CoffeeBytes

Been here twice in the past year, each time the coffee drinks take way to long to make and they don’t taste good. Ok at best. Go somewhere else if you care about flavor

A centrally located café with a unique assortment of waffles, sandwiches, and goodies. It sometimes experiences a morning/​post class lunch rush from the adjoining apartment complex and the campus buildings, but that can be ameliorated by arriving a bit early.
The coffee is reasonably priced… some have said the quality isn’t that good but it works for me. They come up with pretty creative lattes which may be appealing for someone trying to mix it up.
My favorite soup is the portobello and roasted tomato bisque:) it’s very rich in flavor, but lacks the heaviness that will give you the post munch food coma.
In addition the waffles are a pretty good deal as well. Get the first single waffle for $ 2.75 and the next for 1.25 w/​toppings such as Nutella (my love), whipped cream, caramel, and fruit!
To use Internet, you must purchase something from the café, but the drinks and treats are cheap that this is easy to do.
Overall– a convenient shop with all the sweets + all the savories

DELICIOUS latte miel, something I haven’t seen anywhere else. Nice atmosphere and fast wifi – did some studying here while waiting for my bus.

Very quick service. They pre made wade veggie wrap was really yummy and we enjoyed the cookie we got. I would recommended this spot to anyone.
Also a great spot grab something before hoping on to the bus.

It’s in an easy location which makes it attractive, and it’s all local which I try to support, but a few blocks more walk will take you to a national coffee shop that just seems to do things better.
I stopped in today because it was close (right next door) to work and I had a sore throat and didn’t want to walk in the wind. The place is extremely crowded with tables and counters, everything makes you feel claustrophobic. The counter help wasn’t rude, but I didn’t feel they wanted to be there.
At that national chain when you order a hot tea you get 2 teabags when you order a medium or large, here just one which makes for a weak brew and seems pretty stingy. My order was correct (it was just a lg tea, nothing extra) but when I turned around to add some sugar to it you really noticed how tight the space was.
There was no open space to stand while my teabag steeped so I stayed at the condiment counter, during my 3 – 4 minutes standing there I was elbowed, knocked in the ribs by a womans purse and pushed as people tried to get back outside. The only way for someone who has ordered their coffee is to get back out is to walk through the narrow openings between the tables, open laptops, half eaten plates etc, or back along the line they were just in. It seems like a major design flaw.
If I was feeling better I would have walked further for a better cup of tea, a space you can actually walk in and out of without hitting others, and more energetic counter help. It wasn’t horrible but there are a lot of things it seems they could do better, especially since coffee shops are everywhere.

Let’s be FRANK and let’s be REAL. this place wouldn’t be here if not for the bus stop. Credit card machine feels like it was made in 1932. so slow.

First, they have fantastic smoothies. They also serve Ancora Coffee with its smooth flavor. I enjoyed the bagel sandwiches. My girlfriend loved the granola served oatmeal style. The mix of music was great and not overpowering — allowing one to study in a soothing environment. Prices are also good so you have a great mix. Above all it’s local — Shop Small 2015 :-)

great food with vegetarian options.

The employees here are pretty unfriendly and rather rude at times. The wifi is very slow, and can only be used for a limited time. The only benefit of this coffee shop is the convenient location, but based on my experience here, it’s worth the walk to State Street to go somewhere else.

I don’t understand why this cover shop near campus limits free wifi — it’s a really cheap strategy for your business. I don’t think I will come back here. If you have to study more than 2 hrs., not recommended.

The coffee is really hot! Like REALLY HOT. Usually, a sleeve is enough to insulate my fingers, but even with the sleeve on, I could feel the heat of the coffee radiating through to my fingers. And trust me, it wasn’t a warm toasty feeling, it was an ‘OMG my fingertips are burning!!’ kind of feeling.
I’m usually a fan of hot hot coffee because it means that it will stay warm for longer and I won’t be stuck with lukewarm coffee half way through the morning, but I think if CoffeeBytes wants to serve something that hot, they should at least double up on the cups.
Secondly, I don’t really like how the island with the creamer and sugar is situated in the way of the ordering counter. I found it really dangerous walking around in that small amount of space with a piping hot cup of coffee in my hands (which I’m barely holding onto in the first place).
These are my two main critiques. Otherwise, CoffeeBytes is conveniently located and the service is fast for those of use who are trying to get in and out on our way to work!

I have no doubt that what people say is true: crowded, inconsistent, etc. But when I was here, the coffee was rich and great =)

WEBbeams wifi… no thanks. Also, all of their baked goods are pretty obviously delivered from US Foods or Sysco. they have that «airline food» packaging vibe going on.
Coffee is still good and strong, and the people are friendly though! Right in the middle of the action.

The biggest plus to this café is location. It’s right in the middle of campus, right across from the Chazen Museum, very close to one of the campus theaters, right across from the Badger Bus stop. Even though there are almost as many superior coffee shops in Madison as there are vegan liberal New Age former hippies, in the middle of the harsh Wisconsin winter, closer is better. It’s not a bad place at all between academic sessions when most of the undergrads aren’t around. When classes are in session there is such a high volume of business, the regular coffee is always fresh, so important if you like it black.
Now, on the other hand, when classes are in session, the place is usually crammed full of college students, which makes me feel fat, old, and tired. Tired, because there’s often not a seat in the place. If a seat does open up, it’s pretty cramped to begin with, but most of the undergrads here have stuff all around them, their computers, tablets, mp3 players, phones, open knapsacks, coats, scarfs, mittens, notes, books, friends, lettuce (only once, but one time I was here killing 20 minutes but trying to get some work done and the young lady next to me had a round head of presumably organic lettuce between us, which I found irrationally distracting), etc. In Madison, coffee baristas take the place of bartenders and therapists for many denizens, there are dozens of cafes that not only serve tasty fresh coffee, but are staffed by very pleasant workers who make you feel like you belong in this world, skillfully adjusted to how busy it is (quickly if it’s busy, a little more patiently if it’s not). This place is quite the contrast, the workers are jaded alienated college students who make it pretty clear (maybe they would say, «obvie») that they would much rather be anywhere else, doing anything else, and that they are determined to not get good at making and serving coffee. If you’re looking for the sort of café where the cappuccino is served up with a flourish, this is not that place, no one here knows how to do the leaf. Only a very short walk from one of the world’s most respected South Asian Studies programs, it seems especially wrong that they don’t realize that chai literally means, tea.

This is probably not your best choice for american style many-​words-​chai-​latte-​mocha-​soy-​machiatto with just a drop of coffee. But if you are in the espresso mood, you are in good hands. Had a doppio and it was made the way you are suppose to make it. It was smooth, fresh and didn’t taste like burnt beans and re-​heated coffee like almost every single place I have been to in US.

They are a bit pricey for the products they serve. Chai latte iced is really the only thing I would recommend. I go to school right next door and we all frequent this place. It’s pretty much a hit or miss for CoffeeBytes. Their internet is OK, but it’s a little slower, but I just chalk that up to all the people. It’s cozy, decent drinks and food, and convenient.

A good and strategic spot during the semester. Always full between classes.
Not so much for the coffee. I tried the waffle here and it was BLAH. Never will I try their waffle again. But, I’ll still be back for some meeting ups with friends!

I was a bit dubious about a café that advertises coffee that doesn’t taste like coffee but the espresso was decent. Not awesome but better than Starbucks.

Convenient, right in the middle of campus, very inconsistent.
Coffee here is usually pretty bad — too watery, occasional coffee grinds… Espresso is too bitter. Also the internet is too slow considering their electronic name. This is your standard campus pit stop, worth going to if it’s the right place/​right time but not otherwise.

Not a coffee drinker… but:
I like the space, I like the comfy seating and the plethora of outlets to plug in computers, and of course the free internet. It gets a bit crowded at certain times of day because of its central location.
What I do not like: their hot chocolate tastes like Swiss MIss and costs significantly more…