The Colophon used to be a common stop for me as a person who didn't primarily live in Bellingham. I realize now it was more due to my longing to inject some Bellingham flavor into my life as a departure from the miniscule sullen little town of my high school days (it shall go unnamed). Well that has all changed. Since I've finally spent nearly everyday in Bellingham for school and the like, I've come to realize that The Colophon only represents Bellingham in the visual sense. Reviewers have mentioned it has a lovely location nestled in Fairhaven with Village Books above it and a nice view of the Village Green from certain vantage points. It's a charming old building with quaint cow themed artwork all around and a genuinely nice setting. But underneath all that is a relatively expensive menu for what you get, a lack luster one at that...with little variety . You can pretty much always count of their pot pies as being filling and delicious, and I've had decent summer fare, but sometimes their specials seem ill planned and much of their food leaves you wanting. I truly wish they would make just a few changes, because Bellingham lacks good food for the flavorful city that it is, and The Colophon is no exception. read more

The service was decent. The food was mediocre at best. The sandwich I received was large, but didn't really taste like anything. It was also very dry. They didn't have anything diet to drink, and couldn't make me a breve latte, as they were low on half and half. Dry sandwich plus water = no bueno. My wife was okay with her sandwich, but didn't think it was anything to write home about. We say upstairs in the cafe area. I suppose we should have gone downstairs to the full service restaurant space, but didn't think about it at the time. All in all, I'm in no hurry to go back. read more

Ordered mexican corn & bean sopa/soup from the menu, i am really not sure if it was fresh, it was canned diced tomatoes with canned kidney beans and probably canned corns all mixed together warmed up and served!!! 2 stars for the ambiance.. read more

This little spot is pretty sweet. They had an interesting menu with a surprising variety of soups, as well as your standard burger and sandwich fare. When asked if the soup of the day was good, the girl behind the register was totally honest about not liking it, and told us that even though it sounded like it was going to be cream based, it wasn't. Her honesty was really refreshing. I feel like most people just say, "It's great! Lots of people like it," which isn't helpful at all. I ended up with the hummus platter, which was alright, but no better or worse than any other hummus platter I've ever had. It was a solid three stars. The reason this place is getting a fourth star is because they dropped my order to the kitchen below through a pipe, and then brought my food up on a tray-sized elevator. I'm a sucker for gimmicky stuff like that! read more

Sandwiches were fine and so was the soup. I've had better elsewhere, but I do love their desserts. I like the idea of bringing the sandwiches out on a plank, but it was hard to manage the sandwich and most of it ended up falling off the plank and onto the table. Clam Chowder was really runny. read more

My wife and I did a hike up to Oyster Dome then decided to treat ourselves to a cocktail and an appetizer in Fairhaven. We decided on Colophon because we could sit out in the park and our dog could join us. We were greeted and seated immediately. Our server, Alisa was prompt and friendly. She even asked if our dog wanted water! I had the nutty sidecar and it was just what I'd hoped it would be. My wife had the raspberry mule and that was a definite hit. Both cocktails were full of flavor and refreshing. We also had the artichoke dip. We ended up fighting over the last scraps. All in all it was a perfect end to a wonderful day. read more

Their Peanut Butter Pie is so good! The servers were extra friendly. Great atmosphere. I will be coming back for more peanut butter pie for sure! read more

I've Been going here for twenty plus years now. I make a return trip to Fairhaven at least once a year just to visit the Colophon Cafe. Their sandwiches are delicious and their desserts are amazing. Get there early to see the full selection of pies and cakes. They go quickly. The service is slow, but in a good way. Don't go if you're in a rush. I highly recommend a day trip here for lunch, then a casual afternoon walking around funky Fairhaven. read more

Four of us went for lunch yesterday. Amazingly poor service..once the food was served we never saw the server again until she brought our bill. No drink refills, no "is everything OK" Sad to say, if we had seen a server, we would have requested they take back three of the lunches. Salmon chowder and clam chowder were the worse we have ever had. Sandwiches all fell apart upon first bite, since they are served on a narrow board, they just fell all over the table that we had watched them wipe down with a used towel. Thank you NO. We'll never know about desert, we were never asked..when they brought our bill they noticed our plates and bowls were still full. They asked did we want it boxed up! We replied , no this was really dreadful..their reply? a shrug of the shoulders as they picked up the credit cards. NEVER AGAIN... read more

Kinda dissapointed. For 16 dollars (colophon deluxe sandwich) i got a cheap, deli cold-cut based sandwich. The people were wonderful and everything but the sandwich was something i could make in my house at 4 am, drunk off my ass. Lemonade was pretty great read more

Food was good, service was friendly, location is nice if you can get a seat on the patio. But the prices are too high for what it is. $16 for a sandwich with chips and a pickle. $11 for a tiny hummous plate, and even $4 for an ice tea seemed high. Glad we tried it, but probably won't be back. read more

Great vibe, I love that it's attached to a bookstore! I recommend the broccoli pot pie if you're looking for something warm and hearty. You also can't go wrong with a bagel! read more

Great location for vegetarians!!!! Loved the veggie quiche and the vegetarian soup. Filling and generous portion. Fresh tasting. Wonderful selection of food. Friendly servers and quaint atmosphere. Love it here! read more

Colophon Cafe - Salad Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

I can finally write about this place after trying almost everything here. The prices are alright for what you get. I think the biggest disappointment, menu-wise, is the pot pie Since it is just the pot pie filling with a small "pot pie" crust placed in top like a cookie. Kinda expensive for just a "filling", really. Other than that, everything is good to go. In terms of my favorite menu item, it would have to be the sandwich and soup combo with the bread on the side. Try the African peanut soup paired with the molasses bread. very nice tastes. read more

This is probability my favorite restauran in this area wow! Customer service excellent, my sandwich was Calic Avocado chicken burger OMG and my soup was African Peanut definitive you need to trying that. read more

Colophon Cafe - Salad Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

The first time I ate at the Colophon Cafe was in 1988 and I was about 15 years old. Stopped in for the first time since 1998, and I've got to say - it's as good as ever! Still has the amazing African Peanut Soup, still has great service, and is still charming. Yeah, there've been some changes to the space, but nothing that makes it worse (yay for more bathroom area!). It's connected to Village Books and Paper Dreams, which are also as awesome as I remember. read more

this place used to be amazing but moving the bookstore out from around it kinda took away some of the charm. Their food isn't quite as awesome as it used to be in my opinion but I still went there quite frequently for a bowl of chowder and a half a sandwich. Honestly it might be me that's changed and my palate has grown and evolved but I just don't feel like the food is quite as good. The chowders are a little lack luster and need more salt and the sandwiches are good but not worth the money you end up throwing at them in the end. The big plus here is the ice cream! Locally made its not decadent but oh it is tasty and always a fun treat for when you walk around Fairhaven on a beautiful summer day. read more

Whenever I'm driving by Bellingham (I live in Seattle and often pass through en route to Vancouver, BC) i find myself stopping by Colophon Cafe. The space shares a large bookstore, an ice cream shop and the cafe (downstairs). The cafe itself is excellent; a large diverse menu, although best known for the bagel sandwiches and pot pies. They have outdoor seating backing up against a public commons area that often has live music and crowds of locals during the summer. read more

Colophon Cafe - Children playing in a fountain right next to the outdoor patio of Colophon. - Salad Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

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I don't understand the negative reviews about this little joint. The are open all day and through the evening serving a wide selection of sandwiches & soups. Soups that don't come out of a bag mind you! All made fresh daily, ranging from carnivorous, dairy-free, vegan & vegetarian. The service is a bit slow, but in my humble opinion, the quality of the delicatessen sundries TOTALY compensated for it. As for the atmosphere, seating is available upstairs in the diner w/minimal service (full menu available), down stairs in the bookstore attachment, or outside. Whatever suits the mood. We had a couple of soup & sandwiches (veggie combo & a super club sandwich). I am a sucker for quality house-made soups (having served my time over the kettle). Split pea & Corn chowder were out selections. This was the first time EVER that me or my wife have been served soup & not had to add salt or pepper. Well done. We found ourselves coming back in the evening for dessert. Again, its all made in-house. We were bent in to submission by the peanut butter pie & the carrot cake (the wide selection was very hard to choose from). The portions are huge! We easily could have split one, but decided to splurge for the variety. I have no hesitation returning here the next time I pass through towne. read more

The Colophon never disappoints. The food is flavorful, unique, and filling. When ever I come here it always seems like a warm inviting setting. The decor is great with stone walls, old beams, comfy seating, and a great fireplace. In the summer the outdoor seating is awesome. I must say if you are going g to try only one thing here. It has to be the peanut butter pie...omg...it is so amazing. read more

This place used to be a lot better. I moved and just recently went in there again. The food is kind or ordinary with a little twist. Pretty good overall. My favorite is one of their soups in the bread bowl... yum (great for a rain fall day. ) Good service, friendly people. read more

Awww, this place was a nice little way to end my weekend stay in Bellingham. The waitresses were so friendly and accommodating. We ate in the downstairs area, which is visually not exciting, and I felt like I was eating in a cafeteria at a foreclosed retirement home, but our yummy food made up for the visual assault. Dinner breakdown: Hot Honey Lemonade was yummy, soothing and so very sweet. The super food salad was huge and so heavenly that I wrote down all the ingredients and plan on recreating it (quinoa, red cabbage, romaine, feta cheese, dried cranberries, walnuts, shaved carrots, and a carrot-miso dressing. yum) Tomato Florentine soup was belly-full delicioso Honey Wheat Roll was tasty, especially with the soft butter BF had the split pea soup and salmon dill gluten-free quiche, which he devoured in minutes, so I take that he thoroughly enjoyed. The biggest caveat is the expensiveness. Yikes. Definitely should be a few bucks cheaper. read more

Great soups and sandwiches, good service. The African peanut soup and Mexican corn and bean soup were both very good, flavorful and just a little bit of heat. read more

This Cafe is so beautiful. Their downstairs seating is absolutely lovely with views of the courtyard. I had a delicious bagel with sun-dried tomato and a thirst quenching apple juice! read more

This is fine if you want a quiet place to grab a normalish sandwich and a slightly-above-normalish cup of soup. My problem with Colophon is that they could do so much more with their breads; usually they are dry and sliced too thin for the way they construct their sandwiches, so everything just falls to pieces on the wood board they give you to eat above (the board is fine, it's just not great for exploding sandwiches). The clam chowder is quite tasty, but the last two times I've requested it, they have been out of it, so if you're really gunning for a certain soup, you might save yourself a drive and call. Not amazing, but there aren't many soup+sandwich places in Bellingham that I can find, so I can see why people like it. read more

Based upon the reviews I was expecting something special, tasty and memorable. Sorry, very overpriced, food was just so so. Person serving was doing her job but may have been busy even though we were not there at their normal rush times. It was hard to get her attention. Not a fan - no point returning read more

This cafe has been around for years, and is still one of the best in Bellingham. We are from out of town and haven't visited in awhile, and they have renovated quite a bit since our last visit. The layout and decor has improved, and thankfully the delicious food hasn't changed! I love their salmon burger and split pea soup. My husband ordered the Mexican soup with gluten free bread, and said it was very good. They are more than happy to accommodate dietary restrictions, and he had no problem ordering a vegetarian, gluten-free meal. read more

Colophon Cafe - Gluten free peanut butter pie. It's nothing short of amazing! - Salad Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

Love it. We ran into this place in search for dinner on a Saturday evening being in town for a soccer tournament and were pleasantly surprised. Great location, we scored an outside table with a live concert at the square right next to it, can't beat that. Food was good, had the Salmon Burger which was done right as it should be. Great garnish with sprouts and all served in a crisp bun. I really liked the potato wedges, seasoned well and so much better than fries. We also had a Greek salad, well done but not spectacular. Service was super friendly and quick. Will come again! read more

Colophon Cafe - View from patio - Salad Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

I came to this restaurant expecting really good food but it was simply average. With prices as high as theirs, I consider it to be one of the most overpriced restaurants I have eaten at. A simple sandwich costs $13 which seems unreasonable for such a meal as it does not even come with any side. The one good thing I will say is that their food seemed to be mostly either organic or local which I strongly support. Other than that there was not much to say about this restaurant. The seemed to be very much understaffed causing the servers to be stressed out. read more

Wife and I walked Fairhaven for the first time this past Saturday afternoon. After walking for an hour or so, we decided to come here... We were seated quickly and brought menus and drink menu. The cafe was pretty much empty. I ordered a Bloody Mary ($9) and greek salad that had side of of hummus and pita($15) Wife ordered a soup/sandwich combo($13.50) Blonde short haired waitress from Utah was very chatty, seemed like she would chat more than work. Bloody Mary was spicy, I thought but it wasn't, it was WAAAAYYY too much pepper added to mix or after, undrinkable. I told chatty Cathy about the drink and after a little arguing, she took drink off bill. Food was OK, nothing special. Chatty Cathy was talking about the so highly rated balsamic vinegar that was on table, that was from a local Fairhaven store...I looked at bottle and it's a repackage from some company in Oakland, CA...so much for local. Back to the food...wife said sandwich and soup was good, my Greek salad was OK...but $15? Damn. $30+ for 2 lunches before tip. Ya, not coming back here...ever. read more

Love this place and it keeps getting better. We are vegan and they have wonderful choices. The interior is warm and cozy with the brick throughout and the service is friendly and knowledgeable. read more

Overpriced for the quality of food. I ordered the chicken avocado sandwich for $12. It was really dry and didn't come with any sides. Very nice atmosphere, quiet with no TVs or music. Wouldn't come back. read more

The food here is excellent. Lots of vegan and vegetarian options with decent portions, willing to accommodate special orders, they were willing to add an avocado to my bagel anytime. The waits for the food was sometimes long, but the food makes up for it. read more

Just had the worst burger in Bellingham. I ordered the bleu cheese burger with potato wedges. The burger was an overcooked dried out slab of meat and if there was bleu cheese it didn't let anyone know it was around. That coupled with very bland potatoes made for one overpriced disappointing meal. For the $90.00 I spent for the three of us I could have gone to Dirty Dan's and ate very well. read more

Colophon Cafe, situated right on the Village Green in downtown Fairhaven makes up in location what it lacks in value. The forte of this cafe is its desserts, which is how I initially happened upon it. I was a fan of a peanut butter pie recipe in a cook book that cited the Colophon as its place of origin. So, if you are looking for a place to satisfy your sweet-tooth and grab an espresso or perhaps an old-time shake or malt, then Colophon is five stars. I gave it two stars because I find that the food, which is not necessarily bad, just mediocre, does not match the asking price. A fan of Trader Joe's myself, I have a hard time stomaching the fact that a salad plate which was comprised mostly of little slices of pita and a dish of hummus costs $11.00. I went to the Colophon just recently for a "girls day out" with my mom and younger sister. My sister seemed to enjoy her veggie melt (although the portion was on the petite side) and my mom, who ordered that infamous salad plate, endured an extremely cold chicken salad. The plus side to all of this? Try the fish and chips trolley on 11th and Harris on a nice summer day. They have excellent fish and chips of all varieties, but, even more exciting, they have soft-serve ice cream in 24 flavors. 24 FLAVORS. This is amazing considering the options are usually chocolate, vanilla, or vanilla and chocolate swirl. Mom enjoyed a chocolate and peanut butter swirl, little sis a tropical pineapple cone, and I was delighted by a refreshing dish of bright pink peppermint! Nothing beats eating ice cream with your best girlfriends. I love you, Mom! read more

Love this little spot, the mimosas are amazing and the breakfast is to die for! And its in beautiful historic fairhaven

There are few places I can say I've gone to for 30 years, but the Colophon Cafe is a place I've gone to since I was a kid. They are the master of the soup and sandwich combo, they make the best African Peanut Soup I've ever had. And where else is a cafe smack-dab in the middle of a bookstore. Now, as in the 80s, is exceptional. read more

Came here for a quick bite to reminisce my sister's college days at Western. It is a bit confusing to enter as you have to go through a shop and down stairs. The interior is homey and fairly inviting. I was promptly greeted and seated. Within a few minutes the waitress approached. I already knew I was going to order the African peanut soup and opted for the soup triple combo which includes three cups of soup with bread. In addition to the peanut soup I tried the clam chowder and veg southwestern soup. I make soup a lot so maybe my expectations are higher than most but I thought the SW soup was pretty uninventive with just beans, tomato, corn and broth that tasted like a packet of McCormick chili seasoning. A sprinkle of cheese, sour cream, or green onions would have spruced this up a lot. I also wasn't overly impressed with the African peanut soup. Again, this is a soup I make often at home and frankly I think my homemade version has a lot more depth and flavor. However the clam chowder was off the hook! Delicious creamy broth with no flour filler, chunks of clams and potatoes, overall very well balanced and probably in my top three favorite clam chowders. The cost seemed a little high at $12. The waitress told me the three cups were equivalent to a large bowl. I saw some reviews regarding poor service which I found to be not at all the case. Both the hostess and waitress were very outgoing and kind. read more

Colophon Cafe - Tri soup combo - Salad Near Me - Bellingham, Washington

Anytime that I can sincerely say that the coffee is the best part of a meal, watch out Yelp rating! The coffee at Colophon is good, really good in fact. A few friends and I went here the other day before my friend's wedding, hoping to score some awesome grub... No such luck. Besides the service being pretty slow (relatively, of course, as we were in a pretty big hurry to get our nails done...ha), the food just lacked pizazz. Seriously lacked pizazz. I opted for the chicken burger (interesting, that although they have burgers as a section of their menu, not a single one of their burgers is made with beef! What a travesty!) It came with avocado and red onion, it was fine, but definitely just normal fine, nothing to write home about. The girlfriend, on the other hand, had the veggie bagel sandwich. This was just unacceptably bland, I mean, BLAND!!! The avocado tasted like that cheap fake spread, topped with cucumbers, blah... plus it was like $10! All together, with the amazing coffee, or bill was like $30 for a mediocre burger and horrible veggie bagel. We felt totally ripped off when we left. Oh, yes, we had to order to go because it was taking so long, and we didn't receive any side dishes with our meals. Double ouch to the pocketbook. Definitely a tourist trap. Although, the location is great, nice ambiance, and the servers, however slow, were polite. Hence the saving grace of the two stars. 1 star for food. So much better to be had... Thanks for listening... read more

Brohams right. While I don't think the quality of the food has dropped that much, the prices are absurd now. I still go every now and then just for the memories. If you haven't been there, don't create any. read more