Steve L

One of two locations in the Santa Barbara area (the other is “uptown” on De La Vina, which includes their coffee roasting operation). Handlebar coffee is a popular destination for locals, including those who prefer to work in the environment of a coffee shop. I find their coffee to be excellent, not too strong but certainly not weak. Their espresso drinks are expertly made. Service is excellent; the staff is always friendly, quick, and willing to make subtle adjustments to items if requested.

+3

Kirsten Alana Photography

The kind of coffee shop I'd frequent regularly if I lived in the area. I appreciate how early they're open since I am an early riser and need coffee right away when I get up. The staff were friendly, the selection of pastries is excellent, the coffee tastes fantastic and the interior is cool. It's also large which makes me think even when it's busy, there should be seating for everyone. Though it wasn't crowded when I was in to order takeaway coffee.

XY H

One of the best cortados I’ve ever had in my entire life! The staff here were through a long line in an efficient and friendly manner. The drinks were excellent as were the gift options appreciated my conversation with Kim and understanding the roots of her and her husband‘s excellent business with connections and Portland and Eugene. Looking forward to returning here! Local tip is to get your coffee/meal and head across the street to enjoy the sunrise at the mission.

Konstantin Starodetskii

This coffee shop is one of the main reasons I come to Santa Barbara!☕️ The team is fantastic! It’s always a friendly morning vibe when I come there. Baristas work like a team and they have some fun cycling-style merch. The quality of the coffee beans is superb so any drink you order will taste great.

Tony Yu

Huge coffee shop with one entrance to the cashier and merchandise shop and another entrance to an indoor seating area. Both areas are connected. I ordered the drip coffee and both types of their vegan cookies. Everything was delicious. There’s indoor and outdoor seating. I saw people working on their laptops and people just socializing and having a good time. Highly recommend if you’re in the area.

+6

Danny Chen

There are many bikers coming to enjoy nice coffee at Handlebar Coffee at Santa Barbara. The shop name of Handlebar is selected nicely to attract bikers. Atmosphere seating both inside and outside are all great and comfortable. The Americano doesn't taste bitter but with great flavor.

+6

Sandhya Kumar

This place was fantastic! Hand down the best cafe in Santa Barbara. I am definitely coming back here next time I'm in Santa Barbara. We heard good reviews for this place so gave it a try & boy it didn’t disappoint! It was busy morning so stood in line for 10 mins & waited for our drinks for 5-7 mins more. Drinks are $3 to $6. And it was worth the wait! Their coffee was amazing and the baked items were delicious. I ordered a double latte & it was just perfect! Airy, foamy & bursting with best espresso flavor! It came in their signature white cups. This place is very cozy & has a friendly vibe. They have outdoor seating too. You get a beautiful view of Santa Barbara presidio. We also ordered cinnamon roll, cookies & almond scone. We loved it all!

+3

Grish240

I kept asking myself why the coffee was so bland. The team had a fun and welcoming energy. The line was long and they cranked out the orders with smiles on their faces. As an avid cyclist, I appreciated the interior design and bike-friendly vibes. The ham and cheese croissant was flaky and tasted great. But the mocha I ordered was disappointing. It was like drinking a cup of hot milk. The robust coffee flavor I expected was nowhere to be found as I sipped my drink. For a coffee shop that does virtually everything very well, it left me questioning how could they have missed on the most important part of the experience…

+3

Cindy Marie

We came to visit here for our early afternoon snacks and ordered: 2x Espresso 1x Cinnamon Roll Total: $14.16 with tips Overall, we’re very pleased with the flavor of the coffee and cinnamon roll. The kick of the coffee, the bitterness, and the sourness are just what we've been looking for—the best espresso we've tried so far compared to many others. The cinnamon roll, we thought, was amazing, too—though it can be slightly sweet to our palette, other than that, we love it. However, it took some time to prepare our espresso for both when called; my husband had to wait another 2-3 minutes for the other one to prepare. We thought it was strange to wait that long given that they have many staff within that area, roughly 8 staff. Other than that, it was a great experience with the coffee and pastry, and the ambiance was great, too.

+6

Jenny

Ice matcha latte was one of the worst I’ve ever had and tastes like water. Would give it 0 stars if I could. Chocolate croissant was solid though so giving it 2 stars.

Code Chick

I'm not sure why anyone would like their coffee. Just ordered a drip for $4.50 including tip and it tasted like black water. Absolutely ZERO coffee taste. The service was unimpressive, the only good thing was the Brandy jam playing Sittin' on Top of the World. Won't ever come back, maybe Dune is better...?