Cartel has been my go-to coffee house for single origin espresso and pour over, however as of late - I feel that the customer service has declined. \n\nLet me clarify: The last 3 times I have been to Cartel, the line was not long, there was not a stack of drink orders to complete, and employees were not incredibly busy -- however my wife and I had to wait at the register for at least a minute or more while employees converse with each other or a group of girls that caught their attention (in fact - the girls pointed out to the barista that we were waiting before he turned to acknowledge us), the baristas failed to make eye contact or conversation with me or my wife during the coffee making process or after (not even the usual \"how was your espresso?\" or even \"Hello, here's your drink\" ), and the overall wait times were excessive for 2 out of 3 of our last visits (just over 20 minutes for a clever coffee brew - 2 orders in front of us - baristas chatting with 2 customers and ignoring others). \n\nThis does not taint my view of Cartel of a great place to get a quality cup of coffee - but when a barista under-extracts the espresso, hands it off without eye contact, and walks out of frame before you can mention the tart, thin tasting beverage - Cartel risks losing consistency which is just as important as quality. I don't want to gamble my time and taste-buds for an artisan beverage without a guarantee it will taste good and arrive in a reasonable amount of time.\n\nThe great service provided by Seth, Jeff and the girls that worked there over a year ago seems to be diminishing with the increasing size of the location and additional beverage responsibilities that the new baristas have. I hope they turn it around because I find myself defaulting to less tasty coffee options due to expected consistency and customer service. Cartel is not a 'rush-in-to-grab-a-quick-cup-and-speed-to-work' coffee house, but when I want to sit down and enjoy an Americano, I do expect some small level of interaction and consistency with the baristas making my drink.
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