Stoa Coffee's newest downtown location is currently in their soft opening phase (I went on their second day of opening!). Located at the corner of Bay and Richmond, the coffee shop is located inside an office building (where another coffee shop used to be). Stoa Coffee actually has a location in Richmond Hill so this is their first location in the downtown core.
I stopped by Stoa Coffee on Tuesday morning, shortly after they opened at 8am. During their soft opening phase, they will open at 8am and close at 3pm. Hours will adjust accordingly the next few weeks. Upon entering, I noticed the shelf full of coffee beans right away (they have a great selection of coffee roasters from all over the world, some pretty well known ones too!). There is some seating on the first floor but a bunch of tables on the second floor for you to enjoy your coffee and pastries.
Menu wise, they have your classic espresso based drinks as well as espresso tonics, cold brews, a caramel latte, as well as matcha and hojicha drinks. Other beverage options include hot chocolate, London fog, and teas as well. They also sell pastries from Matcha Yuzu, a bakery in Scarborough.
I opted to grab a cortado to go. Staff were friendly and I waited a bit for my drink just because staff wanted to make sure they made it properly. Staff did apologize for the wait.
My cortado was great and strong. I checked out the upstairs area with a few tables which overlooked the coffee bar below.
Overall, a great new location of Stoa Coffee in the downtown core. Once more people are aware of the cafe, I'm sure they will get more business and do great! The coffee is comparable to a lot of the other specialty coffee shops in the downtown core! Can't wait to return for more coffee as well as to purchase coffee beans. read more