A new coffee shop opened recently on Union St. in Schenectady. I stopped by this morning after…read morehearing a rave review from a neighbor, and it managed to exceed the expectations I had formed. Prices are average and not high for the quality. It is located in a community setting on a section of Union Street below Union College. I ordered a fall special beverage -- Pumpkin Spice Horchata Cold Brew $6.75 with Almond Milk It is a "Signature blend cold brew, ps, horchata, choice of milk, cold foam, dash of pumpkin spice (iced)" The weather is still warm enough to enjoy a cold brew! The sweets available looked great, so it was hard to select. I chose a Blueberry Scone for myself and a Danish for my husband. The scone was crumbly, buttery tasting, and full of blueberries. The Danish was flaky and so freshly made. Both delicious treats were packaged nicely for takeout. Service is friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. The owner was present and gracious. The menu will change with the seasons. Nice tables. Creative decor. Easy to read menu was posted. Sweets are visible in a glass case. At 518 Coffee Bar, customers can enjoy a cozy atmosphere to catch up/visit over a handcrafted quality beverage.

On a Sunday morning at 10 the pastry case was empty. Completely empty. The drinks--both hot--while…read moretasty, were lukewarm. Cute decor but probably not a place I'd go out of my way to frequent. Maybe in the summer when the market is outdoors it would be a better experience.

I've been wanting to stop by forever and I'm so glad I finally did!…read more I was greeted right when I walked in by a friendly employee. The space looked comfortable to sit and get some work done. You can also spend some time perusing their wide selection of books. It took me a while to decide on what to get since they offer coffee and bubble tea, both of which I love. I decided on the strawberry matcha latte bubble tea with almond milk, traditional boba and Passion Fruit boba. It was absolutely incredible! The strawberry tasted like real strawberries instead of fake syrup. The matcha was also great quality too! I'm truly still dreaming about this drink and I cannot wait to go back and try more things, including their coffee drinks.

I love this place. They dont use crazy amounts of flavor and it doesnt taste like cheap sugar…read moresyrup. Its a few more bucks than like a dunkin or something but thats to be expected. Big fan of the quad iced lattes. They have a loyalty card thing like a milk card where if you get enough stamps you get a free coffee. So thats cool. Ive never had the bobo tea before this place. While i wasnt a fan it tasted ok it just wasnt for me. They make it all like fresh right there so if you like the bobo stuff im sure its good if you like that stuff.

If you love books and coffee, this is your place!! Very warm and welcoming coffee shop. They also…read morecarry food from another local business ppang bakery. This is a great place to meet and catch up with friends or take your coffee to go and walk around the park down the street.

My boyfriend and I came in earlier today and everything from the service to the drinks was amazing…read more Our server (whose name I didn't catch, my apologies) was so kind and sweet. She even gave us good input for what to order since it was our first time in there and she had so much patience as well. I ordered a vanilla matcha and matcha isn't something I enjoyed my first time trying it however, it was just the perfect amount of sweetness and didn't taste too grassy like other places. My boyfriend ordered a mocha iced coffee and cinnamon bun, usually he gets cream and sugar as well however she kindly informed us that the syrups itself was sweet enough and he didn't need it to which she was absolutely right. The cinnamon bun was delicious as well :))) This place was so cozy and cute, definitely would recommend if you're looking for a small place to enjoy good coffee and pastries. I don't know what it was but the coffee here was just perfect! I'm glad I found this place and I surely will be returning next time I'm in the area. They had lots of good books and vintage stuff as well. 5/5 most def!

Great coffee and pastries, great service, and a decent seating area for size of the space! There's…read morea back entrance in case you can't get in the front, speaking from experience lol

I've been to Graham's on central, and needed to try this one. It's so cute and decorated just like…read morethe original Grahams, but has shorter opening hours. I got my usual butterfly pea tea and it didn't disappoint. Plus, Ray is super nice and always remembers my name and drink. Great service with a smile.

Great drinks and a wonderful atmosphere while visiting nationally touring expos and events like…read morelocal minor league basketball.

The Armory definitely gets a thumbs up for ambiance, as it's a pretty unique location -- a set of…read morerooms upstairs in the old Armory. There's a variety of seating (including some cool very tall-backed chairs), which is a nice change of pace. There's a small menu, drinks, and coffee/sweets. The service is super cheery and prompt. The food is a bit middle of the road and humdrum, and our "hot" beverages were tepid at best. I recommend getting a drink over getting coffee, all things being equal. We'll see if it survives the closing of the Van Gogh Experience, but it's easy to see how with the right management, and maybe a slightly gussied up menu, this could become a destination and not just a stop-off.

This place makes amazing sandwiches. The pretzel bread sets some of them off real nice. Im allergic…read moreto nuts and they're always great about if i ask for a sandwich to not mess with the nuts. I cant believe Mark the cook is such a skinny dude because he knows how to make a hell of a sandwich. Especially the specials. Always worth checking on the specials when ordering a sammie. The coffee is pretty good too. I grab an iced coffee from time to time. Not really a baked good kind of guy so I cant tell you there.

what a great place with a cool vibe. obviously great coffee choices but their sandwiches were very…read moreunique. fresh highly recommend this has a lunch spot. if weather permits sitting outside is great. staff is very friendly when ordering.

Sam was the friendliest instructo/helper/encourager I can imagine. What a hoot! Who knew you could…read moresimply walk into a place and start throwing an axe at the wall. Very satisfying!

Great staff, ambiance and axe throwing but their boba was OKAY. There prices were very pricey even…read morethough the boba was just mediocre. Axe throwing was fun! Would come back but just for axe throwing.

I loved this place! It is incredibly charming inside! There is plenty of seating, complete with…read moreoutdoor garden seating as well. This is a relief because it gets packed! The staff were efficient, kind and knowledgeable about their offerings. My chai latte was delicious! The food was great! I enjoyed everything, except the strawberry macha cookie. The only strawberry part of the cookie was just a thin drizzle of strawberry icing, otherwise it was just macha. I wish it had some freeze dried strawberry chunks in the cookie for some discernible strawberry flavor snd more icing. Otherwise just rename it a Macha.............strawberry cookie. Lol

Cool place with good quality food and pastries…read more For breakfast we had: Turkey cheddar sandwich. Bread and turkey excellent. Sandwich could have been warmer with cheddar melted more. We wanted a bacon egg cheese sandwich but wanted to substitute the bacon and was told they can't do that. Brie/fig sandwich: delicious combo with great bread. Squash soup: good but little watery and under flavored Cranberry Orange loaf: yummy buttery flavor with limited cranberries and hard to detect any orange. Ancient grain salad: very good cold salad with assortment of healthy ingredients like pumpkin seeds & cranberries Hot tea: only one option which was earl grey; high quality but would like plain black as an option. Place is warm and cozy and staff pleasant. Prices little high but fair Will return.