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| - To my knowledge, there is only one other 24-hour coffee house in the greater Phoenix area (The Grand near ASU downtown), and in general only a handful of other coffee shops open past 8PM. So that right there gives them stars on stars.
As a student usually working after hours, I usually go with UB over the grand because
1. 24-hour breakfast burritos
2. more light = less drowzy
3. It doesn't turn into a poppin bar after 7:00 (though sometimes this is the main reason I would choose the Grand instead).
UB has an AMAZING vegan pastry/food/ice cream selection as well as a fun cocktail menu. The drinks are alright, but that is where the 4 stars/5 comes in for me. Example: I love a good date shake and I've ordered theirs three times with different results each time... but unfortunately all sub-par. Their iced teas are excellent however, and no complaints about any of the espresso drinks I've ever ordered, though sadly nothing to write home about.
The other reason I gave 4/5 stars concerns the staff. There's some fantastic people working here, but that hasn't been my experience across the board. Excellent customer service appears (to me) to be based more on person-to-person character than on company training. Most of the time I have no qualms, but on occasion there is an aloof or indifferent attitude on the other side of the counter. But, to their credit, if I was working at 2AM I probably wouldn't be all that excited either.
The primary UB assets that keep me coming back are location (proximity to Buffalo Exchange is a BIG plus ;) ), open 24hrs/7 days a week, a chill atmosphere (live music sometimes), the huge 24-hr vegan-friendly menu, and consistent wifi. Also, maybe a dumb thing to add, but I work in a coffee shop that doesn't have an in-house bathroom, and UB has two... so if you're on a study marathon, no fear- you're not away from your laptop for long.
Would definitely recommend giving them a try!
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