Sur Coffee
Started by San Diego-based founders, this coffee roaster has Huntington Beach and San Clemente cafes
Opened in San Clemente early in 2020 – five years after its San Diego-based founders were inspired by a trip to Oaxaca, Mexico to begin roasting their own coffee – Sur Coffee (aka Sur Coffee Roasters) now operates three Orange County cafes (two in San Clemente, one in Huntington Beach) plus a fourth location inside sister shop OB Beans in San Diego. A tightly focused online menu consisting almost entirely of coffee and tea drinks expands in person to include additional drinks (specials, glasses of wine) and food choices: croissants, cinnamon rolls, muffins, scones, and danishes, plus limited breakfast items.
On our first and only visit in March 2026, the flagship San Clemente shop had a Sunday morning line extending just beyond its front door, plus enough seating indoors and out to accommodate roughly the entire crowd of dozens of people. Shelves full of merch were obvious before we reached the front counter to place orders – only lightly challenging for first-timers because those drink specials and food items aren’t listed online – and thanks to strategic menu limitations and attentive staff, our order of four items didn’t take long to prepare: five or ten minutes, though neither the apple cider muffin ($5.40) nor the cinnamon roll ($5.50) we chose appeared to have actually been heated, after we said “yes” when asked if we wanted them warm.
Those food items and two drinks – a White Sands ($6.60) and an Earl Grey Cappuccino ($6.20) – turned out to be nothing special. Seemingly pre-batched coffee at the base of the White Sands drink was strong but cappuccino-style milky even before it was mixed with the substantial cinnamon- and cocoa-dusted vanilla cream top layer above it, resulting in something even less coffee-like than a typical latte. Made with bergamot syrup and espresso rather than tea, the Earl Grey Cappuccino had modest tea flavor and similarly heavy milk, tasting more of honey and dairy than anything else. Similar issues with the cinnamon-heavy, apple-light muffin and lukewarm, dry, cream cheese-covered cinnamon bun made them feel more like early morning sustenance than treats.
After one visit to Sur Coffee, we’re not planning to return for more. That said, we applaud the brand for its social consciousness, including support for direct trade coffee producers, single moms, and kids in Mexico, and hope that its cafes do well in the future.
Stats
Price: $
Service: Counter
Open Since: 2020
Addresses
118 S. El Camino Real
San Clemente, CA 92672
214 5th St. #102
Huntington Beach, CA 92648
Additional location in San Clemente
Instagram: @surcoffee