Reviews of Curiosity Coffee Bar (Coffee Shop)

Maggie Carter

Every drink I've gotten here has been fabulous! They normally have two specialty brews each day and they don't make me jittery like Starbucks coffee often does. The environment is dog-friendly and the food is really good too.

andria harris

Very good mushrooms quiche and mexicano hot latte nice spicy kick

Julia Shealy

Love!

Robert Coffey

Secluded, but in a good way. It's on N. Main Street tucked in the Vino Garage space. It is less crowded than the "other" local coffee shop across the street. No shade intended (I actually really like the other shop), but for me, that's a plus. It's a smaller space but has all of the amenities of your contemporary coffee shop and a few extras. WiFi is available, plenty of wall outlets, outdoor seating, and of course, good coffee. The thing that sets this cafe apart is the story. It seems like most of what they provide comes with a description explaining "what-this-is." From the 1000 Faces coffee brand, the vegan-compostable utensils, the difference between espresso, chemex, and french press, and the notes and tones within each region of coffee they offer....this bar certainly makes an attempt to satisfy your curiosity and sense of discovery. There are about 12-15 seats inside, and more space outside. The coffee alone is worth the trip. I prefer a lightly-roasted, not too bold coffee, so the friendly gentleman suggested the Brazilian dripped brew. It was a great suggestion that satisfied my palate. As I sat there surrounded with all of this information about coffee, my curiosity got the best of me. Thankfully, they have a offering called the "Flight" in which you get 3oz of each coffee they offer (four at this point). I literally learned what I liked about each coffee even down to which coffee tastes better at certain temperatures. An interactive, educational experience....probably the coolest experience I've had at a coffee house. It is very apparent that these guys are passionate about their craft. And as a craftsman, that's something I can appreciate.

Morgan Adams

Amazing coffee and staff!! I had one of their specialty drinks (Monkey Business) and I HIGHLY recommend it!! The coffee is really high quality, really smooth, and the service was polite and exceptional. I walked in and told the barista I had never been there before, wanted a hot latte that wasn’t too sweet and he suggested he perfect drink! They are also dog friendly (woof!) and have an awesome loyalty program! Their food also looked fresh and amazing, although I did not eat anything I would definitely try some in the future. I’m excited to become a regular at Curiosity Coffee!!

Rand Romaine

Laid back. Great suds. Good music

Matthew Gudikunst

Good people. Good coffee. Good food.

Dee Dee Hamilton

Love the coffee but the staff isn’t the friendliness to me but warmer to others!Closes early ...best thing you can get wine there as well!

amber judy

This place will get you hype getting you through your day with a Dirty Chai ☕️....and Gregg and Sandra are pretty dope too!

Mary Brandes

Had a super great hot chocolate with some extras added..the Barista was kind and helped me choose a caffeine free drink, the goodies in the pastry cabinet were very tempting! Small place but full of good energy. I saw a "spirits"area, but it was early day, So no traffic there, it's inside a garage, quaint but comfortable.

Michael Bennett

Overpriced and disappointing. The barista (baristo?) was very friendly and made me really want to like the light roast coffee he prepared for me, even though I said I preferred dark roast, but I should have insisted on my preference. I wound up with a sour cup of coffee with very little of my requested flavor in it. Maybe this shop simply caters to a very different set of tastebuds than mine.

Taichi KL

Bomb coffee. Excellent baked product.

Sarah Bartholomew

Great atmosphere, wonderful staff, yummy food, delicious chai :)

George Stup

Nice,quaint little spot.

Broken Issues talk zone

Contribute locally and good folks, good coffee.

Peter

Very cool relaxed open area with exposed brick. Smooth but powerful espresso. Very good.

Ashley Dortch

Awesome atmosphere and great tea

james payne

Favorite coffee shop

Adam Araujo

Love this spot!

FISHR P

Not your typical coffee shop. This really DOES have a BAR! They have all sorts of beers and wines. The eclectic atmosphere compliments their stage where bands and special events are hosted {see their Facebook page). I had the Mexican coffee and boy it has a slight kick to it, but it's goooood. My daughter had a Ham, Cheddar and Cream Cheese Bagel Bomb and it was DELICIOUS. She said her Chamomile tea hit all the right spots. My Wife had a Peppermint Tea and Ham and Chedder Quiche that cute and tasted amazing. Gonna need to come back here.

Daily Regimen

Those tucking bagel bites are amazing and everyone who works Ther is attractive in a completely different way

Elizabeth and Joseph Trenbeath

First time there today, clean, nice staff

dscott77e

Great spot for meeting. The peppermint tea was great!

Jeff Duncan Morris

Their coffee's great, and their bakery items are super tasty. It's a chill, low-key environment. Plus, they've expanded their space with more tables and chairs.

Cece Taylor

I will definitely be back. Nice staff and atmosphere

JIM STECK

Great setting, great owner, great beer and food. Well done!!!

Urban Jaklin

Great coffee and awesome baristas!

Margaret Poovey

A wonderful place for delicious coffee, drinks and food. Hoping they expand their gluten free offerings.

Caleb Morant

Good environment but the coffee wasn't that great.

Aubrey Obrien

You have to try the tomato and goat cheese tart! The coffee is also excellent, the music is great and the service is super friendly. Looking forward to see what the future holds for Curiosity Coffee as the owners/managers seem to be very creative!

Morgan Motes

Unique atmosphere. Friendly service. I had the Snow Day latte and it was delicious!

Jeffrey Baisch

Great coffee and a great space. If you live a banana-flavored coffee beverage I recommend the monkeying around.

Hannah Sherman

I visited Curiosity Coffee for the 1st time in August 2019 - I wish I'd been going here since they opened. The attention to DETAIL was fantastic!! I ordered a muffin and tea - both were scrumptious and served with haste! After about 5 minutes - the gentleman behind the counter came to collect my tea bag so as not to let my tea "over steep". It felt really nice to be taken such good care of -- especially since I ordered tea in a coffee shop (most places don't know what to do with Tea - yet can make highly specialized coffee concoctions). I was impressed that the barista offered to froth the milk in my tea (a very nice touch). Service was great, food was excellent, environment was hip and welcoming. Will be returning soon! So glad Columbia SC continues to welcome awesome local businesses like Curiosity Coffee!!

Jack Porter

Driven by this place hundreds of times over the past year. Decided to stop by early this morning and give it a try. Was pleasantly surprised with the vibe... The guy behind the counter was really nice and I had a wonderful cup of coffee. Will definitely be back for coffee and probably a beer or two one afternoon!

Nagasayana Rao Kuchibhotla

I was there today (4May2019) and we loved the place.

David Jennings

These people know coffee. If you're a coffee enthusiast like myself, I think you would definitely enjoy this place. It's kind of hidden and it's really small (which I appreciate). It's also my favorite coffee place in Columbia, definitely come here if you want some REALLY good coffee and want to experiment with new flavors and drinks.

Karl S

This is a great coffee bar with great quality coffee plus beer and wine. I would highly recommend if the boozy cold brew for a unique adult beverage!

Colin Griffin

Good coffee, good quiche, good people

Tina Gullo

Awesome!

Stephen Shales

First time stopping in today but I've driven by for months. Nice space and good coffee. If you are ready to try something new I think you'll enjoy both.

Michael Lovell

Cool place with a relaxed atmosphere, great coffee, selection of tasty pastry, and great community events.

Alex Roberts

Awesome service & Awesome coffee. Badass local spot - highly recommended.

Chris Moellering

Great quiet place for good coffee. Best coffee in Columbia.

Debbie Godwin

Coffee tasted great. Friendly knowledge service. Cool atmosphere.

Kristen Randall

Best mocha I've had! Staff and customers are friendly and welcoming.

Brenda Monteleone

The atmosphere was great and the bacon cheddar quiche was delicious but the Campfire specialty coffee was AWESOME! I'll definitely be back!

Ashley Stricker

I love this small little coffee shop! They always have amazing looking pastries. Attached to the shop is a wine and beer store so it’s really perfect to come here and get coffee and then grab some wine for night!

Kiki V

Best Chai tea latte in town.

Patrick Michael Kelly

Great spot!

Kilo Hotel

Curiosity Coffee isn't just a a good place to go get coffee, it's MY place to go get coffee. When someone says to me, "Hey, do you want to meet me for coffee?" I say, "Yeah let's meet at my spot... Curiosity". The reason it is "my spot" and so many other folks spot is the warm welcome you receive, the laid back atmosphere inside, and the amazing coffee concoctions that they come up with. Alliteration aside...it's great! My dog Kenny Rogers would give these guys 6 Stars if it were possible. He always gets a treat and royal treatment when I bring him with me. Pet friendly indeed. If you haven't been to Curiosity Coffee yet do yourself a service and check it out. I'm positive it'll become your "spot" too! -Kasey Hamrick

Joseph Moore

First time Very friendly. Will be back again

pam roach

Love this place!

Eric cue

A cozy out of the way coffee bar.

Caroline Crowder

Best chai latte in town! Friendly staff, plenty of parking, and dog friendly!

Joshua Griner

Love the people here. They are very pleasant and eager to please. A cozy little place to get a real cup of coffee.

Gabrielle Johnson

The food and the coffee are good, cute little spot, and nice staff but they're very pricey for portion sizing

Christopher Spence

Great coffee and nice baristas. Super hipster vibes. Music was too loud and even obnoxious at times. I would go back though.

CEvents SC

Awesome atmosphere and staff!

John Rodriguez

I travel for work and Always try and find good coffee spots to work. Initially this place looked closed from the front. This is Not a Full Blown Coffee Shop. Only 3 tables in the whole place. very Tiny. Its paired with a wine shop. The table I sat in I ended up having to share with 2 more people which were in no way quiet while talking to each other. But I had no other table to go to. I ordered a Cafe Mocha which had hardly any Mocha flavor, and a Bagel with Cream Cheese. I got my Bagel with one little slice of cream cheese. Barely Enough to cover half of the bun. I requested 2 more little pieces and the girl told me ok, but I have to charge you for it. Seriously?? You give me a bagel with a tiny cube of cream cheese then want to charge me to cover the other half? It doesn't matter the cost to me, it's the principle. A small Mocha and Bagel was about $10. But I ate half my bagel plain. After the lady at the counter told me, she had to charge me, and I said really, nevermind. She simply said OK. And didn't even care that I was eating a bagel with no cream cheese as ordered. Advice to the Owner. When you Nickel and Dime your customers, you lose them. Whenever I order a bagel ANYWHERE ELSE, I get the Cream Cheese packets that have 3x more cream cheese than you put in your tiny 2-oz black plastic ramekin. And If I EVER request an extra packet, neither starbucks or any other Coffee shop has EVER wanted to charge me EXTRA for a packet of cream cheese. If anyone is desperate for coffee and just need something to go, I might say get your coffee and go. This isn't the kind of place you want to actually sit for a while. I couldn't take the noise of the people I had to share a table with, so I had to go.

Susan Von Schenk

Very friendly people, great coffee.

Kathleen James

always a good assortment of baked goods from around town, and the variety of coffee brew methods means everyone can get their own particular favorite.

Grace Weller

Best coffee, best people, best atmosphere!!! Delicious food too!

Kyle Smith

Always clean, friendly and delicious

Kyla Mckenna

Cute cafe, staff was friendly, has nice indoor & outdoor seating, only tried a latte this visit but it was nice, would go again

Lorin Edgerton

After about 5 minutes - the gentleman behind the counter came to collect my tea bag so as not to let my tea "over steep". It felt really nice to be taken such good care of -- especially since I ordered tea in a coffee shop (most places don't know what to do with Tea - yet can make highly specialized coffee concoctions).

Christopher Catoe

Amazing! The guys who run this place are so passionate about what they do. They made the visit for myself and my family (after a long day rallying at the state house for education) really fun and relaxing. Look forward to going back there any time I'm in Columbia.

Jordan Dripps

If you dig coffee + bananas try the Monkey Around (iced). Delicious and refreshing. Good location; chill vibe; sells beer, wine & coffee

Amanda Tolbert

Most delicious espresso I have tasted within Columbia. Absolutely on point.

Josue Rodriguez

Meh.

Karen Swank Kustafik

Friendly service, great spot to meet.

Andy Cognito

Great atmosphere. Friendly staff, coffee and food is awesome.

Randy Childress

Great variety of drinks and pastries. Mixed age local crowd. Vegan food truck there when I went last night. Cheney, press, come coffees. We like it a lot.

Melanie Pace

Lots of great options for food and drinks.

Lauren Tomme

Great Coffee!

rogelio lemus

Amazing place, the barista is a master! And the coffee is really good! Y'all need come to enjoy this amazing coffee

Tecoria Jones

Perfect Cuppa, excellent service. I will be back!

mark griggs

Phenomenal coffee and very friendly staff

Manymels Bias

Great coffee! Not super burnt/ roasted and loaded with sugar to cover up the poor taste, like some other coffee chains!

Hannah Patteson

Their Apple cider chai is what dreams are made of.

Branden Addicott

Really good coffee

Deanna Thomas

Peace of Soul was here

Joseph Azar

A wonderful place and a real asset to the community. Besides coffee there is beer and wine, food, wifi, live music, comedy and much more.

Craig Riffle

Great coffee

Kaieku M

Delicious coffee, cacao drinks, and good snacks. The atmosphere is casually hip.

john maker

Great coffee and cool vibe !

Anne Palyok

Cute place, nice atmosphere. Great service and selections.

Ken Reeves

Large variety of coffee drinks

Pres Foxworth

Great cup of coffee

Katherene Hofstetter

I love this place so much. I live about 1000 miles away and I think about making the trip down to Columbia just to sit and enjoy a Mexicana and one of the delicious sweets from the local bakeries. Plus!!! its dog friendly so... best.

Rebekah Clevenger

This place has house made teas, and they cost 6$!! And it was so bad I poured it out... My mom seemed to like her cappuccino but it was also pricey

Elizabeth Houck

Delicious coffee, unique and tasty pastries, friendly staff.

Jonathan Hunt-Augustine

Neat place, high-quality espresso drinks

Cody Pitts

Tied with Drip in 5 Points as my favorite coffee shop in Columbia. Cozy and (for the lack of a better word) hip vibe with baristas that make drinks with the same passion and concentration as upscale bartenders. Drinks are more expensive than other places ($4 for regular cold brew; $6 for a large), but that's because their drinks are actually worth that much.

Ellis Creel

[EDIT: I've never had someone reply to a four-star review. People, they want your business BAD and they serve GREAT stuff. Five stars!] I was gonna give this place 3 stars because it only served coffee, but when I got there they had options for beer and wine (which I didn't try) so 4 stars it is! Also the coffee was good if that's what you're into. I had a Japanese style pour and I'm still up at 9:30 pm. Considering I'm the father of a 2 yr. old, that's quite an accomplishment.

Lindsey Gollach

Coffee was really good. Atmosphere is really nice. Loooved that they had coffee bowls mostly because it reminded me of gilmore girls which is one of my favorite shows. Barista was helpful and nice.

Princess La-Shan

Great space for meetings and coffee.

Steven B

As close to Seattle I can get in Columbia. Love the owners - nice Seattle coffee bar feel. All they need is a Seahawks banner and it will feel like home.

Tracie Kessler

The inside was super nice if not a bit minimalist. While nice, I wouldn't say it was cozy and certainly not cozy enough to evoke a feeling of drinking coffee in my own living room. The coffee was good! Great flavor and drinkable right away without needing the requisite cool off period many chips of coffee need. I had the hot mocha and while it was delish it was just a touch too foamy. Otherwise, it was a neat coffee shop with a good vibe!

Shyama Kuver

I was visiting friends over the holidays and had to get school work done. This place has a friendly staff who know a lot about coffee. They have a great menu showcasing all local bakers. Their espresso drinks are inventive and delicious. The warm environment was perfect for me to get some work done and meet some locals. +It's dog friendly!

Sarah Meyer

Super chill and dog friendly.

rowdy Redicks

Awesome atmosphere and beverages.

Sean Thomson

They do caffeinated bean water good.

Amanda Goforth

I love this place and all the people there.

Susan Homner

Mondays are great night's to hangout... Not only do they have a great selection of all sorts of beverages, but they have food trucks too... Local goodness all the way around!

Stacey Agran

Great options . Coffee is delicious.

Beverly Golden

For the eclectic experience of a true coffee house, Curiosity Coffee Bar offers it all. The coffees (cold and hot) are excellent (especially the Guatemala blend) and the baristas really know how to serve up great flavors. We were there late so the bakery goods were all gone but we went specifically to try the food truck cuisine (sans actual food truck) of Fat Cat Columbia. Excellent biscuit treats!

Omar Mohiuddin

I have only been here once and it was okay. I was expecting a lot more. I had been to their soda city market stand and I loved it and everyone was really friendly and the coffee was incredible. Once I made it to their storefront, the staff wasn't very friendly or helpful. The coffee was okay but not as good as I've had at their soda city stand, overall the experience wasn't very good. The location is really nice and I might have to come back again to see if it was just a bad first impression.

Folusho Ayeni

New favorite coffee spot! The people were friendly and talked all about the coffees, teas, blends and snacks...the music vibes and atmosphere was on point...and the actual fare was sublime. I had the golden super food latte and pimento cheese pie, and I loved both of them! I don't even particularly like pimento cheese, but I will definitely get this again. We drove past a few times before we finally stopped in, don't make the same mistake! Stop in today!

Thomas OBrien

Great live music. Great coffee and beer choices.

Mike Scofield

Great little coffee bar with delicious pastries and snacks. It was my first time there and I tried the cold brew on tap. It was very yummy and the staff was very friendly. They were doing some renovations when I was there and it looks like a stage is being built. I am excited to see what the finished product will look like. Cheers!

Tom Ledbetter

Neat little place for GREAT coffee. Parking can be a problem, but it's worth it!!!

Mike Allen

Great coffee, Bagels and muffins

Aixavelisse Soto

My Matcha was perfect!!!

Marcum Core

Some times you wanna go, where everybody knows your name....and they're always glad you came. The staff here will quickly become some of your favorite humans

Bmo

Great coffee!

Randi Lyn Cantey

Great staff, welcoming environment. The mushroom and gruyere tart w/a Mexicano coffee is my forever go-to!

Michael Kozik

Great neighborhood coffee bar with DELICIOUS scones. Arguably a better tasting cup than nearby competitor, but definitely one of the best cups in town.

nathan whitmore

Very friendly staff and owner . It is worth the time to check the place out.