Inner Chapters Bookstore and Cafe

I had a bagel with smoked salmon an caper cream cheese spread, an a very generously poured cup of chai. The staff are great at what they do, the wifi is free, and there is a great big window to people watch out of as you flip pages or chat with friends.

Inner Chapters is closing and relocating and the owner is also taking maternity leave. Bummer, my punch card was almost full. :(

Mexican Mocha was pretty good. Not too spicy like the other place where I tried Mexican Mocha. Too bad they’re moving, I work in the area and would’ve frequented them often had I found out about them sooner.

Love this spot. A great living room to read in, with lots of books you won’t find anywhere else but a high end garage sale. The gal who runs the place is super sweet and it looks like a great place for an evening rendezvous. I haven’t had their coffee, I think it’s caffe vita, but the chai I’ve tried twice and I’m not crazy about it. The frankenchai? skip it.

What a neat find! This bookstore is pretty darn adorable. I popped in tonight for an event and absolutely fell in love with the place. It’s really roomy for people to browse, the selection is great and they have a cozy seating area where folks can sit, read and enjoy some coffee. What more could one want in a cute local bookstore?

This place is unique and lovely. I walked in and was greeted by a person playing the piano, and ordered a london fog. It was delicious. The place is very spacious and it is licensed as well! There is quite a bit of seating room and it has a lot of character. They sell some snacks and chocolates that looked rather appetizing as well. The prices are VERY reasonable. I would definitely go back here. Free wifi as well. :)

This downtown café is cozy, relaxing, and very comfortable! There was ample seating and the drinks were delicious! We had Mexican Mochas — YUM! Further, there is an excellent book selection. An added bonus is that the prices are reasonable and the service was impeccable! She made sure to tell us good bye even though she was in the middle of a conversation. That gives her six stars in our book. We’ll definitely be back! For commuters, it is right near bus stop so easy to get to and fro on the UDistrict 70’s. I think I have found a new homework haunt.

Word up Inner Chapters! (cause of all the… words…in…there…get it?)
Now that I’m a roaming employee that works from home /​coffee shops /​restaurants /​happy hour spots /​attics /​bookstores /​alleys /​you name it, I’ve found I’ve become a bit of a roaming employee Seattle snob.
This is going to make me sound like a whiny, hipster Seattlelite, but I like my coffee places and my bookstores to be independent, smaller, quiet, not packed, free wifi, comfy, you know — how every Seattle coffee place is that isn’t corporate and owned by the man because that’s how up Seattlelites demand our places to be.
Low and behold, I found a coffee place AND a bookstore that knocked all these off the list!
I especially appreciate a good bookstore that is comfy — I found this couch that I literally can post up for a whole day at, because they have this delicious earl grey tea + vanilla combination that’s to die for, and by the time happy hour rolls around — you can get a beer on draft.
Awesometown. One of the best finds I’ve had in awhile.

Our local friends recommend this coffee shop and we can see why! When we came the owner, Kristina, was working and she was super sweet. We tried some of their signature drinks– Kristina’s drink (nutella and something) and the Mexican Mocha. Both were good, though the Mexican mocha was FANTASTIC. The used bookshop has a pretty good selection and affordable prices. We’re theater people and were super excited to find lots of scripts for cheap– score! If we were local, this would be our neighborhood coffee shop.

Great place to hang out and grab coffee… Super nice staff.
Discount with SLU card though I think I received different offers with Unilocal and foursquare checkins.
Try the Mexican mocha with a house blend of spices. Super tasty. They had live music in the evening last time I stopped in.
The only real knock is that all the street parking is metered until 6p…

I’m forced to loiter about this 4 – 5 sq. block area today and was lucky enough to find Inner Chapters!
It’s nice and small which is good for someone like me who can’t resist lingering in bookstores. I only glanced at the full-​length book areas but the selection looked average, the kind of place where if you go with no intentions you may stumble across a surprise.
My main focus was the comic/​graphic novel area — a format I’m still new to. They had used (and in good shape!) copies of some favorites as well as a few interesting series I’d never heard of.
I picked up one issue of the latter and some pita wedges with spicy hummus. The hummus was very good! I’m not sure if it’s made on-​site or off. The pita could have done with some toasting but since it’s hot out I won’t complain about that.
Love that they offer cider/​wine/​beer even though I didn’t get to sample any of that today.
I doubt I’ll be here often as I’m really never in the area but I intend to try to remember to check their event calendar.

OK you’ll want to sit down for this one. What place has beer, coffee and books all in the same place? No not Barnes and Noble and when you sneak in a beer. That’s cheating.
Inner Chapters can be found about a block east of the new Amazon building and it’s awesome. The baristas are are friendly and their quippy wit is more like a bartender’s (go figure– coffee and beer, right). They have an interesting (and tasty) array of coffees with some super cool alternative flavors (say, ever tried hemp milk?), and a rotating selection of beer and wine. They also have sandwiches and lighter eats.
The books are of course mostly used and donated books but the diversity is fun. They have a little bit of everything (yes, everything). And if you don’t want to read, they have wi-​fi (but you need to ask for the password).
I would say the only complaint I really have is that there is fairly limited seating and it’s all 50’s diner-​style booths. Not the most comfortable stuff around (though better than a hard wooden chair).
Oh. And you can buy S.L.U.T. t-​shirts there. Bonus. That’s «South Lake Union Transit,» for our visiting guests.

Books, beer & coffee! Inner Chapters mixes three of my favorite things making them most deserving of the 5-​star rating!
I found this place quite charming. Their selection of used books was impressive and although I did not find any Orson Scott Card I did find a vintage Bradbury paperback which I quickly snatched up. I was with a beer Meetup group so of course I had partook in a beer. I also got an espresso drink to go before leaving. Delicious!
*they also have a small menu + pastries if you get hungry.
Very cozy hangout. They even have boardgames! I’ll definitely go back.

Not a bad place to generate ideas. browse, through some used books, buy a few, have a brew and crack the laptop open, writing from the zone. there’s no tap but there’s some great local brew. there’s a nice, gentle feel about the place and still and quiet enough to listen to the traffic and the rain breathing outside. highly recommended when you need to stare out a window, enjoy a beer and plug away at your latest script.

This sounds like a Christian bookstore/​café to me (I think the town I grew up in had such a thing by the same name — briefly, hah). It’s not though, thank god, because I heard they have hemp milk (they do) and that’s a draw anywhere — I don’t know if even inspirational posters, bright lights, and blatantly vanilla everything worse than Barnes & Noble would deter me, but it would be tense, for sure. (… would a commercial Christian place use hemp?)
It IS, however, a used bookstore — a little one — perfect size for browsing if you’re a person who can’t help browsing in bookstores even though you’re in the area to do something else and you really need to get it done.
They were playing RJD2 when I came in, which was perfect, perfect, perfect for the hip, understated ambiance.
There are 3 booths, 2 small tables — it isn’t like Zoka where there’s a shit ton of tables and high turnover like a mega cool cafeteria, no. I don’t know if the place ever gets packed, but it would only take a few people to ruin my plans of studying here. Could be iffy. AND they’re only open until 2 – 7 pm, depending on the day of the week, which is SO SAD.
They no longer serve sandwiches (pastries, yes — day olds are $ 1.50) and as I am now ensconced and plan to be for several hours, I inquired and they allowed me to trot down the street to Moka’s (also with hemp milk!) and acquire a sandwich there for consumption here.
Realistically, I don’t know if I would come back. I’m not in SLU often — even today is a fluke, and the seeming likelihood of plans disappointed and the time constraints make it a difficult thing to bank on. Too bad, though, I kinda dig it.
Book buying hours 11 – 4, M-​F. Talk to Christina (spelling/​exact name not precise). Café rumor has it that they give 30% of what they can get for it.

This place makes me feel happy.
They have a nice range of teas and coffee and have non-​dairy options that aren’t just soy (a hard thing to find in Seattle). Comfy booths and enough different spots that it doesn’t feel crowded. Free wireless and power outlets means that a freelancer like me can get out of the house and still get work done.
Their taste in books is excellent with a thoughtful, well curated collection on display covering a broad range of topics (and a special section at the front for local authors). Very impressive given they are still a fairly young bookstore.
Run by smart people who care about what they do, listen to customers and contribute to their communities. They have an open mike night on every third Thursday and have a stall at the local farmers market every Thursday as well. And soon they will have a liquor license.
Yep, I’m a fan. I recently moved from Portland to Seattle and this place is like a little snippet of what I love about PDX to return to while I explore the rest of this fine town.

Reading previous reviews, it looks like they have upped the number of tables to 2 booths, 1 table & they still have a couch with a table, so it’s suuuper cozy. The staff are really nice, as well, which makes it even more comfy.
I found this lovely little spot today during my morning break & decided to go back for lunch. Upon my return I had the roasted veggie & hummus sandwich & it made me smile from ear to ear.
Their book selection isn’t the biggest but they have some gems & if you’re looking for some abstract, old, hard-​to-​find little book it may well be here, although maybe you should call ahead of time just to make sure.
I will definitely be frequenting this place on the days I have class. Love!

I love Inner Chapters Bookstore and Café. The owners are very helpful and can special order any book that you want. In the café they make it a point to have gluten free cookies which is especially nice to go with the wonderful Stumptown coffee they serve. They have a new seating area with booths that is very cozy and relaxing. Friendly service, conversation, free wi-​fi, gluten free cookies, Stumptown coffee… all in a fantastic location. Even better since they’ve recently extended their hours!
Update – I just heard that Inner Chapters now has a beer/​wine license. Woo-​hoo!!!

Best tasting & best looking mocha I’ve had in a long time. Very nice staff as well. I was staying in a nearby hotel while on a business trip and found myself popping in for both AM and PM coffee fixes.

Reminds me of the progress reports I used to write as a teacher. «Inner Chapters has a lot of potential but needs to apply itself. I expect with time and a little hard work Inner will be s superstar.»
Seattle could use a really good bookstore café (aside from Elliot Bay Books). But right now they just don’t have enough books to be a good browsing bookstore and the café part portion just isn’t cozy enough to hang out in. Right now there are too many copies of 80’s self help books and Stephen King novels and not enough cool stuff to keep my browsing. And the one big couch and one table just don’t make me feel like hanging out.
But the folks are nice and I can tell their hearts are in it. So for now I give them a C+ but fully expect them to be achieving a solid B+ or A — within the next school year.