JJ Bean Coffee Roasters

As a resident of Suter Brook, coffee enthusiast and vegan, I absolutely love JJ Bean (vs. Starbucks across the street). Their wide selection of vegan muffins and cookies are awesome for weekend mornings. I wish they were open earlier in the morning so I can grab coffee/​muffin before heading to work.
On some days I work from home, I like to go to coffee shops and work, but I once asked one of the staff if there’s a plug anywhere and she said no. She added that JJ Bean is a place to socialize; thus, it was designed to discourage those who want to work/​study alone. Holding a laptop, I felt suddenly unwelcome here and since then, whenever I go there alone to just enjoy a cup of coffee, read a newspaper, etc. I feel uneasy when a staff looks at me. As a regular, it may help if staff were more friendly, welcoming and making conversation esp. with the regulars but this is lacking compared to the over the top service I get from Starbucks across the street, where I’ve been served with recognition, interesting conversations, and complementary drinks when they made an extra drink and they see that I’ve been working for a few hours.

Great to see a JJ out in Port Moody. It’s a nice alternative to the 100 Starbucks out this way!

Moving away from the more traditional, woodsy interior, this @JJBeanCoffee is modern and sparse. Actually, if it weren’t for the way cool wall mural-​planter, this place would leave you cold. Well, except for the warm drinks. Baking on the premises also a huge lure, (for gluten-​eaters that is) as the (torturous) aroma of freshly baked cookies rises up to the second level, taunting, tempting… To a gluten intolerant, it has more the affect of, well, –a suicide jump. Thank god for coffee!
*Also, just around the corner is CHOMP, a gluten free establishment.

The place was a little hard to find & parking is a pain.
I want to start by saying I have very little knowledge of coffee, except I like my folders.
I came in here looking to buy a friend a birthday gift. The barista was slightly impatient with me even after I explained I wasn’t very knowledgeable & although I was the only person in there she tried to rush me & acted like she had someplace else she had to be. I explained my friend loves her coffee extremely strong & the barista assured me the Christmas reserve would be perfect… well needless to say my friend was not happy with your product & neither her or I will be back!

Decent coffee place. Locates in a nice new neighborhood. Drink selection is a bit limited though. Other then that, still a nice place to sit and enjoy the afternoon time.

I absolutely love the atmosphere and design of this place, though the chairs upstairs can be a little uncomfortable. It’s in a great location for all of us tri-​cities folk.
Unfortunately, while their customer service is excellent, I don’t think they quite have their barista skills perfected yet, so the quality is not as great as other JJ Bean locations. I find most of the espresso-​based beverages are often quite weak.
The plus side is the pastries are the same as all of the other locations, so you can’t really go wrong there.

Love the coffee here. Have loved jj bean coffee for a long time and just recently realized that there is now one near me. Will be going more often!

My first review (below) gave 2 stars. I was contacted by someone about my coffee experience and it was explained that Natural coffees are not roasted but dried in the sun. Chacun a son gout, as the English say, bit I found it really awful coffee. Anyway, person at JJ Bean H.O. gave me two 200 gram bags of roasted beans (Railtown & Eastside) to make up for my ‘natural’ coffee experience. Both are very good. JJ Bean knows how to treat customers, roast beans and make excellent brewed coffee (I was given an excellent Americano when I picked up my beans).
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
Two stars because it is a nice clean new space but the very friendly and competent staff sold me the worst beans ever. I have bought beans from JJ Bean for years at the Commercial Drive location and been happy with the quality so this was very disappointing.
I bought Wote Konga Natural Ethiopia beans. FYI I grind my own, use a bodum coffee press and drink my coffee black. The coffee made from these beans was horribly fruity and acidic, completely lacking in bottom notes or earthiness; it was thin, un-​coffee-​like and the awful fruitiness lingered for far too long. I find it hard to believe that anyone could like this ‘coffee’. Either the roaster screwed up or this is just a very bad bean.

Great new location, modern décor but needs more seating!
I meet my girlfriend here for coffee, been here several times now, service is always great. I love the option of drip or French-​press coffee. Also has vegan muffins and other treats. It’s two levels but still not much seating.

JJ Bean just opened in Pomo. So far, so good. Definitely has a Yaletown in the ‘burbs feel. No complaints on ambience here. THAT drink station is bloody awesome. Hello cane syrup, raw sugar and fresh, fresh cream. Have I mentioned the free pastry samples at the register? Don’t be shy and get one of them babies. Great looking pastry case filled with delightful, non stale-​looking, more out-​of-​the-​ordinary goodies. You won’t go wrong with the banana bread or the giant vegan chocolate cookie. It’s been a while since I’ve experienced café goodness like this.
I’ve been in twice so far trying to avoid the Starbucks barista across the street who I had the worst customer service experience with this past August. (Clue: if you like being told you CAN’T have a customized drink, go to this Starbucks) I actually walked into JJ Bean and asked for a pumpkin spice latte, only to find out they do not specialize in fancy shmancy drinks. So I had a hazelnut latte with the perfect aroma and crema to it. The second time, I had an americano and a regular brew. Great, straight to the point coffee. Service here is all smiles and super friendly, despite the fact that they’re so newly opened, staff is just getting their bearings on. I do miss the other awesome baristas at the above-​mentioned Starbucks, but JJ Bean’s got a new regular thanks to…
From what I heard, it’s a no wifi zone at all their shops. So no dilly-​dallying, erm, I mean, working at any JJ Bean!