Stellar Coffee Co.

After hearing loads of positive reviews about this place, I finally went there on a winter evening and I was certainly not disappointed with their ambience and food. The coffee shop is spacious, clean, and just the perfect amount of lighting to set the mood for coffee lovers enjoying a nice hot coffee and chilling. The art and decor is pretty nice, while I could suggest more cozy chairs or even sofas to mix it up. The food was great. I had a mocha for $5, a bit expensive but worth the overall experience. Would go there again! Update: the ownership of the store has changed but it still serves coffee with the same quality, taste, and ambience.

I ordered a matcha plain, no sweetener, just plain; took two sips and almost spit it out, it tasted like STRAIGHT SUSHI, like FISH WATER. My partner took two sips and he attested it tasted like FISH WATER. The place also smelt like wet mop. The staff was nice enough to offer me another drink for free but I couldn’t stand the smell inside we just left. 2/5 because the staff was sweet.

Love this coffee spot! Very relaxing and comforting, tons of seating. Great place to get some work done. Customer service was fantastic, my barista was on point and recommended a few things. Got the cappuccino and cold brew, definitely woke me up! New owners, Trent and Hope, did a fantastic job with this place, I will definitely be back again!

My sister raved about this place. I read some reviews after my experience and I’m surprised that my experience played out the way it did. The day I went in, I asked what flavors were available and the barista walked over and unenthusiastically read off the bottles behind the counter. I told him I hadn’t been in there before and he became slightly more hospitable, only slightly. He offered no suggestions or information about the way they make their drinks.. He took my order and walked away- I had to turn the apple pad over so I could complete my payment. The barista was already engaged in a conversation with someone sitting at the counter when I walked in and prematurely left me at the register to return to his conversation. He called out a “vanilla latte” even though I was the only person waiting for a drink. I hesitated to reach for it because the drink on the bar top was iced and I wasn’t asked if I wanted my latte iced or hot so I was waiting for a hot one. When he indicated to me that the drink was mine I was surprised that there wasn’t a lid on it and looked around to see for myself that the lids and straws were on a separate table behind me. I initially planned to sit and read for a bit but I only stayed for a few moments and gave my sister my drink, which was also not the “amazing quality” she swore it was.

Stellar was the first place that felt homey to me when I first moved to San Marcos! I love this coffee shop, but I stopped coming here because of a terrible experience I had with the barista Jalen! One day I came in and ordered a hot drink, but he made it iced (no big deal). I said politely “sorry but I wanted it hot” and he had an unfriendly attitude. Then, the next customer was a very pretty girl, and guess what, he was super nice all of the sudden (wow like magic)! I don’t wanna assume he’s a f*ckboy, but gosh, he sure acts like one! It’s whatever though, I love seeing people’s true colors! Of course, when he finishes making my drink, it’s half full! Normally, I’m a “glass half-full” kind of person, but this one made me sad :( I used to be a barista myself, so I never treat any customer service worker badly because I know how stressful the work is (even when they’re rude)! But here’s the funny part! I’ve mentioned to at least 5 different people why I don’t go to Stellar anymore and they all told me they also had a bad experience with Jalen! I don’t understand why they don’t just fire him, considering he’s so disrespectful and unfriendly. How are you supposed to enjoy a nice café if there’s someone killing the good vibes? It’s all good though! The happy ending is I go to The Coffee Bar now! Everyone is friendly there! I found my new homey place ♥

**EDIT** Stellar is under new management! And with that came an entire remodel. While the old cafe was adorned with unique mementos, photos, and had more of a house-turned-coffee shop feel, the new layout is much more modern. Everything is uniformed and tri-chromatic. It’s the IKEA model of coffee bars. Now with the name change came a change in coffee source. The beans come from Austin, TX. Their blends are slightly more robust and flavorful. Yet the prices have stayed the same. Fair prices. Friendly staff. Students welcome. Plenty of outlets. Fast free Wifi. Desks and coffee tables to work in groups.

I loved the menu here, it’s creative. A little pricey, I think, but worthy if you are just staying for a couple days in town. I went back 3 times and all my drinks ranged between $6-7 with milk modification. Ask for drinks in their own cups to avoid plastic. Their plastic cups are not environmentally friendly. Play the ones they got are way prettier. It has a student vide definitely. Good music and quite atmosphere. They got some specials for students too but this vary throughout the year so check their Instagram constantly. Don’t call. I tried calling 2 different days, no one picked up. A shout out to the baristas! They are very friendly. I was asking a lot of questions. I had a strawberry matcha with almond milk, a Secret drink (name on my blog) and a Sakura.