Terry’s Coffee Trader

Hmmmm, where to start …
THE GOOD
* I LOVE the location of this place.
* Cute Old Town Murrieta area.
* Outside seating facing the Main Street.
* SUPER sweet owner who opens up the shop around 2:45am for the police force that’s on their way to work.
* Large selection of coffee for purchase.
* Customers who seem to come regularly have a familial relationship with the owner.
* ATM machine inside the coffee shop made convenient for his customers.
* Fun black & white movies playing
* CHEERS type of vibe
* Decent coffee /​wrapped pastries
(Here are some negative observations BUT take into consideration that the owner is an older gentleman who appears to be running the business himself without any help.)
THE BAD
* Comments about chasing girls to most of the men who came in.
* Answered the phone (undoubtedly a friend on the other line), «How ya doing? Are ya b_​_​bs hanging low? Can you tie them in a bow …» (Soooo glad my kids weren’t with me!)
* Unkept feeling all around
THE UGLY
* The gentleman was clipping his fingernails behind the counter (OMG YUCK!!!)
* He would his foot up on the counter while resting. It wasn’t the main food counter but there were still carafes of coffee and a cashew-​dispensing machine there.
* Loud coughing and clearing his throat while working with the food (granted, this allergy season has been harder than most for many of us).
* Filthy mop water left in the corner.

Love the Lattes. Great location. Humble, at home feeling. Terry’s place is the Coffee shop version of Cheers.
Affordable. Today I ordered two 16 oz. lattes, a giant brownie and a tuna sandwich. $ 11. Total. I’m Beowulf have been $ 20 anywhere else.

There are few places like this in today’s society. Terry’s is refreshing. Terry is so good at welcoming everyone who walks through the door, and it shows with all the regulars who seem to be coming back.
I’m new to Murrieta and so happy I found this place for a genuine smile to start my mornings. Thanks Terry!

They type of place we all want to support. The service alone makes you want to come back daily. Good Coffee, good atmosphere. GREAT service.

The people are friendly and the place feels like home when you walk in. Great service and one of THE BEST chai vanilla teas I have ever had. I will be coming back!

I happened to run across this café and only had my credit cards. When the owner told me they only take cash my heart dropped. He was so gracious that he gave me my iced coffee and said to pay him back next time. What coffee chain would ever do that? I was super impressed and definitely going back when I’m in the area next. Small businesses like this need to be supported.

Great place, good company, the best coffeehouse around. I love being able to go there in the morning enjoy cuppa coffee read a book talk to the other visitors and enjoy the atmosphere I highly recommend.

One of the most welcoming businesses I have ever visited. Terry is always so interested in others and you can tell he cares about his customers. Went in again today for a coffee and a visit. Truly one of the best locations in Murrieta. The baked goodies & brownies are AMAZING!

Really nice owner. Decent amount of seating. No wifi. Bad espresso — couldn’t even drink it.

As for the high star reviews on here… they give this place a high rating due to the fact that Terry gave them free items (as mentioned in most of the reviews), because they didn’t have the cash only to pay for said items. Not because the items were actually fresh, and/​or well made.
I understand that Terry is a fixture in this community, but I just can’t get over how old & dirty this place looks. When we walked in, Terry was on the phone. He didn’t bother to greet or even acknowledge us, until he was finished with his phone conversation.
My nephew ordered a smoothy. He & his sister tried it, and said that it tasted weird. They didn’t finish most of it. The majority of pastries in the cases, and on the counters here look like what one could buy from a hospital snack machine (not fresh, not good quality.) I myself would not eat or drink anything from here.
Summary: cash only, gross smoothies, pre-​made/​pre-​wrapped pasteries (see photo below), no wifi, very dirty & outdated interior, high Unilocal rating due to giving people who don’t have the cash free items.

Great little coffee shop run by an older gent with a huge heart. Unique coffee menu items, that’s what we love about local, small business! The peanut butter coffee is hands down my fave!

We found this little coffee shop on Unilocal as we were passing through the area. The older gentleman that helped us was very friendly. After we placed our order, we were told that they are cash only. Unfortunately, neither my husband or I had any bills on us. He let us have our items on the house. THANK YOU.
This little shop has plenty of seating and offers a variety of coffee beans for purchase. The drink menu is not large, but appeared to offer a handful of cappuccinos, hot chocolate and drip coffee. They have a few muffins, baked goods and prepackaged pastry items for sale too. All around, a cute mom and pop shop.

Been coming to Terry’s since I was little and it was in a different location but my favorite place for breakfast sandwiches!

So its pouring rain, meeting my lawyer to be introduced to a guy about a ranch. Terry himself makes me a hot chocolate with a giant mound of cool whip. I was in whip cream heaven!!! Oh, if your too loud, he turns up the TV LMAO!!!

Great place, good coffee, very nice hospitality, if i go back to Murrieta anytime in the future, i will surely pass by for a coffee

My first visit here was on Friday… My brother was in town visiting and I was looking for a coffee place for us to go to in the am before he had to drive me to my Dr’s appointment. We saw that it was close by and it had 5 star rating, so we decided to give it a go. Terry was working the counter (as he apparently always does), and greeted us with a genuine smile and he was hoot. We ordered our coffee and turns out that the place is cash only and neither of us had a single dollar on us. I asked Terry where the nearest ATM was and he just waves me off and says «you can just pay me next time.»
Fast forward to today (4 days later), I showed up to settle my debt. I would have come sooner but I wasn’t allowed to drive myself until today. I walk in, Terry jumps up from the table, where the regulars apparently sits and hangs all day, and gives me a hearty greeting and asks me what he can get for me. I tell him I owed him money from Friday and he tells me he already sent out a crew to «take care of me» and laughs in the most warm and contagious way. He pours me another cup of coffee, charges me $ 7 for the whole affair and pats me on my back and says thanks for coming in. I left him a $ 5 tip (was it enough??) and I left feeling amazing. Human interaction at its finest. Coffee isn’t bad either.

Needed to get back on Unilocal to write a review about this place!
Have gone twice now, just needed to know it wasn’t a fluke…
All around Best coffee shop I have been to, ever.
I guess it was Terry himself who was helping me, one the most genuine and nicest business owners I have had the pleasure of meeting.
Nice place to meet, relax, enjoy the coffee shop atmosphere.
Great drinks too, try the reeses pieces one…
I will go out of my way a lot just to give this place my business for as long as it’s around.

Terry is awesome! First time I went in there I didn’t have cash, and since I didn’t know it was cash only he told me not to worry about it and just to pay him back next time. He loves what he does and it shows in his business. Best coffee shop I’ve ever been to in my life.

Great Business. Good Coffee. This place is super homey, great environment, friendly faces! CASH ONLY!!! But worth it. For all you coffee connoisseurs, this place is not the greatest place for your 9 minute orders, but will make you pretty decent cup of coffee 10 times more enjoyable!!!

I was in town on business and needed to kill an hour and get some work done so I stopped in here after seeing the high reviews. I was immediately struck by the crowd; just knew right away that the people there that morning were there a lot! They all knew each other and Terry, the owner.
Terry was working the counter and when I discovered he only accepted cash, I turned to use the ATM in the corner but he told me it was empty. I was bummed and got ready to leave but he asked what I wanted, and despite me telling him I was only in town for the day and probably wouldn’t make it back to pay him, he poured me a cup of coffee.
Now there’s no WiFi here, and the coffee is not on any kind of level with the gourmet coffees around today, but the customer service is unbeatable and the hometown charm here is off the charts. Terry said he’s been doing it for 35 years, and I definitely got the sense that he’s in the business for the people and the community and not just to make a buck. As such, he’s got the loyal crowd that keeps his business flourishing.