Mercantile Montrose

How can one support an ownership group that completely mismanages then sandbags employees. Do you have retail coffee or not? Do you have a decent beer selection, or not? Do you have a decent wine selection, or not? Are you going to have a regular stock of bottled beverages, or not? Are you going to continually and arbitrarily raise prices? Have retail food items then take them away because you simply refuse to learn how to order?
In the most cowardly and disgraceful of business moves, they have closed the doors to the Rice location. The ownership group gave some employees as much as 24 whole hours notice.
Some people simply do not deserve to own a business, among them are the now former owners.
Learn to treat people like people, then maybe think about opening a business. I for one will not support this location or their other business… Plate & Bottle. These are con artists of the worst kind.

I love this spot. It is very very chill. Great play list of music. Coffee is good serviceis better. Can’t beat the wine.

Love my neighborhood Mercantile! Great drinks, pastries, wine, and taco truck! Always pet friendly and there is a swing inside too!

Mercantile Montrose is a good place to study. Music is very soft and the environment is very quiet. You can fully focus on what needs to get done.
When I was at Mercantile, there were just 3 people, including me, studying there. This was awesome because all the tables were available and I felt like I was in charge of the place. On the other hand, I prefer places that are more populated. If I feel like I’m the only one studying at an internet coffee shop, it almost feels like I’m studying at home, therefore why to bother. I have to admit, I have been there right after a Houstonian thunderstorm, therefore this comment might be biased. I have been in other places in any environmental conditions and they were more populated anyway.
Cappuccino is good and nice to see, since it comes in a real ceramic cup (other places give you a sad paper cup) with a drawing on top of the foam. Internet is really fast (but maybe this is because we were only 3 of us).
One downside: Mercantile Montrose closes at 9pm.
I’ll be back here in case I need to focus really really hard, like I never studied before/​I don’t want to see anybody else.

A great collection of delicious bites, encompassing both the wholesome as well as the decadent, is on offer, along with a good collection of wine. There’s indoor chairs as well as the coffee is superb. I loved my doppio as well as the ambiance while running errands in the area, and certainly will be back shortly!

I used to live in Houston, but now I am New-​Yorker. However, my parents do live in H-​Town and every time I come there to visit that lovely couple, Mercantile Montrose is the second must-​to-​visit place. Seriously.
I love their ratio and cappuccino, and every time is seems and tastes even more delightful. Not only the menu, but the atmosphere is so quiet and laid-​back.
I think this spot is a godsend for students, who might be looking for a quiet place like that to come and study with a cup of delicious coffee. Don’t miss it. You’ll get a priceless experience!

Soooo disappointed as we drove out of our way to visit this shop based on their website. (Please update immediately as to what you’re claiming is very deceiving)
The store is spartanly stocked with wine and beer. Looks like it is shop who is going out of business with the everything must go sale. Barista’s had their jackets laying on the counter (bad hygiene!) and all of the saucers that we were served at chips with sharp edges. Not quite representative of a top 20 coffee shop.
When we asked what type of food we had available to go with our coffee drinks we were directed to the taco truck situated in the parking lot.
That being said the drinks were not bad and fancily decorated (we did like that!);however, we were disappointed that there are only four flavors for the coffee drinks. I guess we were prepared to be wowed and what we found was so very pedestrian.

After spending a few productive hours here on Sunday, I can say with high certainty that I will be back. Mercantile’s Montrose location is a bit funkier on the inside than the Rice Village location (working swing hanging from the ceiling, astroturf/​picnic table workspace near the back of the INSIDE of the shop) but is a FANTASTIC place to take advantage of the yummy caffeinated drinks and do work in a quiet environment; it was just about as quiet as a library. Sugar on top: my latte was good, the barista was friendly, and the taco truck parked outside made up for the lack of food options inside.

This place is perfect when you want to go somewhere quiet. There’s usually not very many people there and always somewhere to sit. Great craft beer/​wine selection.
Bonus points!: The barista just gave my latte to me for free, basically for no reason other than having to wait a bit longer than normal (which usually there is no wait time at all). Great customer service, all the guys that work there are lovely.
Also, there is a swing inside, which sounds like an awesome idea. In reality, it squeaks loudly and everyone will hate you if you swing too long. Lol.

preface: the coffee is tasty and the baristas were helpful and kind. if that was my only experience, I’d be giving a 5 star rating.
however, I happened to be there on a day when the owner stormed into the store and proceeded to berate the baristas. cursing, raising voice, etc. it was distasteful, unimpressive, and upsetting. we all have bad days, but treating your employees as subhuman is inexcusable. probably won’t be back too often, I have no desire to support an entity that exhibits such public, offensive behavior.

We live near this adorable, natural light-​flooded neighborhood coffee shop. I am always looking for an excuse to walk over and sample one of their many amazing espresso drinks. My favorites include the cortado (try it with soy), americano and they also make a mean cappuccino. The bakery is limited selection but the blueberry muffin (if you’re lucky enough to get one before they sell out) is so good! It has fresh blueberries and what tastes like whole wheat flour. So super delicious and not too sweet.
The staff are friendly and I have never waited longer than 3 – 5 minutes for my drink.
Love the kombucha and tea selections for when I’m not in the mood for coffee.
Great neighborhood spot that seems like a hidden gem only a few know about. I laugh as I drive by all the people waiting in line at Starbucks two block down. They don’t know what they’re missing!

Mercantile Montrose has a great concept: beer and coffee. I personally love the idea of a coffee shop that doubles as a market that mainly caters to beer and other goods that you wouldn’t typically find anywhere else.
The space here is set up really well if you’re looking for a place to work for a few hours. There is plenty of seating and the ambiance makes it easy to get work done.
The reason why I gave them 3 stars is because the coffee wasn’t very good. The vanilla latte has a very lavender taste to it and you can’t taste the espresso. I didn’t care for it. I wouldn’t come back for the coffee but maybe for the interesting beer selection.

One of my favorite study spots!
Hidden in a quaint residential part of Montrose, Mercantile has become my go-​to spot to really get on the grind.
[AESTHETIC]
As everyone mentions, the floor-​to-​ceiling windows brings in a ton of natural light. The mostly monochromatic color scheme is enhanced with hints of soft blue couches and wooden tables.
The music is all instrumental, played at a good volume. I recognize most of the tracks from the «Deep Focus» Spotify playlist, for reference.
The higher tables along the walls and windows have large working spaces, so you don’t feel super crowded if you’re sitting next to someone. Plenty of space for my textbooks, laptop and notebooks.
There’s a variety of seating options, from the higher tables aforementioned, as well as an L-​shaped couch, smaller tables throughout as well as a really long picnic-​like table towards the back sitting on top of some fake grass, encompassed by a cute white picket fence. The seats at the higher tables are stools w/​out a back, so if you need to work for a few hours, your back might start hurting, just a small thing to note.
The baristas are friendly, too! Right when I walked in, one of them greeted me with a, «Hey! How’s it going?»
Only downside was the bathroom – it smelled weird and it was dark, but I mean it’s just a bathroom, so def not a dealbreaker.
[DRINK]
Meh I just ordered an iced coffee. I asked for a little bit of milk, and it was perfect. I wasn’t in the mood for anything else, but I’m hoping to try out their espresso drinks at some point in the future!
[ETC.]
Free/​reliable Wifi!
It also has a private lot that had plenty of open spaces when I came on a weekday afternoon.
Overall, I like it! Def a fave study spot. Would come again when I need to get stuff done/​for the ambiance, but not necessarily because of the coffee (it was good, just not amazing/​lifechanging).

The coffee is not bad and the atmosphere is pretty cool (although my wife thinks it’s too bright and doesn’t like the faux outdoor patio section with astro turf, giant picnic table and swing). A lot of seating options and they have a mini grocery section with snacks, craft beer, wine, kombucha, etc. Sometimes they have live music, other times the employees are playing Super Smash Bros on a giant drop down screen (and they will invite you to join).
Sadly, in the last few months it seems like they’ve given up. They are no longer restocking the grocery section and have been out of chamomile tea the last four times I’ve been there. Pretty sure nobody is in charge or maybe they’re just slowly going out of business.

Love this coffeeshop because it is never quite packed, and it’s tucked in a residential corner right off of Montrose, that it’s not as well known.
The coffee is good, but I love the ambiance most. It’s a GREAT, my favorite really, study spot to really hammer out papers, read extensively, and or have a coffee afternoon with a friend. The floor-​to-​ceiling windows bring a lot of light into the space that is great. They have a myriad of couches, counters, tables, swing?, turf-​covered «picnic» area, that you can sit at, so it keeps things interesting.
The general age seems to be a bit higher than most other coffeeshops. I suppose because this has a more eccentric and artsy feel as opposed to a hip/​trendy place. Nevertheless, still one of my favorites when it comes to a study spot. Seems like others also enjoy going and rooting themselves there for a morning/​afternoon.
They have a small marketplace for you to also buy wine and other things, seems like they also have some wine tastings or happy hours from time to time, in addition to coffee. I like this location much more than Rice Village, much more spacious!

Biggest complaint: It smells freakin’ gross. I can’t identify exactly what it is, but it’s quite sickening. The stench is everywhere inside, and worse in the bathrooms.
Coffee: Good (boomtown beans)
Topo Chico: 50% they are out of Topo. This is a subjective con, personal to me.
Staff: Mostly introverts. Definitely not the overly chipper bunch. Some would consider this a plus.
Music: usually A+, even when it’s too loud it’s usually good. Most coffee shops get this totally wrong.
Study Environment: quiet… sometimes too quiet.
Indoor Seating: The layout and furniture need to be re-​thought. Whomever was the «interior designer» here needs to let someone else re-​imagine the space. There’s too much ikea furniture. The stools without backs are uncomfortable. Tables are either too high or too low. They need to really maximize the space to increase seating. So much valuable space is lost to the wine rack. My advice: Hire a professional consultant.
Outdoor seating: Limited. Probably not much can be done here.
Lighting: Needs to be re-​done. Use the fluorescent tubes only when closed/​cleaning. Add dimmable LEDs (i.e. Philips Hue).
Bottom Line: If this place would fix the smell, increase seating, & address the lighting it could become the popular coffee shop. Until then it will probably remain super slow & quiet, and likely close down in a year. There’s too many other great coffee options in the neighborhood (Siphon, Southside Espresso, etc.).

Simple & quiet coffee shop tucked away in the montrose area that I enjoyed. If you are an avid coffee drinker like me (I like it black baby!) then you will like this place. They are about the classics (simple roasts, Americanos, espressos) and not the mocha Choca lata yaya hype at Starbucks.
They have free wifi and a few simple 2 seater tables out front and adequate interior seating.
This would be a good coffee shop to work from due to the chill nature (as I have done a few times) parking was plentiful in the late morning and mid afternoon.

Mercantile Montrose is fairly good, but your better option is about 1 – 2 miles away with Blackhole Coffee. Blackhole has better hours and coffee, although the two spots share many similarities.
Mercantile is open until 9:00pm-ish, but don’t expect to stay around too long. While their coffee is quite good, the shop just isn’t that inviting. It doesn’t know what it wants to be, and with limited seating, you’ll likely be a bit confused on what to do with yourself if you brought your study materials or laptop and find yourself with nowhere to go.
Like Southside Espresso, Mercantile stops drip coffee after a certain hour, so you’ll be stuck with an Americano (don’t bother) or «gold-​cup» coffee, which is alright.
Parking is fairly easy, and the place very quiet as it gets later in the night. Admittedly, I went on a Thursday after dinner around 8:00pm, and there were only three other people in the shop.
Again, pertaining to identity, Mercantile doesn’t know what it wants to be, classy or hipster. Almost every coffee shop has one. I expected Mercantile to be a bit on the nicer end, but at the wall are two couches torn to shreds. Not sure what they’re going for…
Good coffee, but you can find better: Black Hole, Boomtown, Antidote. Granted, if you’re looking for a change, this one is worth checking out, and also nice to go to once in a while to get some variety. Just don’t expect to drop by on a regular basis.

Came here after work for the first time with two friends. Only one barista was working, but it wasn’t too busy so it was fine. The interior is very spacious, with both a couch area and tables. There’s a swing hanging inside — super cute!
Onto the coffee: I took advantage of the fact that they don’t charge extra for soy or almond milk and got an iced vanilla soy latte. It was pretty decent, I would say. I was more impressed that soy and almond didn’t cost extra!
The overall atmosphere of the place makes it less conducive for talking loudly or hanging out without feeling a little guilty towards the other people sitting quietly, reading or studying.

Like everyone has been saying, Mercantile is a really awesome study spot. Everyone you see is absorbed in their own work, to the extent that you kind of feel bad holding a conversation with somebody. It’s the place to be if you feel a bit introverted, and also want to get a lot of work done.
The music plays at a low volume, there are plenty of seats, and the wifi password is printed helpfully on the wall. It’s spacious enough for it to never seem crowded, and the natural lighting from the windows is a plus as well. You’ll want to snag a seat along the walls and windows, though, because that’s where the outlets are.
As for drinks, I’ve tried the chai latte and the flat white. The chai latte was nothing special, but the flat white was pretty good! I’ll definitely be back for those days I want to spend with myself.