Ninth Street Espresso
“Delightful little espresso bar with nice little selection of pastries at the Lombardy Hotel.”
“I will bounce between here and the similarly excellent Little Collins in the hopes that they both survive and prosper!”
“Underneath the cash register, there is a little case of pastries from Balthazar's: plain and almond croissants, danishes, and muffins.”
Ninth Street Espresso
Take-out: Yes
Price range.
$ Price range Under $10
8 reviews
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Ninth Street Espresso is situated right next door to the Lombardy and is a walkable distance from the Lexington Ave / 59th St station. It is also connected to the hotel from the lobby if you go past the steakhouse and the salon.
I had the pleasure to visit during a weekend trip to the city and my stay at the hotel gave out complimentary breakfast vouchers for coffee and a pastry. The shop offers a limited selection, which works in their favor of specializing in select pastries. The case held croissants, mufffins, and danishes. Hot and iced coffees/teas with self help to the milk, creamers, sugar, and a few other things.
Having tried the iced coffee, raspberry muffin, and plain croissant, the clear winner in the mix was the muffin! It was moist and minimally sweet, with the flavor of tart raspberries. The croissant was not as flaky to my liking and no offer was made to toast it or warm it up a bit. As for the coffee, as I usually like mine iced and black, I did not favor the taste of it here and had to add milk in it. Not sure why it didn't have a stronger coffee taste but the milk made it better.
Not many people were there on a Sunday morning around 930am but it is kind of in a quiet area with less foot traffic.
Small spot with a simple menu. The staff are friendly. The space seems slightly misleading. It appears bigger, but the it's pretty cozy with limited seating. I stopped by to pick up coffee for myself and a friend. The coffee was pretty straightforward – nothing to rave home about, but not bad either. If anything, the sizes were a bit small for the price. I was a bit surprised – for the location and vibe – but Ninth Street Espresso is CASH ONLY. For someone who rarely has cash on hand (which is really my own fault), I was taken aback for a second.
Jenny is the sweetest barista. This ninja location of Ninth St Espresso has been here 3 years. Spacious with lots of standing height counters. And vurry good coffee.
Like everyone has stated, the menu is small. Which I like. For the coffee lovers who like theirs black with no cream and sugar, like me, you have a good spot you'll have to stop by.
Friendly and smiley staff. When I stopped by in the morning, it was t crowded but it was all business men in their suites that were there. So it's more like a get-your-coffee-and-go type of place. There are seating areas too but not like a table and let's catch up with friends type of place.
Maybe I'm blind but I didn't find a sleeve for the to-go coffee cups. I like my coffee super hot so I love how they serve it like that BUT my hands were burning trying to hold the cup while walking from the shop to work.lol.
Oh and BIG side note…this place is CASH ONLY! Make sure you got some lettuce on hand to pay.
This location does not say… lounge here…find a corner and read a book. Instead it's more like watch that step while coming in! Or you won't be going to 7th Heaven of caffeine… it will be more like 6 ft under. No but seriously.. watch your step when you come in.
All kidding aside this location is not on Ninth Street. This coffee shop is a local New York chain that began on 10th street. A chain where every location does not look the same. These chains are more like siblings. You have the foodie sis in Chelsea Market, the artsy beer lover in Gowanus and this is the smart, attorney older brother in Midtown East.
Aside from it's look you are still getting the same delicious and creamy lattes you would get in every location. I can always depend on Ninth Street to meet my high expectations. They also have gorgeous merch. I have their tattoo inspired thermos and I love it! And I get compliments allll the time on it. And it never spills in my purse…knock on wood. They also have a number of tasty baked morsels to pick from. I have been know to enjoy a treat and coffee and skedaddle back to work.
It's an OK place but it has really bad coffee. Didn't like it at all. It lacks body and flavor.
I ordered an americano and honestly it was like flavored water.
Also, a very small size coffee for $3. I wouldn't recommend it because I won't go back.
The staff is nice though…
The place is midst in the market. The staff is vwry friendly, the caffee is good and they sell beans if you like!
Dangerously close to work, pleasantly Italian. While you can have it to go and in different sizes, the cappuccino at Ninth Street Espresso is the real deal, quite possibly better than the original, in that they really take their time to whip it up. Or foam it up. Also relevant that different baristas manage to keep the quality and texture consistent, which I think that's where many other coffee places struggle with. But please, take it "to stay, and small".
The sweets are intriguing and well presented, although I found some to be overly, well, sweet. The banana chocolate bread is different than the usual and it has that "baked at home" feel, which depending on your prowess with the oven might be a scary proposition. In that scenario, the coconut sandwich with chocolate filling is the perfect, unorthodox dipping candidate. It works, all the time.
Ninth Street Espresso does not like your credit cards, so don't even try to swipe one. They also don't want you to seat comfortably, as coffee should be served "by the bar", as they have it in Italy. The couple of stools do the job, but a larger group won't be happy. Overall, too good a cappuccino to get bothered by menial back ache and the inevitable coin counting routine.