Cala Coffee Downtown

1. I loved watching the renovations prior to Cala Cahaba Heights’ opening and was very excited to try it. As soon as I did, I was in love! So I was thrilled to see they opened a downtown location which is much more convenient for me. Their flavors are so different and I believe many of them are house-made. Their ham and cheese croissant with the sesame seeds on top is my favorite. I haven’t tried their breakfast tacos yet, but I’m sure I will next time I go in 🙂 I’m unsure of her name, but the same girl has helped me every time I’ve been in and she has been super kind. Recently, I’ve tried the salted caramel cold brew, YUM! In the fall, the maple latte was delicious as well. I feel like you truly cannot go wrong! There is also a lot of seating and outlets for computers. The bathrooms are clean. They also sell wine and I noticed they have a record player out with a selection of records that you can ask the barista to play an album for you! Really such a bright and cheerful place to spend your study time or friend time.

2. Cala is one of my favorite places to be in Birmingham! They have great drinks for coffee and tea people. Currently, my favorite is the autumn matcha. The street parking is free in front of the store is free and typically available. Cala also sells wine. I have a tried a few and they have all been great! Overall, Cala is a wonderful addition to the neighborhood.

3. tables in the entrance if you have a group with you, or both sides of a bar if you’re by yourself. The entrance is well lit and a slightly subdued lighting further inside. Not sure if it was because we dropped by an hour before closing time but the drinks (espresso, cortado, chai) come in paper cups as if it’s a high volume cafe that wants to get you in and out as quickly as possible. The espresso didn’t come with fizzy water, it tasted alright though.

4. We arrived about 8:30 on Saturday morning to only one or two other patrons in the shop. We got cappuccinos, a couple of Ladybird chorizo & egg breakfast tacos, and a chocolate croissant. The tacos were warm, but when we got to the croissant we discovered it was a little cooler than room temp. So I went and waited behind two people to make it to the counter and asked them to warm it up. He took it and said he’d bring it out after warming it. We sipped our cappuccinos a bit while we waited but after nearly 10 minutes I went back to check. This time I didn’t wait in the now pretty long line but went to the side. After a minute or two I finally caut an eye and the young lady said “I know; it’ll be 2 or 3 minutes more”. So I went back to our table to now cold cappuccino and waited more. Another 6 or 7 minutes, then the same person came to our table and told us they’d forgotten about it – again – and that it burned. She did apologize. But they had another warming for us, and brought it out after another few minutes. The guy who delivered it said “here you go” and left immediately without any eye contact, though he was the one who took it to warm in the first place. Who wants a room temp chocolate croissant any way? When ordering that, they should really have asked if we’d like it warmed instead of all the hassle of doing it afterwards. The food was good, as was the cappuccino. It’s a cool, trendy space too, with a decent soundtrack in the background. Service was the worst part of our visit this morning. We’ll try it again sometime and hope this was a fluke.

5. Arriving at Cala Coffee 15 mins before it closed, I accepted that I may not have the best experience. When I took my first sip of my lavender latte and it smelled like I was transported to a beautiful field filled with lavender, I was so glad I fought for parking and ran over before closing. If you work in downtown Birmingham or just pass through, make the stop. The coffee is worth it!

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