Onyx Coffee Lab

Went here this past weekend after seeing a review that said that this was the BEST coffee experience that the reviewer had ever had. We put the address into the GPS and we were on our way.

The inside looks really cool and expensive. There's a neat neon sign. There are cool modern tables, a pretty, penny tiled bar and various types of seating for getting work done or chatting. There is also additional outdoor seating.

I was part of a party of four and after looking over the menu, two of them declined to order anything. We purchased two drinks to go, one hot, one iced.

My husband got a flat white. He's had flat whites everywhere, including New Zealand so he knows what they taste like. He said his drink was tasteless. Perhaps it was a watery shot?

Prior to ordering I told the cashier that I have celiac and was wondering if they knew if their salt mocha was gluten-free. The cashier asked someone pulling shots, and then said, "ahh I'm pretty sure it is." It was already after 3 PM and all I'd had the entire day was a cookie and a scone from down the street. I shouldn't have trusted it, but I went ahead with my order.

What came out was a drink that tasted like chocolate milk. I was about a third of the way through it when my stomach started to hurt, so I told my non-celiac family member to finish the drink. They also said it tasted like chocolate milk. Did it contain gluten? Not sure. Possible cross-contamination issues perhaps?

Be warned, while it is disclosed on the lower corner of the menu, they have one of those junk fees tacked on for employee benefits. Labor costs are the cost of doing business and should be calculated into the menu price (which is exactly why Sacramento, California is outlawing these junk fees.)

"Businesses use hidden fees or junk fees to pitch an artificially low headline price to attract a customer before revealing additional charges," - Eleanor Blume, California's assistant attorney general.

Don't have an artificially lower price to entice customers and then have the real cost come out at the register. Have all your labor costs, rent, ingredients, profit margins all factored into your advertised menu price and then have separate line items for each type of tax being charged. Being transparent with customers about pricing is not rocket science.

Would I agree with the poster that this was the best coffee experience I've ever had? No. Was it offensively bad where it warrants a 1 star? No.

Visited April 2024

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— No gluten-free information on the menu