Sundance Coffee in San Francisco, California: A Review

Sundance Coffee is a new-ish coffee joint in the Mission offering up organic and fair trade roasts as well as free WiFi, a fairly spacious environs and central air conditioning. Apparently it's actually got mini-chain aspirations around the city of San Francisco, as there's also another location that has opened up not too far away over in the Dogpatch neighborhood off of Third Street.

Coffee is definitely on the pricey side here, exceeding even Starbucks prices by a bit. It's $1.65 for a 12 oz., $1.80 for a 16 oz. and a 20 oz. will set you back $1.95. I take it this is due to the fact that the beans are certified organic and fair trade direct from little farms in Guatemala, Columbia, Brazil and Sumatra. The usual range of more elaborate drinks are also on offer from about $2.50 to $3.50 - latte, mocha, white mocha, chai latte and cappucino. Americanos, espressos and machiattos are also available for a more nominal $1.50 to $1.95. You can also get a number of "Freezes", their variant on iced coffee - these are available in mocha, white mocha, caramel latte and chai varieties.

Food selection is pretty limited - bagels, muffins, cookies, scones, banana bread, and a few types of pre-made sandwiches and salad. The banana bread is pretty good, I didn't think anything else looked all that inspiring.

Odds and ends - whereas the Dogpatch location keeps some odd hours, this location is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Not the greatest hours, but passable. They sell beans by the pound for $11.75. They also claim to be local and the "first business venture for a local investor" as a selling point, but they don't seem to want to identify the investor? Being local doesn't necessarily mean anything in and of itself, there's plenty of local rich people who are insufferable. This guy may not be one of them, I dunno, but it's weird that they want to play up the "local" angle but then don't tell you who runs the operation or anything about them.

If you plan to take advantage of the free WiFi, ask the nice girls who usually work the counter for the password when you get your order, and be aware the place isn't overly well supplied with power outlets. For the slight premium you pay in the pricing you'll get an OK quiet and comfortable environment with pretty good WiFi, OK coffee and some pretty decent banana bread on hand. I guess the clientele they are going for is definitely more the Potrero Hill banking/office crowd than the Mission locals, given the price scheme and the somewhat sterile interior design, but if you want to just sit and work on the computer and not be bothered by a lot of distractions this place does work out pretty well. It's not one of my first choices in either the city or the neighborhood, but if I find myself needing some WiFi and banana bread I'll hit it up when it is convenient.