Colectivo Coffee on Monroe Street

I ordered a simple, extra-large iced coffee, nothing fancy. It took nearly 15 minutes to appear while people behind me with orders requiring espresso shots and fussy assembly got their orders well before I did. The coffee was good, but I was not impressed with the service.

I like this place a lot, but I ordered eggs and bacon on a bagel I expected just eggs. They put red pepper and onions in the eggs without letting me know. It is not posted that this is how it's made. It should be stated somewhere that they add this to their eggs. I do have to say their scones are delicious!

I love their coffee and espresso, even if the espresso of the week tends to be too bright to drink straight. I will often ask for a scoop of vanilla ice cream and two shots of espresso (an affogato) and they are usually happy to let me order it off the menu. Honestly, I don't know why they don't just make it official and put it on the menu - yum!

The building itself is comfortable, with lots of great seating and ambiance. The free WiFi is sometimes not operational, which can be annoying.

The baked goods are fantastic and the food on their menu is very good for a coffee shop. I would come here just to eat lunch or breakfast.

Parking can be a challenge, especially with the recent construction.

I remember when this place was Pasquale's Mexican restaurant and it was amazing. This neighborhood is top-notch and will always hold a special place in my heart. The coffee shop is unique and definitely a good place to hang out.

Love the coffee, cute atmosphere.
As far as the service, well I asked for a favor, assuming they would grind it for free, which they did. But I asked for course grind. He asked me what kind of maker I have. I told him kuereg, I shouldn't have. Nice exchange of words and all, but I got home now, about 65 miles away, to find he did me a "favor" and fine powder is what I get. Even if I use the bulb before each cup, I get about 1 shot of coffee per brew.
Next time I guess I'll have to watch over your shoulder so you can learn how to do what s asked of you instead of second guessing my request.
I'll still come back though, your store sells a great product. Been drinking this same coffee a long time now just medium, or course grind.

GET THE BLUEBERRY MUFFIN. IT IS SO GOOD 👍👍👍👍👍🥐🥐🥐🥐🥐 .... or the chocolate croissants

Colectivo seems like a fancy little hole-in-the-wall shop which belongs perfectly in Madison's lineup.
Atmosphere. It's very cozy, there's a fireplace, and the whole building as a sort of "Built out of a Brennan's/garage" aesthetic, which actually works to its advantage! There's plenty of seating, but the place, like always, is slammed. Still, if ever I could find them when they weren't busy, I could see plunking down with my laptop for a few hours to get work done.
Pastries: There's a ton of options! And they're alright. Some are complicated, some aren't. I like that aspect, a little for everyone. I'll say they could improve the chocolate croissant. It's disappointing to see that much air between the bread and the chocolate when something like Panera's variant is up front about what it has to offer.
Food: Their sandwiches are pretty good as well. They're nothing groundbreaking, but they'll fill you up. Pretty light fare. Haven't been able to order anything unappealing yet.
Coffee. Every time I go here, no matter what I order, it always tastes like their milk has gone sour. Not to mention the portions are extremely small. I have no idea why this is. It feels like they get their coffee from True Coffee Roasters (correct me on that) in terms of...coffeeness. But the milk is just horrible.

Three stars. It's average. There's some real potential here to make the boutique coffee place they seem to want, but they gotta change up their ingredients. If you want atmosphere, this is your place. If you want good coffee, go somewhere else.

Pleasant atmosphere, food is generally good (especially the sweets and the homemade, spicy salsa). Coffee is good - note that it tends toward the bright/acidic side. I've found in the past that food service at the Monroe location is generally a bit slower than some other locations.

Beautiful neighborhood coffee shop with fast wifi. Comfortable and varied seating; you can get a table or sit at the living-room-like chairs around a heating stove that's great in the winter. In the summer they have garage-type doors they roll up to let the nice weather in and they also have outside benches.

The coffee is great (as in not burnt tasting like Starbucks) and so is the food, if a tad expensive for what you get. Bakery choices are so-so and aren't as fresh as I would like, but then again this isn't a bakery. Staff is mostly friendly college kids but you can tell they're in assembly-line mode because the place is always so busy.

Parking is the only con as there's almost none of it and I feel bad for the people who live on Sprague St. because it's become the new Collectivo parking lot. This makes popping in on your way to work for a coffee kind of challenging which, when I think about it, is a good thing because then it would be one of those perpetually dirty, over-extended, transient coffee shops. Near the bike path and also lots of places to lock up your bike outside.

Far and away better than any Starbucks and light years better than the Victor Allen's across the street that just closed.

One of my favorite Colectivo locations in Madison. It was the first one, having first been an Alterra based in Milwaukee, and with the name change and Milwaukee roots, it's a great Wisconsin coffee roaster. I love the lighter roasts and the double point days on Tuesdays.

There was a remodel a couple of years ago that provided more individual seating with counters along the windows, which ensured more availability for patrons.