Granted, I seemed to have caught the shop on a bad day -- I observed what appeared to be a transitioning of the wall art and overheard customer/employee commentary to support as much. But bare walls aside, the shop's secondhand furniture (some of which sparked flashbacks to my community college cafeteria days), stained and cracked concrete floor and overall lack of coffee shop ambience didn't offer me good cause to stick around.
Frankly, I was little surprised at the cafe's drabness. In researching Barefoot online, I found its comprehensive Web site inviting and perhaps even a little intimidating for its knowledge of and passion for producing quality gourmet coffee. The bean roasting and wholesale distributing side of the business certainly is not lacking, as Barefoot supplies coffee to several markets, coffee shops and restaurants in the area. The Web site makes special mention of these resellers as well as Barefoot's producer partners. It harps on crafting quality coffee and the importance of freshness. It goes out of its way to give equal time to all its "people."
Maybe I'm missing something, but it makes me wonder why they don't put the same time and effort into making the shop equally inviting.
On the plus side, there is free WiFi and open mic night every Wednesday, the latter of which I know only from perusing the Barefoot Web site. Aside from the friendly employees, there is little, if any, communication (signage, business messaging, bulletin board, expanded menu) of what the shop is all about or why you should come in to sample the coffee and the surroundings.
For road travelers, Barefoot is just off I-280, so if you're looking for a place to pick up expertly brewed coffee on the run, by all means proceed. But if you're wanting a comfortable, relaxing spot to recharge before getting back behind the wheel, you may want to look elsewhere.
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Barefoot Cafe5237 Stevens Creek Blvd.
Santa Clara, CA 95051
(408) 248-4500
Map
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