It’s A Grind Coffee House

Burlingame, United States

4.1

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards
Free Wi-Fi

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 650-343-3200
Website:
www.itsagrind.com
Address:
221 Primrose Rd, Burlingame, CA, 94010
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
0.3 miBurlingame
1.1 miBroadway
1.4 miSan Mateo
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
No
Delivery
No
Take-out
Yes
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Good For
Breakfast
Parking
Street, Private Lot
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Kids
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Ambience
Casual
Noise Level
Average
Alcohol
No
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Wi-Fi
Free
Has TV
No
Waiter Service
No
Caters
No

Today

Today –
Local time (Burlingame) 11:53 AM Saturday, June 21, 2025

Business hours

Monday –
Tuesday –
Wednesday –
Thursday –
Friday –
Saturday –
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

We make barista handcrafted espresso based drinks, lattes, cappuccinos, mochas, as well as delicious cold blended drinks like Mocha Java Rush, Funky Monkey and Coconut Crunch.

We fresh brew four different coffees every day. Check out our daily brew and tell us what you want. We also have the best Iced Coffee.

We also sell a variety of Numi Hot teas, as well as several brewed cold teas, like citrus green, passion iced teas, and refreshing fruit smoothies, powered by energy or antioxidant boosts. Our bake case is filled with fresh pastry — chocolate croissants, apple croissants, zucchini muffins, bagels, breakfast burritos –ancho chili, bacon or sausage.

We carry all our coffee beans for sale: Tanzanian Peaberry, French or Italian Roasts, Columbian, Brazilian, Kenya, Ethiopian, Sumatra, Mocha Java & much more. the best Arabica coffee beans from around the world. Our ambiance is comfy wing chairs, some jazz & blues art, music and a sense of community.

Meet the Business Owner

Therese F.

Business Owner

We are Locally owned by Therese and John Finnegan. Our Store Manager Dan is also long time resident of Burlingame. It’s A Grind is headquartered in Irvine California. Our roasting facility is in Anaheim. We import beans from Africa, Indonesia, Central and South America. We are a Rainforest Alliance coffee company. We support charitable foundation Water for Water, that is building water wells in developing countries like the Philippines and Africa.

Our owners are supportive of local community events and causes. Our unsold pastries are donated daily to local charity, Call Primrose.

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20 reviews of It’s A Grind Coffee House

No registration required
Place rating: 4
South San Francisco, CA
Whaaatt?!! I only recently found out they closed! I’m so sad because the employees were always very helpful and friendly. I loved the comfy chairs and how it didn’t have an overly hipster-​y feel.
My typical drink here was the Nutty Cow Hazelnut Latte because I love hazelnut. Wasn’t subtle and it kept me awake.
I tried the Hawaiian Sea Salt Ice Coffee but the salt was too much in my opinion.
The White Chocolate Turkish Hazelnut was also very good as it combined white chocolate and hazelnut together which is amazing since I love both! It was only a promotional drink tho =(
I guess I’ll have to find It’s a Grind when I go to SoCal now –_-||
Place rating: 5
Sacramento, CA
So sad to see this place closed! Loved the comfy couches, the numerous power outlets, the fresh air and the friendly staff. Will be missed!
Place rating: 4
McLean, VA
I’m a big fan of It’s A Grind Coffee House for the following reasons:
1. I love to hang out at coffee shops — This place has free wifi, abundant seatings, great sized tables, and plenty outlets. Yay!
2. Friendly people make me happy — This place has a super friendly staff. They all seem like great friends helping each other. They even bring you the coffee if they’re not busy and know where you’re sitting (I don’t expect that at all but I must say that I was surprisingly humbled by it).
3. I’ve been weening myself off of caffeine (WHY WHY WHY? Just an experiment I’m trying on myself) — This place has both iced caf and decaf coffees and I get my ice coffee «half caf and half decaf».
4. Plenty of places to eat — This place is very close to a delicious sandwich shop across the street.
5. If you’re a regular, then make sure you pick up a loyalty card.
p. s. If you’re looking for super high quality coffee, (e.g. Stumptown, Four Barrel, or Sightglass, etc.), then you may not give this place a solid four stars. This review is for the overall experience I’ve had the half dozen times I’ve been here. :)
Place rating: 5
Burlingame, CA
Love the coffee. Love the calm ambiance. Love the friendly and knowledgeable staff. Go here almost every morning for my «small 2 Splenda non fat latte».
Place rating: 5
San Mateo, CA
Hands down my favorite coffee shop in the area!
– SUPER FAST wifi (I am surprised!)
– Very clean and nice atmosphere
– Friendly stuff
– Good drinks. I have tried iced coffee, iced caramel vanilla, iced hazelnut coffee, and they are all good!
Place rating: 3
Burlingame, CA
Solid, solid 3 stars. I must preface this review by saying that I love on Stumptown Coffee. If you’ve yet to experience the amazingness that is Stumptown, please give it a shot.
That being said, I’ve been to this coffee shop at least a dozen times in the last year or so and that’s encouraging. I am a creature of habit, both good and bad, and if i don’t like a place, I don’t go back.
Coffee is inconsistent. One day it’s perfectly too strong, the next it’s sadly weak. The shop itself is kinda cool. They have old world library style seating, flush with a chess board and some puzzle games. The service is good. They have a decent variety of food options, but the item I’d likely order, the breakfast burrito, is $ 5. I’m not paying 5 bones for a burrito at a coffee shop.
Place rating: 5
San Mateo, CA
This is my new local hangout! Besides serving awesome cappuccino with a swirl of caramel… I really dig this place for their great comfort especially with their high back chairs. They make me feel like a king in my own private corner. It is a nice escape from the usual branded coffeehouses and very friendly staff!
Cheers!
Place rating: 3
Oakland, CA
Grind had various bread samples on the counter. tasty. blackboard listed several varietiel of coffee. not sure if these were the ones available today. cashier’s choice?
pour: («high octane» coffee, sm, 1.65, 12 oz)
bold, semi smooth, more acidic after awhile.
3.5 stars.
drips:
–many tables available
–parking terrible in this lot
–cashier extremely friendly, quick
–4 stars if coffee smoother
Place rating: 3
San Francisco, CA
From reading the reviews I decided to give this place a try, Burlingame is always a nice place to visit. There is some two hour parking around, so while not ideal parking is not too much of a nightmare.
The Batista that helped me was very nice, he even walked my drink over to my table. Something that most chain coffee shops do not do. The sizes are very generous as well, a medium is just shy of a Venti at Starbucks. However I ordered the salted caramel iced coffee and it was horrible. It was very watery, I hardly tasted any coffee or salted caramel, reminded me of the McDonald’s iced coffee only I think I liked McDonald’s more. Judging from other reviews I may have just ordered the wrong thing.
This place is very charming, nice tables, ample lighting and a perfect place to spend a couple hours. Curious to see how busy it could get since there are a handful of cafes around the area. Will give this place another try, will order something a little heavier and maybe just plain coffee. This place doesn’t seem to be the place to go to for some strong, black coffee.
Place rating: 5
San Mateo, CA
Their sea salted caramel drinks are back! They looked so tantalizing last summer, but when I finally convinced myself to order one, their season was over! T. T but they’re back, I got an iced soy sea salted caramel latte and it is THE. BOMB. If you like caramel, this is the drink for you. My tongue feels like it is wrapped in a light layer of creamy, sticky/​thick caramel minus the annoying stuck-​all-​over-​your-​teeth deal. I asked for light sweetness and it was just right I think. I cant stand sugarbomb drinks. I totally recommend this!
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
A great place for studying/​reading/​catching up with friends. Free wifi (ask for the code) and delicious iced coffee — if you like strong black coffee, then ask for light ice.
Good to know:
Parking: A patrol walks around marking tires with chalk to catch those who parked their cars longer than the 15 minute/​2 hour limit
Place rating: 3
Burlingame, CA
When I decide to break out of my Starbucks rut, I turn to It’s A Grind Coffee House. Only a block or so away from the Starbucks on Burlingame Ave., this shop boasts the gamut of cold, blended, and hot drinks. Cookies and other pastries follow their extensive menu of drink options. My go-​to items are the iced mocha, and seasonally, the cinnamon gingerbread latte (which believe me, tastes exactly like a cookie). I’ve never been disappointed.
I stop by anywhere from 2 – 3 times a month, and have been cheerfully greeted and served during every visit. It has a great «offbeat coffee shop» feel — cozy and non-​judgmental. In addition to standard tables, other seating options include a window counter, outdoor accommodations, and massive leather chairs perfect for lounging.
Surprisingly, It’s A Grind is a chain, albeit skillfully masked by the trappings of a corner coffee shop. Despite this, however, it still succeeds in masterfully sheltering me away from the sometimes desolate, corporate feel of our neighborhood Starbucks.
Place rating: 5
Northridge, CA
I go to this place almost everyday.
It’s always warm and welcoming. The staff recognize me and even remember my drink.
Place rating: 3
San Jose, CA
Came by for an after-​brunch coffee the other day and the coffee was mediocre at best.
Ordered an iced mocha and requested for half the syrup. The drink still came at an acceptable level of sweetness. The coffee was pretty bland…
…I would rate my drink slightly below par compared with Starbucks…
Service was friendly and the restrooms are outside, next to Five Guys.
Place rating: 4
San Bruno, CA
More expensive than Peets & SB. Coffee is pretty good, bold & flavorful. Customer service is good. Menu is a bit busy which can cause newbies confusion.
Prices on the high side but you pay for calories and a great laid back shop.
Place rating: 4
CA, CA
I measure real chai against what I’m served at places like Vik’s in Berkeley, which means most American coffee and tea places don’t measure up. (Exception: White Raven in Felton).
So why four stars for a place that can’t quite execute Indian-​style chai? Stellar customer service: the counter folk guaranteed to make a new one should I be unsatisfied — i felt a bit guilty, since I knew what I was asking for (given the products they had at hand) was a losing proposition. The man-​boy who did my iced chai twice even listened to my recommendation of Larry’s Chai (the brand carried inFelton); not sure if they can actually get it, but it was nice to have that engagement.
Place is also comfortable and on a hot day the opened up the sliding glass doe in the back and drew down shades for cross-​ventilation while still keeping sun rays filtered. If I lived in the area, this would be a regular hangout. Now i want to check out the Oakland location.
Place rating: 4
Palo Alto, CA
I saw a sign outside for a sea salt slush and I knew I HAD TO come in and try it. It was amazing! Perfect amount of sweet and salty and blended very smoothly.
Service was quick and friendly. Will have to come back!
Place rating: 4
San Jose, CA
Looking to grab a cold drink on a day when it was still 100 degrees in Burlingame, Unilocal directed me to It’s a Grind.
I was very skeptical because I had seen It’s a grind before, and I knew it was chain … and I also predisposed it to judgement that chains are generally not good plus I had some weird notion that maybe they didn’t get good reviews normally so I was definitely hesitant.
However, seeing little other options, and really needing a place with shade for my one-​day dog sitting duty of a very, very sweaty pit bull, we parked ourselves in the shade of It’s a grind and grabbed a drink.
First, the drinks here are HUGE. Seriously, they’re not normal sized, a medium is like a large everywhere else and they put not 2, but THREE shots in it! Sheesh … that’ll wake ya up. Besides the 3 shots in a medium latte, they really skimp on the ice to give you your money’s worth. This is great every other day, less good on the day when it’s 100 degrees … anyway, the staff was friendly, and nice but it did really bother me that they handled my straw … I’d rather handle my own straw thank you very much.
The owners happen to be there, and they saw our dog and were super friendly in getting him some water ASAP. Diesel happily lapped it up and we knew it was going to be trouble on the double if we didn’t let him walk around some more to go to the bathroom (eek…) but the coffee was fantastic.
Place rating: 4
Burlingame, CA
Since there are two different types of chairs, it is a good place for both studying alone or having a coffee break with company.
Their café latte-​my favorite-​is very tasty, but the hawaiian caramel salt frappé is also pretty yummy. :)
They are holding various events to discount the beverages, so check out what happens often!
Place rating: 4
South Bay, CA
Burlingame is really started to get some Urban renewal action down on Primrose. New Safeway, Walgreens, a Five Guys, Pizza My Heart… and now an It’s A Grind.
Nice new setup, comfy chairs and a gigantic sized iced chai could keep you caffeinated for a while. They also have this row of quirky books that they’re giving away. Perhaps a first for the coffee shops in the area.