Caffe Bene

I really like their honey bread! I was surprised, I thought it would be too sweet, but it’s not if you’re not trying to eat the whole thing by yourself.
My favorite thing to get is the Coffee Saigon. To get the caffeine in faster I always ask for a cup of ice with it so I can drink one cup cold while I wait for the hot one to cool haha.
Their bingsoo is on the meh side for me, I don’t love it but I guess I don’t hate it either.
The owner and staff are very friendly! I always look for that when checking out a business.

We saw it across from the Glory Days where we had dinner so we figured we’d give it a try. It was small but nice. However, the prices were way too high and the selection wasn’t very large for desserts. We ended up getting a brownie which wasn’t very good. My boys didn’t even finish it.

What a neat little café — just wish it was closer to Annapolis! We happened upon this place when in Ellicott City a few weeks ago and I’m so glad we did. This is the type of place I’d love to own one day. The furniture and set up of the place is really neat and it seems like they have a great variety in their menu — everything from a banh mi to an affogato! I got a chai latte and my husband got the affogato and both of us were very pleased with what we got. The affogato came with Vanilla gelato and espresso on the side but you do have the option of getting it with different flavors of gelato. This was the perfect afternoon dessert. My chai latte was nothing out of the ordinary but still yummy! We look forward to being back in this area to visit this place again!

This was the last stop in my long Memorial Day road trip. I had just gotten done eating Korean barbecue with a buddy of mine, and I was pleasantly surprised to find a Café Bene here in the east coast. So naturally, I pitched the idea and we came here for a post-​meal caffeine fix.
Since I was very full from the outstanding meal we just had, I decided to order an iced tea. I got one of their more caffeine-​charged teas… the morning grey tea. My buddy opted for a large mocha. The service was as good as their locations on the west coast. The vibe is also the same. It is a great place to post and study, or to just chill with friends over coffee.
This place is clean, and not too crowded. I will come back here soon, as I need a good regular place for coffee while I am on the east coast.

Great atmosphere and even better coffee! They also offer sandwiches, waffles, honey breads, and other drinks. I recommend the ice parfait, which seems pricey but is actually a great deal since it is more than enough for 2 – 3 people to share — and its refreshing and delicious! Love the interior design and friendly service. Definitely recommend if you’re looking for somewhere to hang out with friends or to study!

So I’ve been to this place three times now and can finally give an honest review. First off what gives this place a two star is the price and amount they give you. Been to this place three times with my sister. Each time I notice the portion being to small for the amount they charge, and the amount of ice in each iced item we ordered.
First trip my sister ordered iced drink and I ordered an ice coffee. We both notice how much ice was added into our drink. We also ordered ham, egg, and cheese sandwich, spicy chicken sandwich, strawberry waffle, and scoop of green tea Gelato. As we were watching them make our order we notice that most of the sandwich were pre-​made and thrown into the toaster to finish thru. Either way we both slip our sandwiches and were not impressed at all. Our strawberry waffle was decorated pretty but didn’t make up for the fact that the portion seemed like they were serving a kid. Our scoop of green tea Gelato was also very small as well. Defiantly not worth the $ 4.50 I paid.
My sister and I decided to give this place another try as a late night dessert place. We both got hot drinks and ordered a macchiato plus café late. Both hot drinks were ok, but again not worth the price we paid. We also ordered a strawberry honey bread and strawberry bingsu. The bread used for the strawberry honey bread seemed stale and made it hard for both of us to eat it. Now when we ate the strawberry bingsu it was delicious and flavorful. It was probably the best thing I have eaten at this place.
We ended up being in the area again and decided to stop in. Since we liked it on our last trip we ordered a strawberry bingsu again. Also ordered iced coffee w/​bobba, ice green tea w/​bobba, and a slice of mix berry cheesecake. As I was ordering the cheesecake I was told that we should eat it last since they were still frozen, and needed to thaw out. Never had any place I have gone to told me that before. I ended up asking if he had any other flavor/​cake that weren’t frozen, and told me all of them come frozen and that most people don’t order them. My sister had her mindset on the mix berry cheesecake and I ended up getting it anyways.
When we got our drinks we both notice that the bobba/​tapioca themselfs were not properly cooked thru and was still pretty hard (actually not sure if they weren’t cook or maybe a batch from the previous day). Ended up complaining and we both were made another drinks without the bobba. The strawberry bingsu again was OK but we notice this time that they were skimpy on the toppings, and added more ice. The mix berry cheesecake still tasted frozen when we tried it and ended up taking it to go. Once we got a chance to eat it nothing was special about it.
All in all that place seems like a hit or miss. Only thing good at rhis place are the bingsu, but that to us a hut or miss. Nothing at this place seems consistent and it doesn’t seem like anything is made fresh at this café other than the hot drinks. Sad to say that we will probably not be going to this place again as this place is overpriced for the portion they give you. Place seems so promising with the atmosphere/​vibe of the café and location. Sad to say that right next door (Soft Stuff) is way better and cheaper.

How do you mess up an Americano? It’s espresso and water. But the barista and cashier were very sweet and had excellent customer service skills. The food and the drinks could be better. The wait time on the waffles were excessively long — longer than 15 minutes. It’s a great study spot and very quiet.

I live in the Columbia area but to find such a place in Howard county is extremely exciting! The only reason I did not give this place 5 stars is because of for the amount that you have paid you do not get nearly enough to drink or eat. I ordered a scoop of green tea ice cream and was given literally a kid size portion for $ 4.50 and a small drink which was an extra $ 5 and was flushed with ice. I wanted to try the gelato and waffle but the waffle is ¼ size of a regular waffle and a mini kid size of gelato. I was very upset at the overpriced and limited options.
There is another business nearby that provides similar options but more to eat/​drink. I do believe this needs to be re-​evaluated.
The food there are very sugary but the drinks are good when not filled primarily of ice. I have not had the chance to try out the huge parfaits but am very excited to do so as I see they are famous! Besides that the food and drinks are great and it is a very preferable and popular spot to study, meet and hangout.

How do you mess up on Americano? And more that just once?

The place is clean and spacious. Service is marginal. The cashier and floor staff do the minimum required, no more. I ordered the waffle with coffee gelato. Both are a bit better than passable.

Wood panels and coffee shop-​galore = great hangout/​study spot.
This place doesn’t just serve coffee and tea, they’ve got baked goods, smoothies, ice cream, and Bingsoo.
Our group of 10 ordered a smorgousbord of items (from Taro Tea Latter to Chocolate Mousse cake to cappuccino’s to coffee ice cream and more). What stood out to me was their Green Tea Bing Soo. I’m usually not a fan of Bing Soo (crushed ice and syrup? No thank you), but this Bing Soo wasn’t just ice and water and boy was it piled high… it even had green tea ice cream, whipped cream, and sweetened, tender red beans on top. You will def need At Least 2 people to help you finish this massive dessert, unless you’re a sweet toother, to which I say: post that video of you devouring!
Staff are pleasant, place is spacious, modern & clean. I’d def recommend stopping by for a coffee or dessert, if you’re in the area!

I give this place a solid 3 stars overall.
For décor and comfort, I would easily give 5 stars!
The honey bread is also a solid 4 star dish that I will be back for! Also got the café Saigon (coffee with sweetened condensed milk) which is really decent — keep I mind I’m not a coffee drinker!
Price point and their lack of good chai tea options (Cmon, it’s a Korean Café, I expected better!) is what pulls the overall score to a three star rating.
But this is subject to change, as this is my first visit. But I love the location (not having to go all the way into historic Ellicott City for a good café is friggen awesome!), so I will be back!

It has a really nice atmosphere and I love the setup in the restaurant. However, I think everything was overpriced for the portion of the food. I normally wouldn’t mind paying that same price if it was a larger serving, but they have the «samples» out for you to see what you’re ordering and it’s not very big at all.

Definitely a place to try out to grab a coffee, have a dessert (bingsoo and honey toast), and sip/​eat slowly over conversation.
Savory foods are more limited here, but we tried the spicy chicken sandwich. It’s on lovely crusty bread with the spicy chicken dressed in a buffalo chicken-​style sauce. The honey toast can be best explained as a «dry» french toast; it has the richness of french toast, minus the custard soak of french toast. It’s a large serving of the cottony soft bread milk bread, cubed in a hasselback potato kinda way, toasted, and dolloped with generous portions of whipped cream, honey, and other yummy things (depending on which kind you order). It’s easy to devour.
A touch on the pricey side, but compared to other options in the area that is similar in seating availability and dessert menu, Caffe Bene is one of the leading contenders. I do appreciate that Caffe Bene factors presentation into the value of their products. This makes eating out with friends even more fun and special.

Having moved from California to Baltimore, I always found the lack of asian food in the city dissapointing so when I realized there was a Caffe Bene in Ellicot City I was so excited!
I’ve had high expectations having been to the Caffe Bene in LA and Seoul so I expected the same standards as back then. The caffe layout is super cute and has adorable décor over with a giant clock whose paint is peeling off.
Service was attentive, there weren’t many people when we went in so our orders came out fast.
My friends and I ordered:
— Mango Bingsoo — HUGE took 6 of us to finish it. Usually when I order bingsoo, I want more toppings but this one somehow had TOO many toppings (how is that possible?!) Tons of fresh mango (but very unripe so wasn’t too great :/​), Yogurt, Condensed Milk, Strawberry ice cream & ice mm.
It would have been good if it weren’t for the vast amounts of unripe mango. The ice cream was the best part.
— Bubble Milk Tea — Alright. They put SO much ice in here probably about half of the drink was ice. Super sweet and the boba was incredibly hard.
Overall I’d just come for the desserts, perhaps a different flavor though and I’m not sure if I’d try another drink :/

I haven’t been impressed by any of the Korean bakeries around town but this one is my exception.
They make their honey breads exceptionally tasty. The crust is crunchy but the interior of the bread is super soft. The caramel sauce/​cinnamon sugar they put over it compliments the sweetness of the bread so well!
We also tried their muffin. Unlike other Korean bakeries, their muffins are super moist!
Now onto their drinks… my dad is pretty picky with his coffee but they made it so well that he was surprised!
I got their caramel macchiato which was sweet but still strong (I could tell because I didn’t have to struggle through staying awake the rest of the day)
Ambience is modern and the place is clean.
It’s a great place to chit chat with friends.
They have croissants, waffles, bubble teas and so much more!
I look forward to coming back here~

Caffe Bene… what a sweet surprise for the area.
Ambiance: rustic feel, but comfy and somewhat modern in how everything is laid out.
Service: quick. Quirky note… the staff wear these cutesy uniforms with a matching beret. Never seen anything like it, but I definitely knew who was working and who was a patron lol.
What we drank/​ate:
1. Latte: perfect temperature, great taste… I’d order again
2. Strawberry frappé: I was so jealous that I didn’t order this! It looked so fun and my friend said it was equally tasty.
3. Waffle with blueberry and cream cheese: Waffle was cooked to perfection. Nice and crispy on the outside, ooey gooey fluffiness on the inside. What caught me off guard was the fact that the cream cheese was literally a dollop of cream cheese. I was expecting a creamy «sauce» of sorts. Either way, I ended up mixing the cream cheese with the blueberry sauce… it worked so well with the waffle!
4. Banana walnut honey bread: First of all, this thing is huge! I would suggest a party of two sharing one of these. The soft, warm, sweet bread coupled with the lightly caramelized bananas and walnuts made for the perfect combo. This was heaven in a bite.
Would definitely suggest Caffe Bene to anyone in the area. Usually have to go into the city to find places like this.

I would like to say this is the best Korean bakery in this area. The food is so delicious and the drinks are freshly made in front of you. The service is great. The food comes out in a reasonable amount of time. There is a lot of comfortable and hip seating.
This is a franchise bakery. They have locations in New York to even Cali. I have been to a lot of the different one in the different locations. I would say that this one is a lot smaller and less stylish than the other franchised locations. This location has less seating than the other locations.
I suggest the brick bread toast. They are so fluffy and melt in your mouth good. The bread itself is a bit sweet and has a caramelized toasted crust. You won’t regret this order.
I do have to say that they use a lot of artificial flavors in their drinks. I am sure of this based on the taste. I can tell they don’t use real fruits in their drinks. Their drinks consist of mostly sugared fruits, and not fresh fruits.
If you want a hot drink, my favorite of all time is the green tea latte, yummmmm!

I came here again and this time tried bubble tea and banana honey bread. Both are excellent. I had the hot bubble tea, which is somewhat diffucult to come by in this area. The bubble is chewy but not tough, just perfect. The taro flavor is quite nice as well, not too sweet.
This is the first time I have the honey bread. It is very tasty. Not overly sweet or rich. But it is subtle and well balanced. The exterior is a little crusty and the inside is moist and slightly chewy. I truely enjoyed them.
Plus, the odor from remodling is gone and I got to notice that the décor is simple yet trendy. The chairs are actually quite comfortable. The cashier is quite nice as well. Overall, a great place.

Very nice and hip environment. Friendly staff that prides their work. Décor creates a cozy and inviting place to sit down and chat or study
Chocolate frappé — thick, smooth, and very rich in chocolatey goodness ⁵⁄₅
Whipped cream and strawberry waffle — perfect balance of crisp outside with fluffy inside, and sweet delicious flavor. One of the best waffles I’ve ever had! ⁵⁄₅
Definitely coming back