Haven Espresso Bar

You know how when you’re in the city, and you see two buildings beside each other, and there’s a small gap between the building so there’s no room to turn around? Lots of kids got trapped in those gaps on Third Watch. Do you remember Third Watch on NBC? Me neither. Anyway THAT’s how this coffee shop is shaped. That’s how small it is. There’s standing room for 2 people MAX but you have to stand in front of each other and your arms have to be down. So that means if you can’t keep ur arms down to your sides you’re gonna be real uncomfortable (I’m lookin at YOU Louie Anderson). It wont work. You have to be a true hipster to enjoy the setting. You WILL enjoy the espresso tho. And if you love wasps mating/​fighting over your head as you order, you’ll have a blast! There’s an incredible amount of wasp activity round there… there are baked treats too. Wasps like dat. There was a wasp mêlée over some agave syrup. Honestly this place was so small I’m beginning to think it never existed…
3 Stars!

Loved the coffee here. Place is teeny tiny but when the weather is nice, you can sit outside.

Lovely little coffee spot near the Dufferin subway station! Lovely and strong espresso!

Haven is one of my favourite spots.
Tiny. Literally a hole in the wall. Only seating during the summer and strictly outside, unless you count the tiny stool you can sit on if you become friends with the barista (which I am, duh)
Really delicious, unique espresso based drinks and a really great loose tea selection too. My favourite is the Nutella latte of course
Fun, talkative baristas. Owner is super fun and friendly.

This is the best coffee and food for the best price anywhere on Bloor West. As people point out, it’s small, but a truly good value is worth squishing inside for.

Based on all the great reviews for Haven, my coffee companion and I sought it out. It is a little hard to find. Tiny, lack of signage, the outdoor seating was the first clue as to it’s existence.
The locals hanging out in and around the shop were a little odd, sometimes verbally aggressive with each other, but, friendly enough to us.
The bad– the espresso shot for my Cortado was started, stopped and restarted. Which never makes for a decent tasting shot.
It was served in a 4oz cup, which, considering it was a single shot, would hold enough milk for the proper ratio. I would have preferred a double shot in a larger cup, my fault for not clarifying.
The good– the milk was steamed well.
Overall, I was disappointed with the product, given the slew of great reviews.

Fabulous little local coffee shop. Was visiting the area and in search of a decent coffee sought it out based on other positive reviews and wasn’t disappointed. It’s pretty hard to find however, as its small and doesn’t have much signage. I nearly overlooked it. Visited on a Sunday there were some locals sitting around inside and out doing a «communal» NY times crossword. Apparently a weekly thing. Very quirky. Had a latte and it was spot on. Recommended

Haven is a fanciful little nook off the beaten path. Often displaying cute and colourful art pieces, the owners are just as welcoming as the atmosphere, which is that of a cozy cupboard. I’m a grateful neighbourhood regular who feels as though Haven really embodies a rich sense of the new Bloordale Village community.
Their coffee is up to par, and their specialty drinks are like the crack of my childhood fantasies (one word: Nutella). Their new food menu actually blew me away. As a meatball aficionado who proclaims no one makes better than my late strega-​nona, their meatball sandwich was lusciously aromatic and delicious. My roommate saw it in my hand and said, «…that is sexual» as his pupils dilated. Pretty much sums it up.
P. s. Best patio in the neighbourhood in the summer.
P. p. s. Great gluten-​free options.

Haven now sells food and it’s awesome! I have a lot of annoying dietary requirements and the chef custom made me a delicious breakfast. My friend had the pulled pork paratha, and said it was also really good. It ended up being around $ 20 for 2 coffees and 2 breakfasts — not bad Haven!

If I remembered correctly, I had a hard time finding Haven. When I did, I was surprised by how small it was! I’ve been to small coffee shops before, but I think this one is the smallest yet! You can tell from the outside and inside shot how tight the space is. Despite the size, it didn’t stop the café from being crowded! The café acts as a community hub and the locals love it there. One of the regulars even made an Instagram account for the café!
During the warmer months, they host movie nights where they set up a projector outside of the café and use the wall as the screen. I thought that was a pretty cool idea and a great way to bring the local community together. I was told that they will be opening a sister shop right by focusing on brunch called North Haven.
Sadly since it was such a tight space, I wasn’t able to sit and drink my Mint Hot Chocolate as I planned to. Instead, I enjoyed it at a library nearby. If you are in the area and a mint chocolate lover, definitely try their Mint Hot Chocolate!

Came here again with the Coffee Passport. It’s easily the smallest café in Toronto. There’s bar seating for one. The only problem with that, is if it’s a regular and your entrance interrupts their conversation, it gets a bit awkward. On this recent visit, the regular actually carried on with her story to the barista while I waited like a idiot for a bit. I’ve been that person talking to a barista in an empty café before and I think the polite thing to do is let the barista/​owner do their job and serve customers immediately and carry on when their down, that is, if they’re interested.
Soy latte was good. There’s just enough room for everything and with no one else in line ahead or behind me, it didn’t feel crowded. A nice sunny spot in the afternoon, but I doubt I’d linger in the winter. Looking forward to them developing the patio more in the summer. Maybe picnic tables?

They were a saviour to me today (Sunday) when everywhere else seemed to be closed. Amazing service and tasty mocha. Had a great conversation. If I lived in the neighbourhood I would come here every day!

I came here as part of the Indie coffee passport (ICP)
This place what you call a hole in the wall kind of place. There are 3 – 4 seats in the place and I think their focus is on the takeout. They do have an outside sitting area which will be enticing in summer I am sure.
My friend had a chai latte and commented it was quite good.
Espresso: Medium
Crema’: Decent
Milk: Frothed well with nice microfoam.
Latte Art: Good for a takeout
I think their drinks will fare better if they used ceramics to serve them as even though it was a take out the cappuccino was decent.
3.5 Stars. I will be back in summer for a cigar and java fix.

4 Stars.
It’s hard not to love this place. You see it and say, wow. It’s this tiny little spot off of Bloor. When I say tiny, I mean tiny. This is a complete take-​out spot, but boy is it good.
There is not much to say, but well made coffee is produced here. A beautiful hole-​in-​the-​wall this place is and it deserves your attention. If you expect anything more than that you will be disappointed, but if you expect what it is you will be impressed.
This will be a place I pick up coffee when around the area.
Haven Espresso, thank you for a wonderful Latte.
That’s it.

They weren’t kidding when blogto said the place was small (and sorta hard to miss.) regardless though, this is a lovely little coffee shop! The staff were really friendly and had a «real people vibe» I find hard to well, find, other places. I found out about this place from the indie coffee passport, and I’m glad I did :)
I got a chai latte, which was yummy and perfectly sweet, and I appreciated that she asked me about my sugar preferences (UM YES LOL. ROSIE LOVE SUGAR)
I also liked how she steeped the tea before adding the milk, so instead of giving me milk flavoured hot water with a hint of tea, it was tea, properly made, with the milk added, which makes it like x10 better and yeah. That, and she was able to keep up casual, genuine conversation. Happy Rosie is happy.
A real nice little gem, definitely worth a visit if I’m back in the area again!

What took me so long ?
Haven is on the Indie Coffee Passport, so we sauntered over on a Sunday to try it out. Jason was the Barista of the Day, and his personality made us feel like we were regulars right away. The atmosphere was friendly, welcoming, informal; really comfortable for such a small space.
My companion and I had lattes, mine with soy. As soon as we ordered, the weather turned and it started to pour so we parked ourselves on a little box/​bench and stayed to enjoy our coffee. Such yummy lattes!
As I read the menu I was already deciding to come back for the nutella latte and maybe some baked goodies. Bonus: halfway through our visit, Jason offered to top up the steamed milk — very thoughtful.
Easily half a dozen people came while we were there and it seemed Jason knew them all. He even managed to include us in their conversations.
When it was time for us to go, we noticed that someone had dried off all the outdoor tables and chairs. That’s impressive!
A stellar experience all the way around.

I’ve only been coming here for about a month, since I have some friends who live on the corner near this place.
I think it’s safe to say I’m addicted, I thought I sort of knew about coffee and I’ve become a total jerk-​snob about my caffeine.
They have a spicy latte that damn near makes me want to smack myself, I tend to get a bit of extra spice mix. And the nutella latte is insane levels of good (yes…a nutella latte and it’s exactly what it sounds like, nutella mixed in with espresso and steamed milk).
They also have really good gluten free treats but, like actually edible.
Tiny place but who cares? if the weather is nice, or you’re wearing a coat there’s tons of seating outside. Both people I’ve talked to who work there are fantastic.
Just go, you won’t regret it, and if you do… well. think about your life.

Its like a local pub where everyone knows your name… but it only costs $ 2, not $ 50 and a hangover.
Pro’s
+They are open 365 days a year
+They have amazing coffee
+Helan and Jason are super friendly
+Front terrace with Bloor people watching without the noise
Cons
–They don’t sell beer or wine, if they did I would never leave.

I’ll be honest I was a little hesitant to try Haven when they first opened seeing we already had so many lovely cafés in Bloordale but I am GLAD I did go in because now I have a new fave coffee shop. I love the small but cozy feel of Haven and the baristas are always so nice and friendly and not only that, they brew a mean brew and although they’ve ruined all other coffee and delicious hot beverages, I think I can forgive Haven for being so heavenly.

I went to this place while I was bike shopping in the area because all the shop guys were walking around with this delicious smelling coffee and I needed to know where it came from! Turns out it was from this little hole in the wall called Haven which «is literally a hole in the wall and it’s the best» and sure enough I found it just around the corner from there and the guys at Sweet Pete’s and Broadway Cycle were right, Haven was awesome. The service was super friendly and when I was a quarter shy, she told me i could bring it the next time i was in the neighbourhood!
The prices are decent, they have a nutella latte which blew my mind, and their service was great. Don’t expect to go there and chill out in the winter time with your computer because it’s a hole. in. the. wall. — there are no tables indoors. BUT I’m told there’s an awesome patio in the summertime so i’ll be going after my next tune up forsure!