Glassbox Coffee & Juice

I really like the lofty atmosphere here! It literally feels like a glassbox – open and airy. Really good place to sit down and get some work done without feeling caged in. The staff is friendly and helpful. The drinks are good overall. I liked their vanilla maple latte when I had it (but still not as good as Mighty Good Coffee’s lattes). They appear to be known for their fresh fruit and veggie smoothies. I opted for the liquid sunshine per staff recommendation the last time I was here, which was really good! But I’m not sure it was $ 6 good…

A modern coffee shop tucked away in Arbor Hills mall. This place not only has great coffee but an impressive assortment of fresh made juices as well. On top of that they feature a list of delicious desserts including gluten free options.
I have gotten their 24 hr. cold brew every time I’ve gone and I love it. It’s a little more acidic and has more fruit notes than a lot of other 24 hr. brews which make it perfect for summer. I have also tried a few of their juices and they have all been outstanding. They are made right in front of you when you order so you can be sure they are fresh and made with great ingredients! It seems to be a good place to come and read or study so I look forward to coming when I have more time to spend.
i would definitely recommend this place if you are looking for fresh coffee and friendly staff!

I liked the open layout and all of the natural light, but the place has zero personality. My pastry was tasty, but my coffee drink was nothing special.
The customer service was lacking and the reason I’m writing a review. The dark haired female barista avoided any eye contact, ignored customers until she felt like taking their order and made no attempt to smile or look happy to be there. This type of attitude is my reason for writing my first review in about two years. I will not go back here. I frequent places that employ individuals that make an effort to show appreciation for their customers. If you don’t like interacting with people, get a job that doesn’t put you in those situations. And Glassbox-​hire friendly people. They DO exist.

This is the best work spot I’ve found in Ann Arbor so far.
* Good food: yes to those chocolate moonpies (please save the last one for me) and Zingerman’s toast (yes, I paid for toast)
* Excellent internet: around 50 Mbps. This is a common problem with other coffee shops — they often have high packet loss or low bandwidth/​high latency, or don’t work at all (I’m looking at you, Lab & Songbird Café)
* Free parking
* Not ridiculously expensive (hi, Zingerman’s!)
There is one downside to this location — they don’t have power strips only a whole row of tables, and the HVAC tends to blow on your head making it chilly in some areas. But there is seating that is warm and electrically toasty, so it’s much of an issue. It is getting a bit crowded, though, so umm… you know what? I take it all back. This is a terrible place. Don’t come here.

Glassbox is a gem tucked away in the corner of Arbor Hills Mall and ever since I discovered it, it has ranked as my favorite café in Ann Arbor to hang out at.
Glassbox is pretty chill and is a nice café to hang out with friends or alone (lots of bar seats with power points), surf the net (free wifi), or read a book. The background music is moderate and the café does not have many seats available (limiting number of seated customers) so the noise level never gets too high.
The service here is also really good. The baristas have always been very pleasant and welcoming.
Drinks-​wise, I’ve tried their mocha and lattes, both of which are very aromatic and hands-​down better than Starbucks. Glassbox also serves up a variety of interesting juices. I’ve only tried one of their juices so far, specifically the KGB (Kale, Ginger, Basil, Pineapple and Cantaloupe). This came highly recommended by the barista and is supposedly one of the perennial favorites. While it was refreshing, I’m not so much of a vegetable juice drinker (I think it’s a taste I’ve yet to acquire), so I’d still stick to coffee.
If you haven’t checked Glassbox out yet, I highly recommend you do!

Just found this place. Super healthy juice drinks but you can have a donut side. Heaven in a box.

Beautiful location, friendly staff, thoughtfully curated experience of quality — from the menu items to the furniture. Fresh juice, great coffee, excellent presentation, clean, peaceful ambiance. It can be crowded at times but even when packed, people tend to be working on laptops & the noise level is minimal.

Stuck up baristas: Check
Pretentious much: Check
Overwhelmingly disappointing: Check
My cousin and I decided to stop in and grab some coffee and when we walked in, there was no hello or any sort of acknowledgment from the staff. Awkward!
We ordered a vanilla maple latte and cinnamon latte. Both drinks had no hint of flavor and I realized we probably overpaid for a latte for the design they made with the foam.
The one star is for the barista bringing us a couple water cups and water. Definitely will not be coming back!

The matcha green tea latte was the best I’ve ever had!
I’ve the red wing juice which consisted of beet, pineapple, jalapeño, lime and celery. I was expecting more of a kick since it had jalapeño in it. All I could taste was the beet and pineapple.
I would frequent this location more if I didn’t do my best to avoid Washtenaw Rd. at whatever cost. I like the sleek minimalist industrial look of this location and it appears to have ample seating. Every time I’ve gone here, there was never more than a handful of customers.

Glassbox is officially my favorite place to get coffee when I’m in Ann Arbor. My go-​to is the Vanilla Latte… it’s, in my opinion, the perfect cup of coffee. The coffee itself is light and has a clean finish, which compliments the vanilla bean syrup (REAL vanilla beans, ‘vanilla bean flavored’!!!) nicely. This is the first time I’ve had coffee that didn’t have a cloying sweetness or sat so heavily in my stomach that it made me regret the decision to get some in the first place. Also, the staff uses plastic gloves when preparing your items — a definite bonus in my book!
The staff is super nice; very helpful and patient. They bring your order right to you — whether you get your order to stay or go. I’ve only gotten orders to go, but I noticed an outlet strip around the bar area which would be über convenient if you were planning on staying awhile. The décor is very linear and minimal, which is kind of a nice change of pace — not to many distractions if you’re coming in to work/​study.
It’s a bit expensive, and tucked in where parking can be kind of… interesting…but it’s definitely worth it! :)

The upside – service. Nice having coffee and a bottle of water brought to my table. Staff was welcoming. Which I couldn’t say for the atmosphere. Lots of gray, white, and black… very linear, minimalist, and plain… industrial, digital, techy… which is a fancy way of describing what some might call «sterile.» Not the sort of coffeeshop that encourages lingeriing. I know some do like that style, but it’s not to my taste. More problematically, neither was the coffee. I ordered a pot of plain black coffee. Weak, with no particular character. I can find better brew and surroundings at any Starbucks or Bigby’s.

Glassbox has fast become my favorite coffeeshop in Ann Arbor. It’s a gorgeous light-​filled minimal space, the barristas are friendly and knowledgeable, the coffee and treats are primo, and a lot of the seating is in proximity to power outlets. In addition to having the usual coffee drinks you’d expect (which come in exquisitely designed cups), they also make a variety of fresh juices. Food-​wise, you’ll find pastries/​cake/​cookies as well as hot paninis made to order and kale salad. When you order a coffee, the barristas will make it and deliver it to wherever you’re sitting, and they’ll often bring a small bottle of water with a glass. The best part of this place really is the service. I’ve had a couple of drinks go cold on me, I just wasn’t drinking them fast enough, and the barristas offered to make me another one on the house!
My only complaints: Glassbox is not open late enough! It can get crowded too — but that’s how you know it’s good!

I have no complaints about the coffee or juice. Everything is delicious, and fresh. I notice that the staff use plastic gloves when handling the ingredients for the juice — sanitary — that’s good. I always wondered why juice costs so much, but most juice bars are comparable and it’s so fresh, it is a good, delicious healthy treat once and a while.
The part that makes me wonder is the timeliness of actually getting what you ordered. I waited 20 minutes for a juice when there was three people in front of me, but still, I heard their orders and two were the same as mine, so not sure why they didn’t just make one big batch of the juice?
If you’re just stopping in here to get juice, don’t expect it to be an in-​and-​out type of experience.
Sit for a while, bring your computer, something… or you’ll just end up standing around wondering what the heck is going on. I came to study, but there were several others who were just standing around for a long time looking annoyed. I understand the juicer takes its time to work, but there were 3 different employees working at the same guy took my order and made my drink. The other guys just appeared to be cleaning? Not sure why they couldn’t have been making the juice.
If it was faster, I’d give it one more star. And then I’d add on an additional if its chairs were more comfortable for sitting for long periods of time. I get that they’re trying to be stylish, but it’s just not practical.

A beautiful location and interior. It’s a bit noisy, and there are not very many tables, for a coffee shop. But the hot chocolate I got was delicious. I wish it were slightly warmer.
I’ll be back though, during off hours when I’m sure there will be room to sit. I can’t wait to try some coffees, and I think this is a great place to go with friends who don’t like coffee because their smoothie menu is delightful and unique.

I’m a huge fan of Glassbox.
Since it’s my secret hiding spot, I frequent several times a week to get away, enjoy a fabulous collection of specialty coffees from Madcap, Leftist, George Howell or Counter Culture Coffee and the always refreshing made-​to-​order juices.
My current coffee favorite is the Counter Culture Coffee from Peru paired with pecan-​raisin bread from Zingerman’s Bakehouse and a spread of almond butter. Mmmm!
The staff are always friendly and knowledgeable, without the «barista-​tude» and are ready to answer any questions you might have.
Recently, they’ve developed an extensive menu including kale salad, pastries, breads, jams, spreads, grilled cheese and other tasty treats.
Glassbox is a sleek, open, beautiful space with a U-​shaped center counter with plenty of seating to hide out, curl up with one of their complimentary wool blankets and dream the day away… or work from «home» (cough cough).
Give them a try, you won’t be disappointed.

I prefer this location over the Glassbox near the UM campus — I can actually find parking near the entrance! I cannot speak about the coffee as I have a kick-​ass coffeemaker in my place but I come here for the fresh squeezed juices. My favorite is the C2, a delicious combination of carrot and orange juices with ginger which imparts a unique flavor. The $ 5 price is actually reasonable as many of the juice bars back home in the SF Bay Area are substantially higher for comparable quality and quantity. Staff is über-​friendly and helpful. I’d like a bit more variety of solid food to eat but if you are here for juice and a cookie, you will leave satisfied! The self-​important «breeders» who have their progeny in strollers blocking the walkway to the exit are irritants but sickly sounding coughing fits while waiting next to the stroller always clears the path pronto!

I love the design of the space, and the house brewed coffee is tasty. Not sure I’m into the steampunk thing, but the vegan and gluten free peanut butter bars are super tasty. Juices look good, although I’ve not tried any. Yes, the place is a bit sceney– or can be – but my experiences thus far have been good. And it’s been great for getting work done, which is a big plus in my book!
Also: really cute baristas. :-)

So far I totally dig Glassbox. First off, the juices are delicious. Fresh squeezed, made to order and fairly decent for the price (I’ve seen some other local juices that can run around $ 10 a drink. The juices here are about $ 5). Plus they come in combinations that blend fruits and veggies together perfectly. The coffee is also fab. I’ve only had the lattes but they’re fantastic. They also have a variety of other espresso drinks. Not really a coffee expert? No worries, the baristas are friendly and available to answer any questions you may have about the coffee or anything else for that matter.
For food they have a variety of baked goods from Avalon Bakery in Detroit and donuts from Ann Arbor’s Washtenaw Dairy plus a few other made to order menu items. I had a bowl of Greek yogurt and granola with fruit and it was pretty tasty. Nothing fancy but a healthy option.
The set up is interesting, lots of counter seating, some couches/​lounge chairs, and a few tables with the prep area/​counter in the middle. On a Saturday afternoon it was packed and hard to find seating but I managed to grab a seat at the counter once someone cleared out. It was pretty comfy and a good spot to just have my breakfast and juice and clear out.
They’re housed in the new outdoor mall on the east side of town so stop in and grab a little caffeine or a snack to fuel before heading out and burning a hole in our wallet at the other shops.

This place is really, really cool. Yes, there a lot of coffee shops in Ann Arbor, but I think that the thing that sets this place apart is the customer service! Outstanding! I came in today and was greated quickly. I explained to a staff person that I had never been there before and I didn’t understand what «steam punk» meant. He patiently explained it to me. I asked if he recommeded «Kenyan or Columbian» and he asked what kind of coffee I liked and if i liked mine darker or lighter. I found a place to sit and he brought my coffee as well as a glass bottle/​pitcher of water. You don’t get that type or service at other coffee shops. The ambiance is awesome.
I could have stayed in there for another hour reading my book, but it was getting full and I had finished my coffee…
They had a nice variety of muffins, bars, cakes, etc. as well as fresh fruit.
One of the perks of this place is that it smells AMAZING!!! This from all the juices they make at the juice bar. Yes, $ 6 for a juice may be expensive, but it appearrs you would get your moneys worth!
This place will be one of my regular stomping grounds!

Just tried the Steampunk yesterday and was truly impressed by the fragrance it pulls out of the coffee. It was like trying a cup for the first time; I had no idea what I was missing! I can tell the employees care about what they serve, as you can see them actively working to improve their skills during down time. Patience is a virtue at this location, because it is worth the wait for the art they serve up. Don’t expect to have your drink ready before you pay for it like some cafes.
The interior is so clean and simple. Almost sterile. Perfect lighting, too, with all those windows. The brick exposure is awesome. It makes me want to sit at the bar all day and watch them brew cup after cup after cup. They have added some really neat touches, too, like Vienna style service (coffee served with a glass of water) and if you sit around long enough they’ll let you sample left overs of juice they make.
My only qualm is the baristas weren’t snobby enough. Coming from Seattle I expect a certain level of attitude from such a trendy location. These guys won’t criticize your drink choices to your face, they wait until you’re out of earshot, I presume. Mid-​westerners are just too nice for my taste. I’ll be back though– I just have to figure out who to piss off around there to get the service I expect from such a cool café.