san diego coffee and tea and spice and crap

you know the feeling when a good friend lets you down? someone you used to depend on but that you can't anymore? that's kind of how it feels with san diego coffee tea and spice, the current incarnation of the non-starbucks coffee shop in kensington. i've always avoided the starbucks across the street (gotta support local businesses) even as i gaze longingly at the new comfy orange cushions on the patio furniture while my ass goes numb on the rickety wooden patio chairs at sdct&s. but as the quality of service erodes and the pet peeves increase, it makes you wonder why you're even there.

it hasn't always been this way - when kensington coffee company changed ownership a few years back it was remodeled with new hardwood floors, an interior paint job, bigger windows, and some decent furniture. 2006 or so seems to be a high point when they had a super-friendly staff and fun regulars, but it's been solidly downhill since then. from deteriorating furniture to certain borderline-hostile staff to wireless that consistently never works, sdct&s hits all the low points.

staff are a mixed bag, but for the most part the service is slow and can be a train wreck during peak times. our friend stood in line for 10 minutes on a recent weekend and bailed to starbucks when it became clear he wouldn't be getting his fix anytime soon. as some have noted on yelp, staff often stand around or chat in the back while one person bears the load. and unless you're decked out in all your hipster greatness you can be subjected to the cool disapproval vibe. but that's actually preferable to the blatant man-hate a particular barista projects.

i can appreciate funky old furniture in a coffee shop, but this place has featured a table at below-knee height, leather couches that you can't get out of, and patio furniture straight out of the museum of man's torture exhibit. step into cafe cabaret across the SR 15 bridge on adams or filter on 30th in north park and it's clear that comfortable yet usable cafe furniture isn't too hard to do.

finally, what's up with the wireless? it hasn't worked the last half-dozen times i've been in there. and don't expect the staff to help - "the music's working so the wireless must be". hmm... does that mean someone on the internet actually still has a hard on for "comfortably numb"?

i'm not going to give up on sdct&s though, since it's the only independent that i can walk to. just keep an eye on that electrical box, since the next fire that erupts from that thing might not wait for the fire extinguisher to arrive from across the street.