Ola’s Exotic Coffee and Tea

Ice tea and chai tea latte were delicious! Very friendly staff and great customer service. The inside of the shop is very spacious with a couch area. Great coffee shop! (:

I’ve come here several times in the morning on my way to work, when the place just opened. I was hoping that the place would improve. Their service is still very slow even though the place is not busy. Coffee is so so. Their prices are on the high side. I can’t believe they charge $ 2 for bottled water.

I’d have to agree that drinks here are inconsistent.
Came in one morning and ordered an iced hazelnut latte. The girls made it perfect!
On another day, I came in the afternoon with 2 boys managed the counter. Ordered the same drink, tasted completely different. Very dissatisfied.
Not sure what to expect my third time around. Ordered an iced white mocha, but it didn’t taste like one (and it’s the only drink I order anywhere I go). I didn’t care enough to go back and request a new drink, assuming it’d probably taste the same. I won’t be going back unless things have improved.

I love studying here. I’m actually studying right now but taking a break. I give 5 stars all around for this location-​maybe except for the few seats and chairs that they have but they are fairly new so this probably doesn’t matter as much.
I’ll start with the Wi-​Fi. The internet here is extremely fast. As another Unilocaler stated, it’s sufficient enough to stream a 1080p video on youtube minus the buffering. You can’t get internet like this in any other café, maybe because there aren’t gamers here hogging the bandwidth.
The coffee! I get the Iced Café Mocha all the time and it’s delicious. I’ve had it with a shot of banana flavor at one point and it was f*cking amazing. Today, I got it how they would make it without any extras like whip cream. Delicious. Coffee heaven I swear.
The environment. It’s nice and empty so far. It makes an ideal location for studying. The music they play isn’t blaring in your ear but I put on headphones anyway and listen to my «study» music even though it’s just RnB.
The staff. FRIENDLY. These people are awesome. I remember the first time i checked in here the nice lady complimented my girlfriend’s shirt. That’s a first and really left a lasting impression on both of us of how great the customer service is here. They don’t seem fake about it either. Just before we left they said bye and thanks just like how any good family run business would operate.
Since it’s still fairly new, I can’t say much to how potentially better or worse this place can be. But so far, I’m loving the experience here. Definitely will try to become a regular (if I wasn’t so broke!!).

Here’s a possibly useful update to my previous review. Just did an internet speed test. On a Saturday with very few people in the café, here are my results from a ping to LA:
Download: 16.36mbps
Upload: 3.49mbps
For those of you who aren’t too familiar with these numbers, the speed is actually pretty good. For example, it can easily stream a 1080p Youtube video without buffering.

I decided to visit Ola’s a few times before I went ahead and wrote this review.
First off, the location of Ola’s is great! It’s easy to locate, next to a neighborhood park and a great place to check out during Union City’s Farmer’s Market on Saturdays. The staff is also very friendly and there never seems to be a line!
I’m giving them only 2 stars for the following reasons:
— No matter how hard I try to enjoy their blended iced latte (which I seem to enjoy in almost ANY other coffee shops), it always seems to be very watered down and full of ice. It’s essentially a cup full of ice with 2 squirts of flavor.
— Drinks are inconsistent. The drink you have on Thursday probably won’t taste the same on Sunday.
— The setting is noticeably awkward, in sense that it’s too spaced out and despite having seating… feels empty…
— The food that they have to offer doesn’t look appetizing nor fresh.
Lastly, I do agree with a lot of reviews for this place. that they need to be more community based. Union City is such a small city, so community is a big deal and having a nice coffee shop that really feels like «Union City» would be great!

I’ve visited this place about three times so far to get my study on… & I must say that it’s a great place to do just that. There are an ample amount of tables and couches. So far, I’ve had their iced tea, ola-​chino, and regular coffee. They all tasted just okay. It’s about $ 3−5/drink, depending on what you get. This place has potential to grow. Very spacious. Nice workers. Granted, it’s not the same as the old café that was here… but I think I’ll visit again when I really need to buckle down and get stuff done.

I’ve been going here the past two weeks to see what variations of coffee they offer though the week. With this being said let me start off with the good. I’ve been a avid pattymeister since the beginning but that won’t sway my review.
Pro’s: the pros overall come with what should be a standard establishment. There isn’t anything that sticks out to me at all.
*quiet and no long lines
*free internet
*reasonable prices
*did i mention it was quiet? Yeah almost too quiet
*Employees are very nice.
Con’s:
*coffee is very very veryyyy light (close to being more of a tea) I understand they say it’s «low acidic» but it is very possible to have a bold coffee with low acidity. Just sayin!
*owner has no idea how her coffee is produced. I ask where it is roasted and she tells me Africa. Cmonnn I wasn’t born yesterday.
*owner said she uses a secret blend of coffee beans for her expresso… smh
*asked for a macchiato and they ask if I want whip crème :(fail move.
*food selection is almost non existent after 4 :00
*having a conversation with the owner, it doesn’t seem like she wants to be a «community oriented» company, seems like she’s just out here to make a quick buck and not make a difference in our community.
Take it as you see it. But i don’t see a future in olas. Well not at 3900 smith.

So far tried 12oz drip coffee ($ 1.75) and 12oz latte ($ 3.11), and both were good. They told me that sandwiches and other food items are coming soon on the menu. Hope to try them someday.

Ola’s replaced beloved Paddy’s which used to be in this location and is probably going to draw a lot of comparisons with Paddy’s for a while.
Let me start with what I like about Ola’s. It serves organic coffee and other items, service went from curt to friendly over the course of the time I was there, fast wifi, family owned small biz.
I miss the neighborhood feel that Paddy’s had. It felt more like friends hanging out, Ola’s feels too corporate and reminds me of Starbucks including the layout. Given that they are a small biz, they have my full support and I wish them the very best. In the words of our ex-Governor…I will be back.

Ola’s offers «wild african beans». didn’t see any food options, just some pastries.
brew: (house, L 1.95)
–very robust flavored yet smooth, easy sipping
–didn’t see notation what blend was being served.
3.5 stars
drips:
–large area to roam around
–a few tables available.

I’m glad that Union City finally has a real coffee shop!!!
(I still miss Paddy’s vibe though)
I’m giving this place 2 stars for the following:
We met the roaster who told us how these beans are treated. The characteristics of each roast and different types. for that this place deserved 5 star. He also knew that the wife and I were really into coffee not mixed white mocha and latte’s (Starbucks made everyone think that that was coffee). He recommended a few beans to check out and we were happy with the choices we made.
Note the roaster is not here everyday so one would assume the owner would know her stuff. WRONG. she kept going on how there beans are the best. I beg to differ. My palate is different from yours one. Two ask me what I like in my coffee, what notes I like, and what I’m drinking currently. When I ask if something is lighly roasted or dark roasted «I’m just trying to find out what has the higher caffeine content.» So don’t tell me it’s a secret because phillz, blue bottle, four barrel, sight of glass, and ritual will tell you if it’s dark medium or lightly roasted. Also don’t assume because I’m Filipino I’ve drank Pinoy types of coffee. This is not just appalling but down right ignorant. For this you should get negative stars, and then be boycotted.
Once again, we here in the South East bay we don’t have many options. The only place that has decent burnt roasted beans is Peets. Unless you go to whole foods. Now you can find awesome local beans. We like going directly to the shops, beans feel fleshly roasted rather then treated for longevity. For this you get boosted a few stars up.
I could care less about ambiance but the space bring me back to a place friends and I used to hang out. But I’m here for a cup of good Joe, not to study. So I’m passing and not giving that a rating.
Finally so far this quality of beans are epic we french press our coffee every morning. I can give each bag we tried a four to five stars. Each bag is roasted to perfection some bags can be stand alone (no cream or sugar) but most still need it. The price is what starting to kill $ 25 for a full pound. I’ve had beans as good as this place in other parts of the bay for ¾ the price. Once again because this place is local and the only spot for quality beans I guess I’m stuck…
Summation:
Expensive, great quality, great roaster who knows his stuff, ignorant owner, friendly staff (an owner is not considered staff), and key thing it’s local.
If you don’t want to go far for good quality coffee go here but you’ll pay for it because that’s all you got.

Still not aware what the days and hours are.
I do believe they close at 9 though.
I was told by the land owner this place was opening February 22, but the grand opening kept being push until it opened 2 Saturdays ago.
This place always seems empty. Good if you don’t want to wait in line. But sad since they just opened.
They have a lot of coffee beans from Africa.
The menu is simple.
It is very spacious, but not much furniture available to accommodate many people.
The place is clean and the atmosphere is… still.
Empty.
The place before Ola’s had personality, individuality, creativity and very comfy to stay in and relax or study.
It was colorful.
This new space is simple and the baristas are nice.
Nice employees, trying to sell their product.
I love coffee. But I came in for an iced white mocha.
I knew I could make it faster, less sweet and actually cold.
It’s ok because I know they just opened,
And the barista was in training.
I got a free sample of their specialty.
It was ice blended, and interesting flavor,
Containing 4 shots.
They still need actual pastry product.
I wasn’t feeling it knowing exactly where they got their pastries. Which I’ll keep to myself.
So it’s ok. Kind of expensive.
Will go back once in a while.
Hope by then more people will come and go,
So the place isn’t empty.
~~ will update with more information.

Stopped in for the first time to this new local coffee shop and was pleasantly surprised. Much different (better!) atmosphere than the previous coffee house that occupied this space. Great, friendly service. Coffee was very smooth and tasty. All organic, non acidic coffee. Definitely look forward to becoming regular!