … or three. The design and decor is that hospitable.

But there’s more. Besides using their own coffee that is roasted on Baimbridge Island, hospitality doesn’t just happen on its own. Storyville has great staff, and they actually come out and serve you!

We talked to Justin, who has worked there for 6 months, and who went through 3 weeks of training. We asked him about his thoughts on the locations and the stunning shops.

Seattle’s our heart. Storyville looks for beautiful locations.

1st & Madison.

The small shop down on 1st & Madison is quaint and bustling, a big city street corner shop that is more get-it-n-go than Pike Market, but also a great place to catch up and people watch. It has more of that… let’s enjoy great coffee, great food … and get to our next meeting feel.

We hung out here for awhile and felt the city vibe.

As with all Storyville locations, it’s clear that the staff is trained differently. They actually ask you questions about your life, and appear to really mean it and actually await your answer. It reminded us of our recent trip to Tanzania and the spirit we felt there. When we were asked, “How was your day? … where are you from?” they wanted to know the answer. Very genuine.

We love the diversity of this corner. It’s very metropolitan and we get a ton of traffic—from travelers to locals, is what they told us.

Queen Anne.

Though Pike Market is Paul’s favorite, with its plush use of burnt umber (his favorite color), Queen Anne in some ways was my favorite location too, with its large light-saturating windows and energetic but still neighborhood-y feel. We could totally see why the locals would flock to this stand-out shop and hang out for hours, whether alone or supping with friends.

With ample space for individuals and small groups, Queen Anne is an ideal setting for a one-on-one conversation and small group discussion, either inside or out. (And a great place to sit back, relax, and enjoy a good book!)

Now to the really controversial part: Our favorite menu item.

Paul and I had to agree to disagree. Paul could eat their Damn Good Waffles with every meal. Light, crispy, with great tongue appeal, we heard our daughter say, “I have happy mouth!”

And that is not including the custom pat of butter with the right amount of citrus in it. And that is not including the fresh bowl of fruit on the side.

I adored the tiny cinnamon hearts, and could have eaten a dozen of them, and also loved Esther’s Granola.

Abby loved the strawberry cheesecake puff.

My blogging friend, Megan, joined us for breakfast and a long visit. So great to catch up!

All coffee drinks are made and served to perfection. They make their own vanilla, so there are sugar free drinks. Everything is all natural.

We asked Rachel, who was working at the Queen Anne store, why she loved working for Storyville.

I love working for Storyville mostly because of the people. It doesn’t matter what level of leadership, everybody treats you as if you are on their level.

If you love a good David and Goliath story, you’ll love Storyville.

Because instead of using a few smooth stones to hurl at their competition, they seem to have ignored their competition and invented their own fresh brew: Exceptional design and decor, coffee that brings out the soul of the bean, and a menu that, when enjoyed over and over, will feel like a warm and welcomed friend. But without its select men and women, all this and more would be corporate cold and not worth sharing.

Storyville is hospitality.

People caring about people, providing more than enough comfort and inspiration to craft one’s own story, bite after bite, cup after delicious cup.

Added fun.

So, we got a little silly with the camera and tripod on The Seattle Great Wheel at 11 pm one night … :)

Abby took these amazing photos (plus I included a few of my Instagram shots). You can follow her on Instagram @Abbs_co.  Storyville paid for my trip, but all opinions are my own. You can read more about the Sunset Menu, here.

Want more info on getting their Private Reserve delivered weekly by mail? Visit, here. You can also follow Storyville on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

More “coffee” posts on RE:

Life at Storyville

Two Handed Coffee Hour

Used in this delicious recipe: Cafe Mingo’s Sugo di Carne

24 years of marriage and coffee every morning

Fun and simple camping tips (that includes Storyville Coffee)

Our kids will leave us (but we still have our morning coffee) :)