Fade to Black in St Albans

My favourite local coffee spot. Great coffee, friendly faces, good selection of lunch bite and pastries. Fresh juice selection if you need a bit of healthy option. Perfect for meetings and remote work if you need to get out of the house and change a scen. Parking around the corner and they have loyalty programme.

Coffee is great! Staff are hit & miss! Some of the staff are lovely & helpful and never fail to say hello to my dog and give him a biscuit (bonus points) however there are also some staff who let the side down by being miserable and unfriendly. Great ambiance in the evenings with good selection of drinks, but same goes for staff, really depends who you get serving you.

I use this place a lot and overall it’s always pretty good, I just have one personal niggle that always seems to be present (I will explain later) Pros: Staff always friendly and engaging both during the day and in the evening when it turns into a bar. Big up Sophie who runs the bar in the evening. Quality of coffee is great. Quality of food is good, I have had multiple lunches and always very tasty. I have not sampled the evening platters but looking at other guests food they do look good and plentiful. I would definitely recommend this place. Cons So my one niggle and what stops me from giving this a 5 star review. Like many London Hipster spots there seems to be an all day presence of people using the place as an office. One woman can be seen working all day every day. I never think restaurants get good value from this and it just makes the place look scruffy and as it’s not that big a place I’m sure they lose custom. I have swerved it on a number of occasions due to this. I have seen a few London places posting a polite notice that seating is limited to 90mins during busy times, maybe this could be a good suggestion.

Superb coffee. Food is top drawer too. Toasted ham, cheese and chilli jam is highlight. Have also been several times in the evening for booze. Such a great vibe and staff are very accommodating and cheery.

I visited the new Fade to Black at Trestle Arts Base. Lovely coffee, friendly people and a really cool overall aesthetic and chill vibe. The variety of choice for food and snacks is very good, especially the pastries. I look forward to seeing what events will be held here in the future.

This is my favourite coffee place in St Albans. The coffee is incredible! Though it can become pretty busy, the staff are friendly and responsive. It's also open some evenings as a bar with food, and there are evening events. The evening quiz I went to recently with friends was great fun - good wine added to the experience!

As usual, it was busy at Fade to Black but we were happy to wait for a table and didn’t have to wait too long. We had our usual of coffee and 3 cheese toasties. The server suggested trying it with chilli jam, which my husband decided to try, and it was nice but he will stick to his usual. The coffee is really good here, so we had another, which we do a lot! I have seen other reviews complaining about the service but both the young lady that took our order and the young man the delivered our food were pleasant and friendly. There were a lot of orders waiting to be filled and the staff behind the counter were clearly going as fast as they could. Our order came in a reasonable time, so no complaints from us. We also tried some cakes that were delicious. I can highly recommend the danish pastries if you are there earlier in the day. They are amazing!

I try and pop in when I can for some down time with a coffee. I would have lunch but I have tried the toasties and they are nice but I wouldn’t mind a new menu. The wraps could do with a revamp of choices x Lovely management and I hope to try the cheese soon x

Lovely ambiance sat outside and could hear the buzz of the inside. Delicious white wine and a lovely cheesy snack. Staff were very friendly & helpful - bonus you can take you dog ! 😊

A lovely venue with ambience and ample parking. Clean utensils a problem. Many appeared already used

Relaxed atmosphere and friendly staff! We had a delicious cheese board and great bottle of red wine

Service really bad, they get your order wrong and then don’t apologise. Won’t be going back. Shame as the coffee quality is good.

Had mochas, teas, coffees. Very pricy for the quantity, quality good though. Seating was not very comfy. Person who served me got angry at me for standing in the wrong place to place the order even though I didn’t see anything to say otherwise of where to place order. Made me feel really stupid. For this reason I won’t be going back.

Good coffee. Terrible service. Went there with a friend and my toddlers. The staff were simply miserable and rolled their eyes when the boys were a bit noisy!

Lovely coffee shop with good service and very popular, especially lots of yummy mummies with posh babies being allowed to express themselves freely. It’s a shame because there’s no chance of a conversation of any quality. Never mind- plenty of other places to go. 🤣

This is the second time I’ve been here. First time they didn’t even look at me, no smile no acknowledgment. I put it down to a bad day. I’ve been again and exact same greeting. Not even a hello, just chatting amongst themselves. Nice coffee miserable staff. Plenty of coffee shops in at Albans

Such a shame, this place was brilliant but now seems to have gone down hill. Very pricey and claustrophobic. It seems to mainly be focused on being a bar now instead of a nice coffee shop. The staff during the day time are lovely. Coffee is good but I sadly won’t return. I once brought my boyfriend in who has a nut allergy and was told that most things are cross contaminated. If you have a nut allergy I definitely would avoid.

A lovely cafe situated on the back side of the Quadrant. Staff is amazing and seems family run. Had a sandwich and a coffee which was served quickly. Place has a nice vibe and would be a great place to hang out in the evenings.

Came here for Lunch and a Coffee. Really impressed with the Smoked Salmon Wrap that I had and the Coffee was tremendous. Really nice vibe about the place. Friendly Staff and lovely atmosphere

Had great customer service, and paid great detail to our wellbeing. An amazing place to go for drinks and food. highly recommend! The owner of the café was extremely lovely and kind, and his workers had a great chat with us! highly recommend!

Too crowded to be comfortable, lots of apologising just to get to a table because they’re so packed in.. Lunch was really disappointing - two small slices of bread with ‘three cheeses’ inside, toasted. Nothing else whatsoever on the plate. £6? Nah, don’t think so....

Whilst the coffee here is great and there is plentiful free parking nearby, staff are pretty moody which does dampen the experience. A few more smiles, pleasantries and manners from the staff would go a long way and for this review would have generated an...

Love this place… better since the recent take over and revamp. Friendly, Warm atmosphere, Great Coffee, relaxed vibe… simply a great place to spend some R&R time. Give it a go. Recommended!

Nice coffee but unfortunately the refurbishment means there’s less a lot less space to sit, plus the queue for coffee is the right next the seating making it really cramped. There now seems to be two different queues too which can be annoying if you...

I live and work locally and often pop in for a coffee and snack - it’s my daughters favourite coffee shop and it is always just great. Kevin

I've been to Fade to Black many times and it used to be great. Lovely coffee and food. Went today - and while the coffee was still good, the food isn't. It's as if the amount of ingredients in each order had been halved, -...

I felt that I just had to give yet another shout out to “Fade to Black”. I normally visit once a week and just love their coffee – it is always so well made and a decent strength; in the mornings there are some excellent...

I have been going to Fade to Black regularly for coffee for several months now, mainly due to it's convenient location. The food is reasonable for the price and the coffee OK (chai latte very much like hot milk with a sprinkling of cinnamon). I...

With covid restrictions being slowly lifted it was lovely to re-visit Fade to Black in Marshallwick (St Albans) and to be able to sit outside on the closed section of road. The coffee and cake were excellent. So do hope that the council will keep...

Had my mop trimmed back v early and then fancied some brekkie so dropped into Fade to Black for a takeout Excellent Fairtrade coffee and a lovely pastry

I've been going here to revise for my a levels a lot recently - the staff are so friendly and one even came up to congratulate me and my friends while we were revising for our spanish speakings. It's very cosy and the drinks are...

I arranged to meet here for a chat - and cycled past it twice before finding it! Worth looking our though. The pot of green tea was excellent and the atmosphere was lively.

This little coffee shop was a great find We sampled decaf cappuccino, latte and 2 slices of Mocha cake Lovely coffee and very good cake, all in pleasant, clean and modern surroundings with happy serving staff Thanks Will be back

This is the best cafe in st albans - great value and good atmosphere Smashed avocado with chilli on sourbread and salmon wrap both delicious

Such a welcome addition to the Quadrant. Lovely coffee, tasty sandwiches. Fresh water available at all tables.

Coffee is ok but if a coffee shop provides a child play area it should at the very least be a quiet play area and make sure staff do not allow any parent from hell to let their horribly unruly child scream the place down the whole time in the name of ‘fun’!!! Staff allowing one useless parent to ruin it for 20+ other guests (including many other well behaved children and babies) is a good enough reason not ever to return.

There are very few cafes that can make barista drinks are well as the person who made our drinks at Fade-to-Black. My cappuccino was just perfect in texture, taste and temperature.

I regularly buy my coffee from this shop. It is absolutely wonderful. I would go as far to say it's the best in St Albans! Friendly and chatty staff who are always lovely. Great food, good looking cakes. And a cool community vibe, what's not to like about this place. Nothing in my opinion! #happydays!

I enjoyed my lunch here today. I opted for a fresh juice and a wrap - both were yummy and freshly made. Nice space, I could fit my buggy without issues. Good choice of food and drink options.

I popped in here after going to the opticians around the corner. Decent coffee and cake (lemon drizzle). Will try the savoury items next time as looked quite tasty,The layout meant I was on the large table to the front sharing with others. No problem with this but no chance of a conversation as everybody playing with their phone- rather sad really!Still miss Barclays though!

Popped in for a coffee and after looking at the menu, noticed there was a charge of an extra £0.60 for a decaffeinated coffee.I commented to the server that in my experience of having coffees out in both chains and independents, I had never been charged extra. She responded with firstly, 'if you have a coffee in London there is a charge' (thought I was in Marshalswick?) and secondly, 'that it costs them more to take out the caffeine from the coffee beans.' Really???The coffee was good though, even though served in small glass cups with no handles. It was also very hot and noisy, so came out with a splitting headache.'Not my cup of coffee' I am afraid.

A great addition to the local area, especially as places to have a good lunch break are limited to this part of St Albans. Coffee is very and the staff are friendly. However, even though it has been open for a few months, the speed of service is still slow, especially when ordering food.

My daughter and I popped in today recommended by a good friend, we were not disappointed. We both had hot chocolate and she had toasted mozzarella with tomato & pesto, she said it was the best she’s ever had. The menu was simple and all looked delicious, lovely cakes to choose from too. Staff were extremely friendly. Look forward to visiting again soon.

Nice morning coffee before work. Menu is simple and offers easy healthy bites to eat or pastries. nice place to chill

“Fade to Black” (situated almost opposite to Marshalswick library in what was part of Barclay’s bank) is a welcome addition to the Quadrant shops. We found a nice range of snacks and cakes, good service and nice coffee.There is plenty of room around the tables and an area at the back with a play kitchen.Plenty of free off-street car parking is available, but not many empty spaces since the opening of M&S Foodhall.Will definitely re-visit.