Merit Coffee

Was my first time visiting the shop, and it was super nice and had a very calming atmosphere to be honest. Since it was my first time I asked for a recommendation, they recommended the White Chocolate cappuccino and the London Fog scone and they were honestly really good! I got one for my sister to try (since shes more of a tea fan to get her opinion on the scone). The coffee was super good and not overly bitter and the scone was sweeter than I was expecting so, again, a really good first impression of the cafe. Honestly loved that they had their own merch too and hopefully I will go back again when I have the opportunity! Side note: this would honestly be a great place to do a study session for classes, exam season, or just get some extra work done. Keep in mind that’s its medical area so it can (and probably does) get busy quick. But still give them a try!

Merit has been my morning ritual coffee spot while I've been visiting from out of town for two weeks. I like carefully crafted coffee and they definitely provide that. The food selections are pretty diverse and healthy, well-made. Sometimes there are stocking issues; I love their granola but they have been missing ingredients for several days. I usually get a latte and they've been made exceptionally well. I bought a bag of their coffee to go as well and am excited to have it at home. The atmosphere, decor, and finishings are beautiful and well made. Marble counters, full wood furnishings, brass fixtures, with a bright and open interior that is somehow never too loud. It's really a pleasant place to enjoy a coffee and breakfast taco. Service has been very good. No nonsense, friendly, tactful, and they care about their craft.

I always enjoy my coffee from Merit and it’s a great place to work/study. It’s clean, lots of seating, but the staff is hit or miss. This last time, the man taking my order had his hat over his eyes and said the bare minimum (I heard him speaking normally with his coworker right before and after I approached the counter). It was weird; I tried not to laugh. I’m not someone who expects chatty, bubbly service but the interaction felt oddly hostile. And that’s just how it is at Merit sometimes, ha!

This is the best coffee roaster of San Antonio, and it's my regular get me through the morning stop! Lorraine bakery goodies are here too, and if you do not know already, their goodies are top notch. Lavender mocha is my go-to. Austin says this is the best place to request, please, that you get cacao butter chips for optional creaminess, flavor, and a bit more gentle on the belly. Turmeric powder is my other request, for golden lattes and coffees, and warm golden milk for little ones. It's delicious and beneficial to your health. Thank you guys for making my weekdays better! Please try these two coffee boosters 💐

Great coffee shop with lots of tables and outlets for students who are studying there. Love the coffee. This location frequently has students from the med center here.

First stop in a while. The Hippie Bars are always a treat. Great to pair with a creamy latte. I had the Golden Mylk Latte and it was, well truly golden. Warm, tasty and shop was clean and spacious. Only issue at this location is parking.

Merit coffee is a nice cafe outside the university campus, you will usually see students here working or reading. They offer free WiFi and have ample sitting arrangements. The staff is very friendly and they do a rewards once you sign up. I love the coffee here. The aroma is so good that one cup of coffee is sometimes not enough. Their freshly brewed coffee is very good. I have tried everything on their menu and I like everything here. Definitely recommend this place is you are a coffee fan.

I've loved Merit for many years. Lately, I visit this location most often and it's always been amazing. I love how open and spacious it is, with tons of seating options inside. Its not on the menu, but I'm in love with their honey latte. Nowadays I'll simply get an oat milk latte - their espresso is divine. Merit's coffee is the only coffee that I buy and brew at home. Nothing else compares. It's the perfect gift for any coffee fiend. Hands down some of the best coffee in San Antonio. FYI There's parking in the back if you don't want to deal with the tiny front parking lot.

I'm a Starbucks girl but love trying locally owned places and merit coffee is on my daily commute. I ordered online and my order was called out just as I walked in. My coffee was beautifully decorated with the steamed milk something that Starbucks lacks. The taste was smooth and velvety. I also ordered a croissant which was absolutely amazing (I believe they come from Bakery Lorraine)! It was a real croissant like from France unlike Starbucks' sad sad microwaved croissant. The coffee shop was clean, warm, and inviting. They had merch which was cute and reasonably priced. I got myself a T-shirt. I also joined their point system and will definitely be returning.

Great place to study. Good amount of tables although might have to get there early since it's right next to the medical/dental school. Great lighting and not too loud. Usually pretty packed. Coffee is great. Really enjoy the pour over and the espresso shot was pulled just right the day I went. Not to bright and great taste. Recommend anyone to come give it a try

Local coffee! This place is the same as Local Coffee, not too sure about the name change. They have another location out in the Pearl Brewery that's a solid place to get a cuppa. They've had this location in the Med Center open for the past several years. It's a truly local coffee chain, as opposed to all the others up and down Louis Pasteur. The coffee was reasonably priced, for the super high quality, sourcing of the beans, roasted locally. They offer coffee in just about any method you can think of. They do have pastries, but I didn't get the pleasure of trying those out. The coffee shop is a comfortable place to study that's quiet, well lit, has outlets and plenty of seating. When I went, they seemed understaffed, causing slowly moving lines, but the place was still clean and drinks came out quickly! Parking is easy - Much easier than the other location at the Pearl! There's other interesting places to eat and drink up and down here- it's becoming a little foodie area!

It's summer timeeeee so obviously had to get an iced matcha with strawberry!! I also get it with coconut milk and although she is delicious, this drink is about $9 so please don't break your bank to try it haha - Like don't get me wrong, it's a delicious drink but the prices for some of the drinks on their "baristas choice" menu should have a cap in this economy lol

Overpriced and the food was cold?? Former coffee shop and specialty tea shop barista here. This entire experience was truly disappointing and the only reason I am not giving a one star is because the café was clean and I did not get food poisoning. The barista who took our order said almost nothing and looked like she really REALLY wanted to hurt someone, but the barista making the drinks was much more affable, though I have to say his drink making skills made me very upset. We ordered a large iced Matcha Latte with Hazelnut and Whole Milk, a large iced Matcha Latte with Lavender and Oat Milk, and a Sausage and Cheese Egg Cup. The lattes were atrocious and tasted almost solely like the chemically flavored syrups, almost too much so. If not for the hint of matcha taste, and saying there was a hint of matcha at all is almost too generous, it would have tasted like we were drinking flavored milks. Not to mention, we didn't get the usual energy boost we should have gotten from drinking these, showing us just how little matcha was actually in these drinks. The gross syrup content was way too high, the matcha content was way too low to even critique as a Matcha Latte, but we finished them because we paid way too much for these crappy drinks. We were hoping that our Egg Cup would help us out and cleanse the palate when the Lattes were too much, but it was like pouring salt on an angry wound. It had flavor, but it was all in the sausage and that was all we could really taste. It was way too moist, almost wet from poor defrosting, and would have fallen completely apart when we took it out of the bag had the center not been cold. Over two thirds of this Egg Cup was cold, the outside just warm enough to not raise suspicion upon picking it up, and I actually crunched on some ice crystals dead center. It was disgusting and, again, we spent too much on this tiny little dumpster fire of disappointment. This was the worst food and the worst drinks I've been served at a coffee shop and as an ex-barista I'm offended they thought this was okay to serve to customers. I cannot recommend Merit Coffee and suggest you go elsewhere.

Great coffee shop. It is spacious with plenty of seating. They do have inside and outside seating. I went at 5 PM and it was full of people studying, reading, or just socializing. They do have other beverages besides coffee. They also have food. I decided on the golden mylk latte. it was perfectly sweetened. Staff members are super friendly and sweet. I very much enjoyed my experience. Parking will be the issue here. There's a small parking lot, but it is shared with other businesses. You can find some street parking right adjacent to the coffee shop.

I found this place on Yelp and we enjoyed our coffee here! Their mid sized hot chocolate is just the right size and really creamy. The latte had a good espresso taste. We also got a blackberry orange muffin, which had yummy pieces of orange rind baked into the muffins; this was the best pastry we got. We also got a gluten free hippie bar, which was chewy and a little healthy tasting, but made for a more nutritious breakfast :) The scone was okay; we like ours with a little more crunch. I prefer Figure 8 in Austin for their latte, but this place was good as well! Service was super friendly and the space is really big, with a lot of tables.

I recently visited Merit Coffee Shop in San Antonio, and I must say, it's undoubtedly the best coffee spot in town! The cold brew is a delightful blend of sweet and earthy notes, hitting that perfect balance that any coffee enthusiast would appreciate. While the coffee stole the show, I did try their chorizo bean and cheese taco. It's tasty, but I found it a bit on the overpriced side. Nevertheless, if you're looking for an exceptional coffee experience, Merit Coffee Shop is the place to be!

I should have looked up my old review before coming still not the foo foo coffee I crave for. Service is quick, not the smiliest peppy bunch, maybe they didn't have their coffee yet. They just get the job done. Prices are steep, $7 for 12oz $8 for 16 oz. I got the shaken maple pecan drink. That was interesting. Good flavor but literally has granulated nuts resting on the bottom. Prepare to chew your coffee. I probably will not get again. Lots of students around studying and was not any seating available for us to enjoy coffee. We sat outside, luckily it was a beautiful day.

Of all the merits in SA, the medical center location is by far my favorite- excellent place to study, adequate wifi speeds for streaming videos or lectures, and by far the quietest compared to the other locations. Majority of people that come here are students studying for their respective schools/exams so it's a great place to hold yourself accountable when working. Lots of seating and outlets, music level is just enough to enjoy but not too loud, good lighting, no funky smells (sometimes the other merits smell weird) and adequate parking. If you need a place to work this is it!

If you like the whip, super sweet, coffee as dessert option, this ain't it. If you're coffee purist, then come on down. I find myself in the middle. I got the Caramel latte with oat milk. It's meh. I do appreciate the young lady walking me through the options. Tthe drink came out pretty fast, even with a somewhat full house. Seems like a lot students hang out and study here. It's definitely a nice vibe for it. The prices were pretty high though, not student friendly. Our order came to $18 for two drinks. I guess in this area that's fitting being in the medical center.

One of the best coffee shops in San Antonio! Good caffeine to sugar ratio. Not butter nor too sweet. Always clean whenever I go inside the store and I'm met with good service by baristas. If you make espresso at home I would recommend to try buying their fresh beans to grind at home!! We literally go out of our way to only buy them here.

Ordering online makes NO difference in how fast you get your coffee here. The customer service is terrible! All they care about is what they're going to do when they get off work. With so many other coffee places in the medical center and summer moon almost ready to open, they should really care more about their service. Will never come back here again!

Coffee here is delicious. Service is always great. The ambiance is great as well-- such a good spot to come in to get some schoolwork done.

I tried the Merit Coffee near Galen College of Nursing and it was ok. It's a great place to study and work quietly and their to go ordering is simple and easy, but they could make some changes to be great. Their menu doesn't really explain what the items are and that includes the inside and mobile menus. Some items explain themselves, but they have a unique menu and when I was looking for tea there was no explanation on what the blends were. I ended up sticking to a peppermint iced tea that was very strong and needed either less mint or more sweetener than it had. I couldn't even finish it. All in all I would say nice place, but could work on making it easier for customers.

This location is convenient, because it's right in front of the health science school. Due to that, you get 10% off if you're a student, but you have to ask for it. I love studying here on sunny days, because the big windows make the environment of the place very bright! There are good amount of desks/chairs to work on. I will say that they do frequently have wifi issues which is one of the only downsides! I've tried their matcha and sencha tea. They're both very good! The matcha I would add a little bit more sweetness to and the sencha tea is very refreshing!

This place is extra MEH with a foamy top of MEH - 3 stars for coffee and 1 star for service. The coffee was good going down but had a lingering ick aftertaste. Staff left much to be desired in terms of service. They seemed genuinely bothered by customer interaction. $9+ (including tip) is too steep a price to pay for a below average experience. Would not recommend. Not likely to return.

I ordered a 16 oz Iced oat milk latte with 1 pump of vanilla and I got a 24 oz Iced oat milk latte with 4-5 pumps of vanilla. Poor service, If they can't make my simple order I do not recommend.

Came to Merit on a Wednesday around noon to do work. The parking lot in front and in the back were both full, thankfully I was able to find some street parking. With the amount of cars outside, I was unsure if I would be able to find a table to work but there were a few tables free! Helped that there was a lot of total tables, but people coming later in the day were definitely waiting around for tables. Other people were doing work but the noise level is moderate with group discussions happening around. Love the lighting and the table sizes are nice too, just wish the benches had cushions, it was really uncomfortable after a while. I ordered a cold caramel latte, really enjoyable! They have a few other syrup options too, fast service.

I love this coffee shop. My coffee was delicious and the person helping me was nice. There's a fair amount of seating but it was really busy when I was there with people getting work done.

Amazing coffee, baristas are extremely polite, charismatic, and helpful in recommending your preferred drink. A lot of natural lighting mixed with the cozy ambiance of the place, and they always have great music! It does tend to get busy/crowded quickly especially after lunch. Limited food options besides bakery items, but there is a Bakery Lorraine next door with sandwhiches, soups, etc.

We liked the feel of this place- the music was a bit loud. We tried a White Chocolate Latte with Oatmilk (pretty good), a Chai Latte (too milky, not enough tea), and a Chocolate Latte with Coconut milk (she enjoyed it).

Always a favorite coffee spot for me when I'm in San Antonio. Plus desserts from bakery Lorraine to boot!

Great atmosphere, amazing coffee. Would go here again anytime. Parking is tricky but other then that it's totally worth it

Absolutely LOVE the vibes of this place! I tried it once last year on vacation and was hooked and been dying to try them again! This time I got a lavender vanilla matcha with oat milk iced and omgggg it was delicious! Perfect notes of matcha with the blend of lavender/vanilla. Some places have a very bitter matcha and some people like that! But I'm personally not a fan of the bitter matcha and merits was a nice flavor of matcha. The wait for our beverages was maybe 5 minutes if that! Very excellent customer service! So sweet and easy to talk too!

It sucks but I'm gonna have to be that person who leaves a one star review because, although this coffee shop claims to close 8PM, by 7:40PM (and perhaps earlier even) they do not serve espresso drinks anymore. To the owners and staff: if you advertise a closing time, don't close 20 minutes before. Your staff clearly wants to wrap up at 8 on the dot and are therefore turning off and cleaning their espresso machine half an hour before closing. You are a coffee shop. That is not reasonable. If you advertise serving espresso coffee until 8PM, you should make good on your promise and serve coffee until 8PM. Otherwise just change your closing time to 7:30PM - then your customers will know better than to drive to your coffee shop only to realize the staff isn't willing to work until close. Very disappointing.

I loved this place ! The aesthetic is super simple yet fun to be in. My daughter had a kids hot chocolate which came out at the perfect temp so she can drink it right away . I ordered a oatmilk latte and both drinks had the wonderful art on top. It was pretty busy and the parking lot was full so keep that in mind when you plan to come. Just give yourself a few extra minutes . But overall I will be back and the coffee was delicious !

I came by to work inside after a doctor's visit. I was impressed at the ample amount of table room and how quiet it was. There weren't any charger outlets by the coffee bar, but it was still roomy and nice to sit at. Overall, a good place for coffee and studying or working on your laptop.

I really wanted to like Merit but it was a no for me. I have tried it multiple times and I just can't. The coffee doesn't taste good. The matcha either. No good flavor, just plain. She pretty tho but didn't taste good. Great place for studying alone or with people. To go out of my way to get merit, no.

I loved this coffee! I wish I lived closer, but it was such a treat! I got the smallest size iced latte- extra shot of espresso and extra .5oz of vanilla syrup. It was amazing! Whatever beans are used here are very good, I should've purchased some, but I will next time. We also got the blackberry lemonade which was a bit on the sour/tart side but still sweet. The strawberry pop tart was well made, next time I might try the cinnamon roll.

The macchiato and espresso are strong and have great flavor always. I love that they open at 6am as well for early birds.

Nice visit at Merit. Espresso is full of dark, rich flavor, and just as should be. No pic of coffee since there's nothing too interesting about small cup of espresso. Pastries looked delicious even though I did not try. They were picture worthy. Nice coffee spot!

Parking: dedicated parking lot - easy to find Service: excellent, everyone is friendly Ambiance: good place to meet friends or study Coffee: oh man, one of my favorite places to get extra hot oat milk cappuccino. $$, but well worth it!! Recommend!!

the cereal milk cold brew!! omg its so yummy and its non dairy as well so perfectly well done sweet but not overly done. one of the better local coffee shops. not to busy during the week later in the day but is a great place to study or get work done.

Overpriced. Always forgetting online orders. Don't offer this option if you don't check the tickets coming in. This is the second time they've messed with my time by being inept.

They make a perfect iced vanilla latte. I'm still new to the city but after 2yrs of exploring it's still the best I've had

It's often crowded at this location with very few available seats, but I ordered my iced mocha late and hippie bar to go and sat near the sofa until it was ready. Both were delicious!

I'm going without coffee until November...so I gave their hot chocolate a go, and it was delicious. It wasn't overbearingly sweet, there was no whip cream involved. I wish there was a little less foam and a couple degrees hotter. I also got a bean and cheese taco that I also wish was warmer (they should turn up the heat in the taco holder...) but it's mashed black bean which is YUM. The vibe is very chill and a great coffee shop vibe. I wish they did play lyric-less music...but that's just my preference. Overall, pleasant experience

Great coffee -- lots of options-- and yogurt! We go here every time we visit my in-laws.

I wished Houston had Merit Coffee because I really like the coffee from here! I got the iced Mexican vanilla latte! I usually get iced vanilla lattes when I try out new coffee shops, but I wanted to be a little different this time and since I was in San Antonio, I thought I'd try the Mexican vanilla syrup instead. It was honestly SO good, and I would definitely get it again if I were to come back! The service here wasn't that great though. The atmosphere of the place seemed pretty nice, and looks like a great place to study or conduct business work.

The tea I had was good. Service was fast and they had a variety of different food items.

Really great service, super chill, great place to spend time finishing projects or studying. Oh, and coffee is phenomenal.

My son just moved to San Antonio and we found this coffee shop down the street from his apartment. Thank God! Amazing coffee, whether you like espresso, pour-over, or more complicated drinks. The staff were super friendly, and we barely had to wait for our order. There were a lot of people drinking coffee and using the Internet, so it is clearly a hang-out.

Delicious coffee, friendly service and knowledgeable staff! Highly recommend! We had the pleasure of speaking with Vito regarding Merit's relentless search to find the absolute best coffee beans and the science behind a fabulous cup of coffee. He was super knowledgeable and so very helpful! I was in search of some great coffee that I could give to my friends in North Carolina and I heard that Merit had some of the best coffee in San Antonio so I had to check it out for myself. What a gem of a coffee cafe! Normally, pre-covid, I would've loved to sit down and relax at their cute, clean cafe but instead I ordered my drinks to go. But it looks like they're taking all the covid measures from required masks upon entry, a hand sanitizer station, sanitizer and shield at the front counters and social distancing of tables.

I've been here a couple of times. Decent coffee and a nice place to get some work done. Lots of outlets for your laptop/charging needs. My go-to coffee shop in the medical center area.

If you are looking for a place to wind down with a good book, a place to get some work down or study, or meet a friend this would be the place to be. Coffee is good and the ambiance is great.

Wanted to try a new coffee shop and was not disappointed. Ordered a Strawberry Matcha, and it was fantastic! Definitely adding this to my must visits for coffee shops.

It was my first time here today and the coffee is pretty good! As for the service, whoever the girl with black hair and had it curled today has a bad attitude. Not sure what her deal is but the service was whack.

I visited for 4 days straight when I was staying in the area! Merit is definitely one of my all time favorite coffee shops and never fails to give me my caffeine fix and more. My favorite is the vanilla latte, I know it's basic, but they make it unlike any other coffee shop. My friend loves their cortados and slow pour. This location has plenty of parking on both sides of the building and on the street. When it's super busy, go for street parking.

I ordered the Oatmilk Matcha Latte with Lavender flavor and it was delicious! I'm so excited to have found a good coffee shop near school.