Four California coffee chains rank among the most popular in US. How do they stand out?
Four California coffee companies were named among the most popular regional coffee chains in the country — just in time for National Coffee Day on Sept. 29.
Coffee chains in Oakland, South Gate, San Francisco and Berkeley made Yelp’s list.
To find the find the top regional coffee chains in the U.S., Yelp analyzed ratings of reviews that mentioned “coffee” from July 2021 to July 2022.
“Regional coffee chains are defined as brands that offer mainly coffee, have more than 25 locations and operate in fewer than 25 states,” Yelp said in the Sept. 29 release.
Blue Bottle Coffee — Oakland
Blue Bottle Coffee shops dominate Northern and Southern California with 48 locations in the state.
The Oakland-based coffee company began in the early 2000s to serve people with fresh tasting coffee.
Now the coffee chain has locations in Boston, New York, Chicago, Washington D.C., Tokyo, Kyoto, Kobe, Yokohama, Seoul, Jeju, Hong Kong and Shanghai.
The coffee shop chain serves all of the classic coffee drinks and specialty ones too.
Yelp reviewers at the Oakland location raved about the New Orleans-style iced coffee. It’s made with milk, cane sugar and roasted chicory, which one user described as “sweet and delicious.”
“I got the New Orleans iced coffee and it was a perfect way to start my day, it had a sharp flavor with a hint of sweetness,” another reviewer wrote.
Blue Bottle Coffee also serves Japanese-style cold brew, a hojicha latte and cascara fizz.
Tierra Mia Coffee — South Gate
This coffee shop with locations in Southern and Northern California serves Latin-inspired beverages that are a “tasty spin on traditional coffee.”
Tierra Mia Coffee’s first franchise opened in 2008 with the mission to “provide the highest quality Latin-inspired coffee, beverages and pastries in a setting that is comfortable, contemporary and highly reflective of Latin American culture.”
Classic drinks include the horchata latte, mocha Mexicano, coco loco latte and chocolate Mexicano de Guadalajara.
Yelp reviewers noted the South Gate location for its Mexican hot chocolate.
“Oh my gosh I’m deeply in love with their Mexican Hot chocolate. It has a cinnamon crisp taste,” one reviewer wrote.
Philz Coffee — San Francisco
The coffee company was founded in San Francisco’s Mission District by Phil Jaber, and it has locations in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, Orange County, Washington D.C. and Chicago.
Philz Coffee offers five customized blends of coffee, including darker blends, medium blends, lighter blends, decaf and single origin.
Drinks on Philz Coffee menu are distinguished by coffee blends along with a few words to describe each beverage.
For example, the tantalizing Turkish coffee with cardamom is a dark roast that is bold and bittersweet.
The Philz iced mocha tesora seems to be popular among Yelp reviewers. It’s a “velvety coffee-based treat with lightly sweetened cocoa,” according to the menu.
“I get an iced mocha tesora Philz way (medium sweet and medium cream). Tastes like a cold chocolate milk and gives you that pick me up you need in the morning,” one reviewer wrote.
Peet’s Coffee — Berkeley
Peet’s Coffee has a long history starting in 1966 when founder Alfred Peet opened his first coffee shop in Berkeley.
Now Peet’s Coffee has hundreds of locations across California and the U.S. including Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Colorado, Arizona, Texas, Georgia, Florida, New York and more.
The coffee chain sells hand-roasted coffee beans in dark, medium and light roasts.
“I like coffee and love the smell of fresh ground beans. In the area, we had to stop at the original Peet’s. Got a little history lesson and refreshment. Take a moment to soak up the decor and learn about Peet’s history,” one reviewer wrote about the flagship coffee shop location in Berkeley.
The coffee chain is also now offering fall drinks, such as the caramel apple latte, pumpkin latte, pumpkin cold brew oat latte with brown sugar jelly.
Yelp ranked these 20 regional coffee chains as the most popular in the nation:
- Ziggi’s Coffee — Longmont, Colorado
- Black Rock Coffee Bar — Beaverton, Oregon
- The Human Bean — Ashland, Oregon
- PJ’s Coffee — New Orleans
- Bad Ass Coffee — Lahaina, Hawaii
- Blue Bottle Coffee — Oakland, California
- Dutch Bros Coffee — Grants Pass, Oregon
- La Colombe Coffee — Philadelphia
- Aroma Joe’s — Rochester, New Hampshire
- Tierra Mia Coffee — South Gate, California
- Bluestone Lane — New York
- Scooter’s Coffee — Bellevue, Nebraska
- Gregorys Coffee — New York
- 7 Brew Coffee — Rogers, Arkansas
- Philz Coffee — San Francisco
- Port City Java — Wilmington, North Carolina
- Dunn Brothers Coffee — Saint Paul, Minnesota
- Peet’s Coffee — Berkeley, California
- Biggby Coffee — East Lansing, Michigan
- Joe Coffee Company — New York
This story was originally published September 29, 2022 at 3:24 PM with the headline "Four California coffee chains rank among the most popular in US. How do they stand out?."
