11th Hour Coffee: A Santa Cruz Gem for Coffee Lovers and Foodies

A beautiful coffee shop with plenty of plants and seating. The staff were all kind and helpful and the coffee was delicious. Would definitely come back for a hang out with a friend or a book!

One of my favorite cafes in the Bay Area! This Santa Cruz staple features amazing coffee, stellar food, great vibes, and a super friendly team. I dropped by for brunch during a weekend beach trip, and I was blown away by how good everything was. The coffee is fantastic — nutty, rich, and smooth — and they have a great selection of beans you can take home to try. I love the plain taste of espresso, so I loved their cappuccino (closely followed by the latte), but they also have a bunch of other fun drinks for those who would rather not get hit with a strong taste of coffee. Their raspberry mocha has an exceptional raspberry flavor that goes wonderfully with the chocolate and slight notes of coffee in the background. The matcha was sweet but quite tasty and refreshing, especially when iced. The food was somehow even more impressive than their drinks. We tried a smattering of dishes, including the tomato galette, brunch bowl, and loaded avocado toast. The galette was outstanding — the combo of buttery, flakey pastry with the salty cheese, herbaceous and nutty pesto, and juicy, perfectly roasted tomatoes was completely unbeatable. The larger, entree-style dishes were just as impressive. I loved the loaded avocado toast, which featured a very generous helping of avocado, two perfectly poached eggs, greens, and chili oil over a springy, flavorful slice of focaccia. The egg yolks were perfectly runny, the micro greens offered a lovely pop of freshness, and the chili oil really helped bring the whole dish together. It wasn’t particularly spicy, but had a great umami and deeply savory flavor — I’d honestly love to have double or triple the amount of chili crisp. The bread wasn’t my favorite focaccia in the world, but it served as a wonderful vessel for everything else. I also loved the brunch bowl, which was a hearty and delicious combo of quinoa, greens, watermelon radish, tomatoes, avocado, walnuts, and a poached egg. Every element clearly added something to the dish — I loved the crunch from the walnuts and radish, pop of freshness from the veggies, nuttiness and heft from the quinoa, and creaminess from the runny egg yolk and avocado. It was also served with a lovely creamy lemon dressing, which helped bind together and brighten up the whole dish. To top off an already amazing food and beverage experience, the space is also wonderful. It’s quite spacious inside, but this spot is so popular that it often fills up. They have a large garden patio in the back with extra seating, although that tends to get pretty crowded too. If you manage to snag a spot, though, it’s a really cozy place to settle down for a bit. The staff is super friendly, helpful, and efficient. It often takes a little bit to get food orders since the kitchen can get a bit backed up, but it’s more than understandable given how many people frequent this place, and it’s more than worth the wait.

I had the santa cruz fog here and did some light reading! Excellent service. I almost couldn't have the santa cruz fog because one of the baristas said they had run out of ingredients, but they pulled through to make me one because I had my heart set on it Absolutely love the vibes here too! The ambiance is warm and inviting. The perfect place to sit and chat or work. There's also outlets and plenty of different types of seating both indoors and outdoors.

I get their Santa Cruz Fog with oat milk. It's good. I often get the yogurt bowl which is tasty. Today I got a egg dish with potatoes, black beans and Wichita cheese. Wow, the flavors were amazing and it was a generous serving. The baked goods are always excellent. It's a good atmosphere with both inside and outside seating. The service is good as well.

We were greeted by the friendliest clerk taking our order. Unfortunately, we arrived after the kitchen was closed hence our options were a bit limited. We indulged ourselves in a couple scones,the plain and the cheddar cheese, both we great. The drinks, a golden chai and a matcha latte over ice were made to perfection. This is my second visit. I can't wait to come back again.

Coffee shop with delicious and interesting drinks and a really cool atmosphere. The inside feels like you're sitting in a little forest with all the plants and natural light coming through the skylights. It's a great place to hang out and relax or get some work done. I got the honey bee latte and it was sweet and smooth with a subtle amount of honey and lavender. I'd definitely come back Drinks: 8/10 Service: 8/10 Atmosphere: 9/10 Value: 8/10

11th hour has great coffee and a really cool cafe! there’s tons of seating and the outdoor area is really nice & a chill atmosphere. recommend if you’re in the santa cruz area and want a place to hangout with friends or do online work.

Coffee and vibes were chill but the biscuit breakfast sandwich was unreal. Came for the coffee and most definitely stayed for the breakfast. Cool spot and run really well. Appreciate all the heart that goes into the food and drinks, it really shows. Hope to be back one day!