Cafe Costes

I’m a bit confused by the place. Is it a bar? A coffee shop? A sandwich shop? In trying to be too many things I don’t think it succeeds. Came here for the lunch offer but one beer was off, lessening the appeal. Sandwiches were a bit on the dry side. Service was friendly but I couldn’t reconcile the nice décor with overly aggressive laminated signs pointing out that the place isn’t a waiting room and the toilets aren’t for paying customers. Surely the staff are there to politely remind people? Just put me off a bit. With so much competition locally, I think this place needs to improve.

This is a great place for an afternoon coffee and a chat. And by coffee I mean Coke…
I usually meet people on their lunch break and go here. It’s Ideal for business meetings not too crowded and feels like you can have a private chat without being overheard.
It only looses a star as I’m not terribly convinced by the food range.

I have walked passed this coffee shop hundreds of times and never felt overly inclined to go in. As I have stated, we are spoiled for choice for Independent Coffee Shops in Birmingham and this particular one just feels a bit… at odds with itself. Let me explain… the signage is nice, glass and silver and the outdoor seating always looks quite welcoming in the summer. I think the problem is the champagne buckets and the empty bottles of wine in the window. Is it a wine bar or a coffee shop?
So, anyway… I had a meeting yesterday and my companion suggested Café Costes as it was pretty local to us both and shouldn’t be too busy at 1pm. Firstly, the place is a T.A.R.D.I.S! It’s got a good range of seating available inside and can fit groups up to 5 on a table or smaller groups on comfy armchair style arrangements.
I grabbed a salad (eat in £4) and ordered an Americano (can’t remember the price of this). I was given a table number and located a table near the back of the venue to await my companions. As I had chosen a boxed salad, I was offered to have this in a bowl (as I was eating in). A small, but nice option which I agreed to. The coffee was perfectly pleasant… but was served with two cartons of UHT milk? Really? UHT? This is totally unacceptable for a place trying to be a coffee shop. It has consequently lost it a star.
It was a shame really, as the salad was perfectly nice and the service was prompt and friendly. The venue was clean and has a disabled toilet and is wheelchair accessible. I wouldn’t avoid Café Costes, but I’m still confused as to it’s identity. I wouldn’t use it a nightspot and obviously, wouldn’t go for coffee. The food seemed to be fine… but what does that make it?
I wouldn’t put anyone off giving this a go. See what you think. My opinion is that there are better coffee and tea options just over the road and around the corner. As for it being a wine bar, I can’t imagine it having much of an atmosphere in the evening — but that being said, I’ve never been before so can’t judge.

I popped in again and talked about running some events on a Saturday. It turns out Steve & Sally are the new owners and have been around for six months. Who new!
Unfortunately, they don’t open for the city centre shoppers on a Saturday still, not even for a trial run for the German market shoppers but I really hope that changes soon!

Café Costes is housed in a beautiful Victorian building but can easily be missed. The café covers a huge amount of space which I think the owners have struggled to decorate. It can seem a little cold/​sterile in there at times.
It is however perfect for when you need a quiet spot to get some work done in town. It has decent substantial food and a good choice of hot and cold drinks. Worth a visit for peace — It is just round the corner from the sometimes unbearably busy and noisy Urban Coffee Company.
Free Wifi

So I entered Café Costes today, expecting it to be a bit crap because of the previous review. Now, first things first; I have to say I don’t find it similar at all to any of the other smaller, independent coffee houses in town. I think the only café I’ve not yet visited is Café Blend so maybe that is where the similarity lies.
This place is unique in the fact that is is huge and quite dimly lit with what seem like pretty low ceilings (from what I can remember). I popped in to grab a take away latte and had a good look around while the barista was making it. The furniture in the café is pretty nice and there are a variety of seating styles to accomodate most types of meeting. There are lots of nicely displayed prints of paintings on the walks and I was surprised to see one of my favourite images by Norman Rockwell (a man tattooing a sailor). This place is great, I thought as I imagined myself sitting in there all day on my laptop.
I went back to the counter to get my drink and had a look at what else was on offer. Everything was reasonably priced with snacks starting from just 20p and all food under a fiver, including breakfasts.
I was just planning my next visit and what breakfast I was going to go for when everything went a bit downhill. I asked if I could pay by card but, unlike other cafes I’ve been to, they have a £5 minimum spend. I then quickly had to find something else to buy and was getting a bit flustered as I was on my last fiver before payday and was already late for a meeting. I opted for 3 cans of Coke and a KitKat.
After all this my coffee was a bit rubbish. I do take soya milk in my coffee, some might argue that that is why, but I always get a perfectly good cup from ⁶⁄₈ and even Costa, so it is possible.
Unfortunately this, and the minimum card spend, has brought my rating of Café Costes down from 4 stars to just 3.
I will go there again for breakfast and a smoothie but I’ll avoid the coffee as I found it weak, watery and flavourless. Sorry guys.
Obviously ignore this review if you drink regular milk and want to spend over a fiver.

Located near Snow Hill train station, Café Costes failed to overly impress me after my visit.
A problem with a lot of café’s around the Birmingham area is similarity. Too many small coffee houses are all heading down the same route with Café Costes no different.
Despite this, m visit was still pleasant if brief. The interior was surprisingly spacious with low-​lit lighting providing a perfect balance with the scorching sun outside.
Costes offered a range of Sandwhiches alongside the usual variety of coffee. As with many cafes now, free Wi-​Fi was added in what was an extremely comfy venue.
Without being remarkable, Café Costes still did a job and with its friendly staff, the visit was worth it, if not life changing.

Located on the former site of a somewhat upmarket chippy on Newhall Street, Coffee Costes is a pleasant little café which serves a selection of light lunchtime fare, as well as a variety of hot and cold drinks. They also encourage customers to «ask about our hot wraps». The options available consist of a couple of meat options, meaning that this vegetarian would have to pass on the offer.
When I visited, they seemed to be updating their menus (the prices under ‘pastas’ were listed as «coming soon»). In addition, when I picked up one of their sandwiches, the price ended up being 15p more than the one listed on the menu. I was a little put off by this, as the price I had expected was already a little higher than I would have liked. All the same, the sandwich was tasty enough, with cheese and a mixture of peppers.
The service was friendly and the venue itself was spacious, if a little dark. Not bad, but the place lacks a certain something to set it apart from the many other similar cafes throughout the city.