Higher Grounds Coffee Café

Their breakfast burrito is one of my all-time favorites, especially paired with their red salsa.

Being time is one thing you can 't get back, neither is money spent on a so so black bean burger!!! Shall we begin?Context is key to a review as the reader may wanna know, why did he choose this spot? Well being HGCC is the only viable eatery in the Kaiser Permante Garfield Med Ctr complex they ain 't got no real competition within nearly 5mi. give or take a mile. So being I no other offering besides fasting which in hindsight may have be the wiser choice I choose what was behing door C , HGCC, while waiting to pickup the wifey who was having a supposedly quick and rountine outpatient procedure. Which meant I couldn 't stray too far.Off the rip, the atmosphere is pleasing and inviting. I always like to to peak around before I eat to see what the locals are doing. Since it 's in on KP 's land theres sure to be brown baggers in there eating along with actual patrons, so I always read the room to check the temp no medical pun intended but it hit like it was meant to be one so why edit it out before I step up to order. Along with scanning who is on the other end of the spatulas as well. Usually a well kept chef/cook will usually produce the same in regards to your meal. (FYI, that 's a free one on the house!! After all the pre order checklist requirements were met I waited patiently in line after I scanned and found the de facto Vegan offering, the dreaded Black Bean burger . I gave the order taker the usual but polite 5th degree line of questioning ensuring my order would actually be vegan and could I request omissions of anything from the standard prep within reason that would ensure it was vegan. After my line of questioning met my critieria I took the plunge and ordered it with strict no mushy center instructions!! As with life somethings aren 't worth the wait. And I say that politely as possible with respect to the lead cashier/mangerment type who took my 2nd trip to the counter as he ain 't feeling our vegan burger offering... He could not have been any further from the truth than that 1st order attempt at being a burger!! See I don 't have an unattainable standard when it comes to a Black Bean Burger, especially when my first order verbiage was specifc in regards to making sure it was cooked beyond the mushy within a reasonable amount of charring to ensure I wasn 't gonna be basically eating a black bean burrito on bun!! Apparently the chef didn 't get the memo and I got that burrito on a bun! Only some pico de gallo and cilantro could 've saved their black bean Burgeritto they were passing off as a burger!!After the brief exchange with lead cashier/manager I was ensured the re do would be per my request. And did they ever overdo it. I got back a crispy on the outside still mushy on the inside redux and dared not return it as I 'm not that guy. You had two attempts, a third would be me expecting the unattainable and when this occurs I politely fall back and let the keystrokes do what the gonna do!! In the world of vegan black bean burgers there 's only one way to get it right. No mushy is the first pre requisite, with flavorful being next up. Not all establishments have the skills and/or correct recipe to make a decent black bean burger, but alas they still keep it on the menu? Why? I can 't be the first vegan who nixxed their offering? Or am I just a snob? Naw, I couldn 't be the first!!! LOL!! A snob? Mmmmm, your culinary prep offering will vary on that. But seriously I couldn 't be the first? Anywho, the good part of the meal was them tasty azz fries and the occupanying house made BBQ dipping sauce. Which I assured didn 't have any High Corn Fructose as it 's base, but I won 't tell if it did cuz it was bonkers!! Had they got the black bean burger up to half the goodness as that BBQ sauce, this review would 've ended about 3 paragraphs ago. But since they didn 't, we here!!So if you ever in the KP Garfield Med Ctr and looking for a vegan meal and can�

Visited after my Mom had a procedure next door at Kaiser. I really didn't expect much more than convenience of location. Pleasantly surprised! This guy is running a quality business. We had delicious shrimp, peach summer type salads, super fresh brewed iced tea and he made my Mom a piece of toast on the side since she was feeling a bit wobbly after the procedure. He was hustling, filling orders for the nurses and doctors coming in. The indoor seating was spacious and cool for the hot day. I'd definitely return to this cafe!

So I 'm here waiting for a friend to come out of physical therapy in the Kaiser Permanente building. And I saw the sign 'Higher Grounds ' I like that. I am having the lavender infused honey latte with soy. It is so freaking yummy. Now I get to sit here at the outside Cafe with the waterfalls inl the background and the bamboo breaching the stones all around me. Very good landscaping

What a great cafe. Very friendly service and a great selection of food and coffees. Highly recommend coming here Ic you're in the area (even if you don't have to be/drop someone off at Kaiser!