This is the third coffee shop in this location in as many years, or perhaps just the third name for this shop, depending on how you look at it.
I'm drinking what I suspect is a large oat milk latte rather than the small I ordered, although I don't know how much of that is my fault. (The person who took my order, after I asked for a "small latte with oat milk," asked if I wanted it hot or iced; when I said hot, she said "16 or 24 ounce," which made it sound like those were the small and large sizes--but I suspect those were the sizes for *iced,* because there is definitely a 12-ounce cup for hot that I see other customers with!) Anyway, it's a good latte, although if they have ceramic cups for sitting in there's no sign of them.
The atmsosphere is pretty similar to the way it has been on previous visits under other names: a little industrial, concrete with black metal and wood tables and accents. The music is pleasant and quiet. It's clearly very popular with UT students, which was true in previous incarnations. Back when it was Medina River Coffee Roasters, I presume they used Medina River coffee; there's no sign of who they're using now, and they don't sell beans to go, as far as I see.
While this is a perfectly fine coffee shop, there's not a lot here that differentiates it from others around Tampa save for being open late--and having a relatively complete food menu, which I didn't try but seems to get good reviews. If you're a student at University of Tampa, this is undoubtedly a great hangout; if you're traveling and looking for genuinely great coffee in the area, I'd probably point you toward Buddy Brew, Shortwave, Elevation, and even Orlando-based chain Foxtail ahead of this. read more