I have been here twice with mixed experiences. The pastries are very good, I had an almond croissaint and it was really nice & felt like good value. Both times however I have been disappointed with the quality of coffee and didn't feel especially welcomed by the staff. I can also understand having a no laptop policy at weekends when you are busy, but being told I cannot use my laptop at mid day on a thursday when I was the only person in there & had specifically gone there to work is pretty ridiculous.
How Headingley cafés answer their Google reviews
In August 2026 we read every reply we could find published by 11 cafés in Headingley — 200 of them. This page is what we counted. Nothing on it is estimated, and no business is named.
Replies here run longer than the Leeds median — 23 words against 18. Longer is not better: past a certain point a reply reads as defensive, and the reader stops. 60% of them touch nothing the reviewer actually wrote.
One Headingley review, answered twice
——— ———, Thankyou for taking the time to review us. I’m really pleased you enjoyed our almond croissants. Thankyou for sharing. I’m obviously disappointed to hear we did not hit the mark with your coffee. We take everything we do incredibly seriously. If there is anything wrong with any of our products please let us know so we can deal with it immediately and put it right for you on the spot. I have noted your feedback about not being made to feel particularly welcome and i will bring this up with the team. This is an area we pride ourselves on and an important elment of what I am trying to achieve at COTC. I’m so sorry this was not the case for you. ——— regarding the patio policy. That is all my fault entirely. IWe want ——— to be a social space and a n escape from work and study demands. I ask all my staff to enforce this policy so as to be fair and consistent to everyone even if we are quiet.Please do email me at ——— and I will get a voucher sent out to you. Many thanks ———îm
Two things worth separating here. The laptop policy applies through the week, not just at weekends — that is a considered choice, not an oversight, and midday Thursday is no exception. On the coffee, two visits is a fair sample, and if it didn't land either time that is worth us knowing. The almond croissant, at least, seems to have done its job.
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