The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

I really like this coffee shop and the variety of drinks. I came to SD on vacation, and hit this spot up a few times for cold and hot tea and coffee beverages. Wish they had one in my hometown!

I wish there was CB&TL closer to state! I love this place!
The customer service is always on point, there is one employee in particular that always provides great customer service, I don’t know his name but he has black frames for glasses.
Cute outdoor area and the best drinks. Great hours, usually open until 11.
My favorite drinks are:
Hot English Breakfast Tea Latte (reminds me of milk tea)
Ice Blended Vanilla with Extra Coffee or a few espresso shots
Iced Vanilla Latte

Super friendly staff that seemed happy to be working there. Happy employees = better coffee, I’m pretty sure! Although space is kind of lacking inside while you order, and things get confusing it WAS Saturday so it was a busy time and we had to wait a bit for our orders but that’s just expected.

Ground coffee at the bottom of my cup, eek! I ordered a latte Mach, very good until I got to the bottom :(

I love this Coffee Bean. First, the staff is fantastic. And, that’s not an isolated incident. I’ve been here several times and they are genuinely friendly. Plus, they make great coffee drinks. Although it is a chain, I feel it has more of that «coffee shop» feel because of the atmosphere — lots of people on laptops (including me) or friends chatting. There is a fun, but not rowdy buzz going on.
I enjoy sitting outside when the weather permits. And, this is a weird plus but I thoroughly enjoy their ice. It’s that soft, pellet kind and not the hard, break my tooth off kind. It’s the small things.
It can get crowded for sure but usually I come during the week and it’s not bad at all or in the summer when my apartment is so stifling I can’t breathe. It’s possible to be both a Coffee Bean and Starbucks fan, but if I HAD to choose the winner would go to The Coffee Bean!

So yeah, I know this is a chain and I generally try to avoid them when I can, but I can’t really find fault with this particular location. There aren’t any convenient non-​chain coffee shops in Mission Valley near me other than Coffee Bean which is why I think I end up here from time to time. Plus I believe their drinks are quite a notch above Starbucks. In addition to their standard coffee drink choices, they also have a small food menu as well that you can choose from.
I am a huge fan of this location is the atmosphere. The outdoor patio area with fire pit and comfortable furniture is a great place to get some studying done, meet up with friends, or lounge about reading a book. It generally never gets too crowed or loud the times I’ve been here and the customer service from the staff is pretty top noch. A win in my book!

I would like to start off by saying that this location of Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf has a wonderful staff. They are always friendly and smiling, and they make delicious drinks. If I were rating based solely on the attitude of the staff and the quality of the drinks, I would give top marks.
The thing that I find so frustrating about this location is that on nearly every occasion I’ve visited (I’ll conservatively estimate 10 times, but I’m certain it’s been more), it has been impossible to get a table inside the café. There is just not enough seating, and the tables they do have always seem to be occupied by hipsters and yuppies with their sea of Macbook Pros, and they sit and they sit and I can never find a table.
Perhaps this wouldn’t irk me so when the weather is more pleasant, as then I could enjoy my tasty Scottish Tea Latte on their patio. Though it’s the exception rather than the norm, we do sometimes get chilly, drizzly weather even here in Sunny San Diego, and then the patio is just not an option.
Again, the staff here is truly exceptional. They always put a smile on my face. If I’m looking to get my drink to-​go, this location is virtually flawless (except for the annoyingly cramped parking lot, but I’ll just close my eyes and maybe that problem will go away). Usually though I like to sit for a minute with my drink, and so it’s just not practical for me to frequent a place where it is so difficult to find an open table.
I’m not too worried about the effect my silly little review will have on them, though. Obviously if it’s that packed all the time, business is doing just fine.

This place is awesome, but there is a strange hippie woman who sat directly in front of me, and a guy who looks like a biker Santa, and they are fighting. Apparently they don’t want other people to over-​hear them talk about their session they just had with their psychologist. I am beyond annoyed, but at least the yummy latte has helped ease my annoyance.
Oh. Awesome. They just left.
So I normally avoid coffee chains. I like the independent guys like Lestats or Krakatoa (but NOT Filter, as their food and coffee is disgusting). But this place is legit for many reasons:
1. GOOD coffee. I got the sugar-​free vanilla soy latte. The vanilla flavor is much nicer than other chain coffee places, and just completely blows Starbucks (whose coffee tastes like burned crap iin the bottom of a birdbath) out of the water. I also really liked the blueberry scone. They also have an oatmeal and yogurt bar, so I appreciate the nice healthy options.
2. Atmosphere. Perfectly fine atmosphere inside. It is clean and not too crowded. Bt the patio is the best! There are some comfy chairs, tables with umbrellas, and a fire pit for drinking coffee at night! There are also heated lamps.
3. Free wifi, and the code is posted on the screen inside.
4. Awesome customer service. I think the manager’s name was Robert. This store had made me a drink with dairy by mistake, and the manager went above and beyond to make up for it. Everyone makes mistakes, but not everyone offers awesome customer service.
I will be a repeat customer for sure!

How much do I ADORE Coffee Bean?! It’s seriously one of my favorite places for a cup of joe. I’m not a huge coffee drinker, but when I do want one, this place always hits the spot. I’m not a big fan of chain businesses, but this is a better one that I frequent from time to time. The outside fireplace is great! Although I would steer clear of this place if you REALLY need to study, since it gets a bit rowdy and loud and I personally cannot concentrate in that environment. Other than that, it’s a win!

Great place to study and grab a cup of coffee. It does tend to get busy but people are usually in and out. I usually dont have a hard time finding a place to sit and study.
Free wifi, great coffee, good assortment of pastries, AND they also serve oatmeal and yogurt parfaits now!
I usually get any of the following for coffees: White Chocolate Dream Latte (hot or over ice), Iced Dark Chocolate Latte, or their Black Forest Ice Blended Coffee. YUM. :)
Oh Bonus: BEVMO right next door. You know you’ll need to party after a day of studying. ;p

I am a HUGE Coffee Bean fan. This one is my favorite location. As soon as you walk in you are greated with a friendly attitude from everyone. I am a regular there and I love that they know my name and my drink order. There has been a few times that they have even started making my drink as soon as I walk in so by the time i pay my latte is ready for me. The place is always clean and very comfortable. I love it.

I used to be a starbucks girl… now I am a coffee bean girl.
Place is cute, has a indoors and nice outdoors area. Everyone that works there so friendly.
My favorite Barista is a cute girl named Jenna. (shes the one with the Wizard of Oz half sleeve on her arm). She makes great drinks, and always has a huge smile.
I love coffee bean!

Very good service for it being in the food court of Mission Valley mall. I didn’t know what I was feeling and he helped me decide =]

My wife wanted a cuppa coffee before a movie. The guy working the counter was super-​duper friendly and patient while she fussed over the menu deciding what to get.
It’s just nice to actually get decent service at food court joints, so these stars are for that. Decent coffee too.