Ain't Normal Cafe

5701 College Ave, Oakland, CA

★★★★★4.5(329 Google reviews)

Crema's Take

Ain't Normal Cafe is a bustling neighborhood gem where the real stars are the rotating pastries and creative toasts (the babaganoush is legitimately excellent) rather than the espresso itself, which can be inconsistent. The corner spot on Miles and College is ideal for lingering over wifi and work, with plenty of outdoor seating and a genuinely local crowd, though you'll want to manage expectations about both the coffee expertise and the occasional service attitude.

What to expect

PastriesSlow sitEspresso focusedOutdoor seatingLight foodWifiSignature drinksSpecialty drinksLaptop friendlyTraditional drinks

Google Reviews

Phuong Luong
★★★★2 months ago

Cute cafe shop that's always busy, seem to be a local favorite. They always have interesting rotating sweet and savory pastries, toasts, salads and yogurt bowl. No charge for alternative milk, and I enjoyed the cortado

Jason Edwin
★★★★3 months ago

Such a disappointment. Paid $30 for 2 pour overs and they were so so underwhelming and very poorly extracted. Barista knew nothing about the coffees they were serving, I asked multiple times. Told staff about the pour overs and they really didn’t offer any solutions. Very bummed because this place has so much hype and such an incredible bag selection of coffees from roasters all over the world. I’ll be back to buy a bag but such a sad cafe experience. Staff was so unpleasant, we need to be done with this pretentious and rude BS in the coffee industry please.

ACACIA SHYR
★★★★★5 months ago

Delicious babaganoush toast! Also maybe the best scone I've ever had. Great place to study or work if you have a full charge. No outlet and music is a bit loud, but there's free wifi and bathroom. Minimal indoor seating. It's a bit expensive but worth it.

Vineet Sinha
★★★★★5 months ago

Very limited sitting inside, but lots of outside seating on the corner of Miles and College Ave. For highly discerning mocha connoisseurs, the mocha here will rank about a 4/5. For the rest of humanity, this is a 4.7/5 mocha. You’ll be satisfied either way. Going to try their egg and biscuit next, which is only really available before 11 AM

Alison Middleton Hansen
★★★★★5 months ago

It was advertised as a Turmeric Latte. Didn't have it. Instead, I was served with attitude, with no room to heat up a frittata, and all the workers seemed upset to have customers, despite a line out the door. You could feel the opposite of hospitality. Maybe Ain't Normal must mean... no normal interactions, bad attitudes, and cold frittatas. Grits are good. Hence the 2

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