Hot Numbers Coffee in Cambridge

This place is a bit crammed but no wonder cause it's really great! And the staff aren't the friendliest but they do their job and they are pretty busy! But great food and drinks and pastries, I absolutely love my catch ups with people here.

We where in the other day for a group brunch with work. Overall a great experience, Luisa and the onsite team made the arrangements stress free. Everyone in the group commended the food which was very tasty and beautifully presented too and their coco is on of the best Cambridge. Highly recommended

This is what you get for £3.5 pounds! Worst! I wish I could rate lower.

Coffee is quality over quantity, so that's good if that's what you like. They have great brunch options (although their menu used to be much bigger, I'm not sure what's going on there). Very busy on weekends and even some weekdays so be wary, but there is pretty good reason for this place's popularity.

Their cappuccino and croissant with cheese and tomato (heated up of course) are my go-to order here

Pet friendly cafe with nice sourdough. Tried their avocado and chicken toast, tasty and love the balance between the sweetness of roasted corn, spiciness of the chicken and tanginess from the seasoning in the smashed avocado. huge portion for a girl. Flat white with oat milk is good too. Service is not bad for a busy cafe. The tables can be cleaner tho, mine still got crumbs from patrons b4.

Awesome brunch offer, the pancakes are the best, really tasty Coffee is also great, a little bit pricey, not sure how long they can keep the price before seeing a drop in sales. But overall it was really good, just a bit on the high end and perhaps you can find something else that has a better cost ratio. Thanks

I had a discouraging experience during a recent visit. I reached out to the team and Rich made everything right and apologised. I couldn’t fault their response and hence the changed review. The coffee is excellent, the staff are friendly and helpful and the atmosphere in the cafe is pleasant. Due to them being a roaster, the coffee is always spot on and has interesting flavour profiles.

Worst place to have a coffee in Cambridge. Update - After avoiding their shop in Trumpington Street, it turns out the whole chain is unbearable. They now repeatedly tried to screw me and some colleagues. It happened to a lot of us that they grind your espresso wrongly so you have to buy the entire things again. Take a look yourself: they pretended both packages were ground the same level (they obviously aren‘t) and that this was my own problem. The coffee is not particularly good and it is incredibly expensive – you even need to pay for the oat milk that you can fill in your cup by the entrance on your own haha. Even worse was my experience when buying ground espresso. Although I specified very clearly how to grind it and a (in that case very friendly) employee offered me to just come back if it doesn‘t work, an incredibly unfriendly „manager“ denied this the next day, questioning the pledge in the same shop the day before. Instead of just preparing my coffee, I thus ended up on a 1.5 hour journey to the shop where I had to argue to finally just get the ground coffee I already asked for the day before. This experience was unbearable and I certainly will not return.

Flavorful coffee and delicious breakfast/brunch options. The place can be very crowded, and a long line can form even in the early morning. This makes me very anxious and stressed whenever I dine alone… So I don’t visit very often :) but it’s definitely worth an early morning walk across the river. — No bibimbap today. I was so excited to try the new menu 😿 Turkish eggs are alright. Nicely poached egg. The chili is quite bland.. Flat white good as usual. — The new guacamole and jerky chicken sourdough tastes good. Flavorful without greasy bread. There are some fruit flies lingering though. Busy as always at noon.

The café is lovely for a quick drink, and offers some of the more decent, if not particularly impressive, coffee in Cambridge. At the same time, it can be a little inhospitable if you'd like to do anything other than stare off into space or chat as you have it — while I understand that common courtesy demands people don't take up a table for ages on end having a single drink, the moment I even attempted to plug in my laptop to book some tickets while having my coffee and toastie, I was immediately approached by a server who told me it simply wasn't allowed, at all, even for a couple of minutes, anywhere but one large, at the time unfortunately full table in the centre of the shop. I wouldn't actually have attempted had a couple of little tables like mine not had plugs underneath, and had I not seen several people in the café at the same time using laptops at them without issue — but, in retrospect, the people at the tables with laptops did all seem to be chatty with the server, so presumably different standards apply depending on how well one knows the personnel.

The lady at the cashier is extremely rude..

Disappointing bacon sandwich and not available until 8am on a Thursday morning. My previous review of this place in 2015 was really positive. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, the once-brilliant bacon sandwiches have been standardized into overpriced sadness: pre-cooked bacon and un-toasted, dry bread. Greggs would be far better, and cheaper. The coffee is good, but note that the house style is not to provide any drinks with frothed milk (eg a cappuccino). Presumably this also helps de-skill the process. Look, I get that the cost of labour and materials is high, but for me, there isn't a solution here that leaves me wanting to come back. Edit: to the reply - it's unproductively defensive and misses the point. I don't feel listened to as a customer. Other readers: interpret that as you wish.

I always wanted to visit this coffee shop, seeing it passing by, but ultimately I’m not impressed :(. The lady at the till was a little bit rude, the avocado toast thought quite nice but took forever to be ready and the coffee was not a big deal (vs marketed as specialty coffee)

Nice food! And delicious Moka ♥️

New menu has some tasty lunch/afternoon options. Italian shakshuka is rich and warming served with delicious fresh bread, burrito bowl good too.

Been coming here for years and today was a sad day. A very cold bacon sandwich with meagre amounts of re-cooked bacon, on cold bread. Expect better for £7. Thanks for the reply. If it’s freshly cooked, why was it cold? When I ordered before 8am and had to wait until 8am until the kitchen opened. Given it came at 8:02 it seems odd it was cold. Maybe it had been cooked in the hour before 8 and was left to cool. That then begs the question why can’t you serve before 8. All I’m saying is I feel the focus on quality has dropped. This is a sentiment echoed by many recent reviews and all your response made me feel that you don’t listen. It’s been a good run!

Alright, avocado toast with them is WAY too literal. No salt, no butter, not a single spice or flavouring, all for the low low price of a mortgage. Also what are their rules for laptops because we've been told about 5 different things that don't corroborate at all, and then getting kicked off a table to another that has a sign that CLEARLY contradicts what the staff just said is unacceptable. Unspoken rules aren't rules. Contradictory laptop mess. Edit: to reply to the team's reply; unfortunately it doesn't make sense or clear things up. Your laptop "rules" are confusing, contradictory, and being told to our faces that the rules are x, when they table sign says y is an accessibility issue. It's understandable to want to compromise between chatty visitors and laptop workers, but your staff cannot be rude or contradictory about it. You've given rules that we obeyed, then created a hostile atmosphere in telling us something else. It was an impossible situation and made us incredibly anxious, to the point that we can't come back knowing that staff will be rude to us for trying to follow your confusing "rules" that no one seems to know.

I rarely leave a critical review, especially when it comes to local cafes. But I've visited this cafe multiple times over the course of 2 years, and each time the average waiting time for a black americano is 10 minutes - the coffee itself is also not amazing enough to justify this amount of waiting. I accept that this is coming from someone accustomed to a more metropolitan pace, so perhaps just manage your expectations. It benefits from being in a prime location, but otherwise my honest experience with this cafe has been disappointingly mediocre at best.

Poor. Don't bother with this place. Decent coffee, and a couple of pleasant staff members, but coupled with worn out furniture and decor, a broken toastie maker, a dreadful vegan baguette, a cold and drear outside toilet (which is hard to locate after dark), and a very silly process of closing off a third of the seating an hour before closing. The way the staff member closed the area was also unnecessarily brusque. It doesn't matter that you've told people a few minutes prior – when the time comes, you need to let people finish and then leave, not stand over them while they neck their expensive coffees or try to move to other tables that don't exist. The young family at the next table were shadowed until they moved, with no understanding of the dad's point that he'd just got his kids to sit down with a snack for a few minutes. Even better, if you're open until a time, be open fully. Don't inconvenience and hassle customers just because you want to save 15 minutes of close down and get to the pub. Training and introspection needed.

Shocking!!! After nearly an hours wait for my food, the sever questioned whether I had actually ordered anything when I asked how much longer it would be, she insisted I show her my banking app as proof of order! after showing her she took my phone from me scrolling through to check the date!!!

Of the dozens of cafés in Cambridge, this is my favorite. Try the pancakes or avocado toast or scrambled eggs - delicious! The quality of the coffee, bread, pastries, cakes is very high. And the atmosphere is bustling, too!

They used to be good. It was the go-to place for very decent coffee and food. But, a fall from grace we seem to have. Service is sloppy, orders are either incorrect, not delivered all together, unrealistic wait times, or almost-cold food or coffee served. It’s a shame, but Hot Numbers is definitely cooling off, and after repeated disappointments, this is more than just a ‘blip’. Avoid…

Friendliest cafe in Cambridge. Great ambience & music (music thankfully not loud). Excellent coffee. Wonderful service, even when flat out. Narrow design - it gets busy - with smallish terrace out back and a few street-front tables. Only does oat milk in the non-dairies, otherwise I would visit more often. If they had range of gluten-free options (lunch, not cake) would order more food when I do. But as far as staff&mgt, ambience & coffee goes, Hot Numbers hits it out of the park.

I really enjoyed this place, very bright good atmosphere and food 🥰

Great place! Food tasty, drinks inspire good mood, staff friendly and dogs friendly. Nice atmosphere.

I just stopped by for a coffee break in the afternoon. I also tried their own bakewell tart. They were very delicious. The atmosphere was also quite nice. I will definitely come back later to try the breakfast and lunch menu.

Smoothest mocha I’ve ever had and the bacon and eggs pancakes were unreal!! Best breakfast

Omg the best cake I've ever had! Eldelflower, blueberries and pear, just too good in all honesty. Coffee was great too.

I've been visiting Hot Numbers for years. The food is amazing, the coffee is superb but in the last year the service has become variable and, at times terrible. There's something missing and its a focus customer service Last Friday I had a business meeting. Cake and coffee delivered - ok but no friendly greeting. Saturday I had breakfast, no friendly greeting but an excellent bacon sandwich and coffee. Sunday was awful - I waited nearly 5 minutes to give my order whilst the staff looked everywhere but at me and chatted. The food took nearly 30 minutes to arrive even though we were only the second order into the kitchen. No apology for the wait and we were then charged an extra £1 for a thimble of maple syrup because it's a really expensive ingredient - this has never happened before. Pancakes were great, sausage sandwich was a bit sad and cold. Hot Numbers has had a super reputation for years. Transient staff not bothered about the customer experience will wreck it.

Terrible service. Average coffee unfortunately

They missed my order and asked me to queue up again. It's advisable to have itemized receipts.

A tricky place to review. The actual coffee is the best in Cambridge. However, be prepared to wait for it. Every time I would have to wait over 20 minutes from ordering a to go coffee to receiving the coffee order. Furthermore, if you want a standard coffee (with normal or speciality milk) then fantastic. However, an extra hot coffee is the same temperature as a normal coffee, and a wet coffee has the same amount of foam as a normal coffee. Unfortunately, I did have to send my coffee back to be remade. Coffee is a luxury and therefore, something I want made to what I have asked due to it being a pleasure. The staff are all very young and unfortunately, unprofessional. They made it very obvious they were talking about me when I sent my coffee back. When I next came in, one boy looked, said something to his colleague who then looked at me in disgust. I understand it being frustrating having to remake a customers coffee, however, when paying for a service it is not the way to be treated. Additionally, I do like to see staff getting on, but the staff are often joking around rather than making coffee which adds to the wait time. A good coffee, but unprofessional staff.

Gezellig Cafe, aardig personeel , ruime keuze aan ontbijt, goede porties, lekker gekruid. Kortom: Mjummie. Wel aan de prijs, zoals veel in Cambridge: voor 4 personen ontbijt met een drankje reken je 40 pond af. We namen de kinderpannekoek (vind ik te zoet maar 11yo vond m lekker), kinderportie toast met scramblers egg (mijn keuze en echt genoeg voor een volwassene), tosti met 3 kazen (te veel en machtig voor m’n 17-jarige dochter) en toast met poached egg en bacon. Alles smaakte goed!

I always get recommended to visit Hot Numbers by friends from Cambridge and I finally got drop by during my recent trip in the area. The coffee was really good indeed plus it's ethically sourced!

The toastie was totally overdone and inedible and the waiting time was excessive. They should be given an award for carbon based materials. When I reported this they did not even apologise.

Delicious brunch and coffee. We went for the Huevos Rancheros and Turkish eggs which were outstanding. Came on a busy Sunday morning which meant there was a little wait on food coming, but it was so worth it! Best brunch I’ve had. Dog friendly too and our dog got lots of fuss from the staff 😊

The best coffee in Cambridge and the hospitality is so lovely! I accidentally ordered the wrong coffee and they were so sweet and replaced it.

Lovely brunch / coffee spot. We had the peanut butter oatmeal which was beyond delicious. Highly recommend visiting if you're in the area.

Omg LOVE this place!! Such good coffee and great vibe. And the food…. 😍😍best avocado toast I’ve ever had in my life, generous portion sizes and amazing value.

I visited today with my mum, having previously had a really nice time at the gwydir street branch. We sat outside and both ordered coffee and the veggie toastie. The bread was lovely and the coffee was delicious as usual, but the mustard content made it virtually inedible. I really like mustard but had to scrape as much as possible out to even attempt to eat it. Anyway we understand that these things happen and mistakes are made, so we went inside and politely told a member of the team. The response is what was disappointing as we were told ‘did we not realise it had mustard in it!?’, like it was our fault. No apology or offer to swap our food for something else. Unfortunately we definitely won’t be rushing back!

Made a takeaway order of sweet pancakes for our firms staff to celebrate the Shrove Day . Taking in to account the quantity needed ( 30 portions ) agreed this several days in advance (paid some cash advance , of course). The pancakes were received exactly in time , hot & accurately packed . Looked very nice and appetizing . The most popular feedback , received from my colleagues : "That`s incredible !" Many thanks to the professional & friendly Hot Numbers team !!!

Clean and pleasant ambience, friendly and helpful staff, delicious brunch (fluffy buttermilk pancakes with maple syrup, poached eggs and crispy bacon… the menu was very varied with lots of enticing options!) couldn’t resist buying some roasted coffee beans and elderflower & blueberry cake to take away!)

Hadn’t been to Hot Numbers in a while, so thought I would give it a try. The coffee is still very good, but the food was really not great. I got mushrooms on toast, and it’s not the cheapest, so you expect decent quality. The mushrooms themselves were very nice with the ricotta, but the bread was so stale- I struggled to cut it with the knife I had. I wasn’t sure there was any spinach, and I found the hot sauce a kind of weird accompaniment with it to be honest.. it didn’t really go with the dish I thought. I went on a hot day and the staff at the till were very nice and gave me one of the big glasses of icy water, which I very much appreciated!

bad management, waited over 30 mins for breakfast and food looked like dog’s food, Exaggerated advertisement

The coffee is good. All else unfortunately is very average, *especially* when considering the prices. I've been here multiple times, so I do feel my opinion is quite balanced. Ordered a (quite burnt) focaccia that had 2 sundried tomatoes, 2 slices of mozzarella and some salad leaves - all for roughly £6. The quantity of food makes you feel like they are trying to be as economical as possible. Not really pleasant to experience.

Went here on a birthday trip to the City for brunch. Chose based on ratings. Huge queues, nobody clearing tables,had to physically ask someone to clear the mess. Only brought us 1 coffee despite ordering 2. Tried to order pancakes with bacon and poached egg....

Excellent cake, fine cup of tea, lovely service. Job done. No need to say anything more, but there's a 100 character minimum.

Perfect for coffee not for eating. Waited 40 minutes for scrambled eggs on toast when not that busy. Had to chase it up. Needed a steak knife to cut the toast. Plenty of distracted staff busy catching up with each other.

The slowest coffee I've ever had! Barista more interested in talking to girl colleague than serving anyone. Don't understand its popularity.

Coffee from here is not, as the name suggests 'hot' but lukewarm. At these prices, shouldn't be able to drink a coffee down in one. Make it 'hot' please, and be true to your name. Also, what has happened to the veg/cheese toasties? None available...

Wanted to try Hot Numbers so I joined the queue with everyone else. After 15 minutes got to counter when I was approached and asked if we would like to sit in. Shown to our seat in the outdoor courtyard then told that I would...

Delicious sausage sandwich. We were drawn to the restaurant by the smell of bacon as we walked past. We went in for brunch- the place was heaving! We were advised that there would be a 30 minute wait for food. That was no problem- we...

Food and coffee is nice, but seating is limited. We visited on valentines weekend and were sat at a larger table with a couple at the opposite end, which was fine. But then after we had already paid for our food another couple was sat...

I have been to hot numbers many times and always love their coffee. I still think it’s basically the best coffee in Cambridge (maybe only bould brothers compares). The coffee shop is nicely decorated and places ambient jazz music. However, my most recent visit I...

This cute and comfortable cafe made for a perfect beginning to our day trip in Cambridge. The staff was extremely accommodating in regards to my life threatening allergy and even served the granola separate from the yogurt for us. Although the eggs on toast were...

very bad food (burned sourdough and solid poached egg yolk) and it was served very slowly. The place looks dodgy and social distancing is non existent

Rushed in at 7 in the morning asking to borrow an Iphone charger, and they were really nice about it. I came back a couple of hours later to meet a friend for coffee and the place was bustling. Lovely vibe with fruity americanos. Looking forward to going again.

Had coffee and cake. Coffee was bitter, weak and rather unpleasant. Everything else OK, but not enough to warrant another trip. Shame, as the coffee roasting business I expected to be a distinguishing positive feature

Forced to queue outside in cold....forced to pay by card only...surly staff and overpriced food. will not return

Recommend the sourdough with avocado and feta.

Only after placing an order did they tell us it was a 40 minute wait!!! For eggs on toast!!! At 11am!!! I'm sure its all very nice but heck, 40 mins for eggs? We cancelled the order and went to subway!

Awful experience, the staff made us wait outside in the cold before and in-between our order, while there is a huge space available in the store... And it is not like that they care about COVID, none of the staff are wearing any mask. Staff are rude to customers. Will never visit again.

The brunch taking too long to serve. The waiter didn't even let us know that it took so long until we ordered the food

I have adored Hot Numbers since I first wandered out of the Fitz looking for a coffee in 2017. The beans are well roasted and the espresso is well pulled. I've had one slightly weak Americano, but the rest of my primarly latte-based experiences have been terrific-- hot or cold. I really like the avocado toast! They make this standard fair into a flavor journey. I've also recently had one of the focaccia sandwhiches and it was both delicious and filling. I also recommend the slice of vegan ginger cake to vegans and non-vegans a like. I wasn't expecting the hit of orange in the sugary crust, but I ended up quite liking it.

Lovely coffee spot, however definitely has a lot of improvement potential regarding how nice the staff is...

Wonderful breakfast and coffee.

Great energy here. Always a lovley place to work on a paper or read. The coffee never disappoints too.

The food is good, but the staff is not very friendly.

If you love independent coffee shops, you have to come to this one. The latte is the best I've tasted. Say no more.

First time visiting and really enjoyed. Had the 2 different pancakes which were delicious. Really cool place with a slightly different seating concept. The cakes & bread looked so good. And the most important I found it cheap & good quality

Nice breakfast, excellent coffee.

Called in for a late breakfast, the staff were all very friendly and helpful. Had a coffee that was very nice and ordered 2 breakfasts. They came quickly and were presented lovely, I had smashed avocado, poached egg and bacon on fresh toasted sourdough. Really...

Fab vegan breakfast - love your vegan bacon! Really fresh, interesting and prepared with care food. Lovely coffee, great atmosphere and snappy service. Perfect ingredients for breakfast 😋

We had breakfast here twice and it is very good. The porridge is delicious with a roasted plum and other additions. The bacon on sourdough is generous and tasty. Excellent coffee and tea.

Good brunch menu with a variety of options and well priced. Service was quick especially as they were very busy. Is in a great location for people visiting the area. Only thing with the seating is that it feels quite crammed in some areas and...

Had breakfast here and all the dishes we had were lovely and well presented. Service was good from the staff, but the person who appeared to be in charge was rather stuck-up and pretentious - if we know it as a cappuccino, then you don’t...

Amazing environment, excellent service and the best coffee in Cambs! Oh! And the best brunch

Excellent service, food, and coffee. Must try the maple bacon pancakes. Delicious!

My local favourite so definitely biased here. Always a good selection of beans - try the pour over if you’re in the mood, it shouldn’t disappoint. Tables are quite limited, but their playlists are THE BEST if you’re into that coffee house ambient. Food is just about as good as any other cafe in town.

These guys sell the most incredible cake!

Update: food quality and quick service is as good as I bead before. Cafe is still too popular which makes it difficult for the staff to clean the tables between customers. The cutlery is put on the table without any napkins! I think I'll only get take away coffee until we get out of the Delta wave of the pandemic. Lovely little cafe popular with the tourists and locals. The coffee beans origin is written on the board, just if you are curious or very knowledgeable about your coffee. Tea menu is longer than your usual cafe. Nice choices of patisserie, cakes and sandwiches for a light lunch... There is also lots of juices to choose from if you are going caffeine free

Basic coffee nothing special. A good place to chill and study. a bit crowded and packed so not covid friendly not recommended to go during the pandemic.

Didn’t have multiple items on the menu and I couldn’t eat there and had to leave…

Food is bang on, seating can be limited but definitely worth a little wait!

This place has never been cheap and you'd think that after Covid they'd want to maintain their customers. I spend a considerable amount of money here as do m y colleagues as it is close to our workplace. I was therefore appalled to find that...

Two coffees one bacon sandwich and one sausage sandwich £19.80. Coffee good, but sadly the sandwiches lacked filling. Two pieces of bacon and 1.5 sausages. Very poor!

Order at till with table number and return to the table to find it occupied so get sighed at by passive aggressive staff. Food good, coffee great but not convinced I'd return.

Oh my god. Just amazingly good food. As someone that makes their own sourdough, it’s a real treat to go to a cafe that not only makes *their* own sourdough, but makes supremely good sourdough. It’s the simple things that make a good sandwich, but I’d been dreaming of a bacon sandwich for at least a day and today I was served up the bacon sandwich of dreams. The crispiest bacon; the softest sourdough; creamy butter. Honestly, I’m salivating just thinking about it. Do you also make your own croissants? Those beauties were so shiny and flaky and buttery. The coffee was so good we bought a pack of the Brazil-Colombia blend to enjoy at home. Oh and I was more than happy to pay £4.70 for a take-home loaf because you know if you make your own just how much work goes into making something that good. I wish I didn’t live so far and could brunch at Hot Numbers every weekend!

Fantastic coffee! I had the sourdough with smashed avacado and poached eggs and it was delicious! Definitely recommend for breakfast, as well as the coffee!

The coffee here is amazing and the brunch dishes were so delicious (we ordered the avo on toast and the vegan avo and bacon bagel). It was the tastiest avo on toast I’ve had and way better than I expected. Reasonable prices too - only criticism is that the menu doesn’t have loads of options and it was slightly unclear when we went in how to order etc but I think this was because they were very busy. Would definitely recommend!

This is a nice place to grab a snack and a drink. The coffee tasted nice and the bagel was very tasty. It is not anything extremely fancy but provides good service. If you believe this review has been helpful, please don’t forget to press the 👍 button. Thank you

Was nom ! And fee water available :)

Delicious brunch with generous portions! You get two pieces of delicious sourdough bread with your brunch order. Definitely worth coming back! Carrot cake was super tasty!

I want to start by saying, the kind staff has real hustle. This lovely cafe was hoppin’ on a Friday morning and the staff never slowed down and they took time for quality customer service. We ordered the batch brew and it was as aromatic and flavorful as the description on the board. We also ordered the maple bacon pancakes. The bacon was crispy as requested, the presentation was simple and appetizing, and the flavor was fab! And, truly, we will be full for the rest of the day. We had a table by the door and even though it’s a bench, we had plenty of space, and it felt intimate. The decor inside is hip/modern, but inviting and it was clear they take coffee seriously, but don’t take themselves too seriously. The relaxed feel is as balanced as the smoothness and bitterness of their brew. Thanks so much for a lovely breakfast “Numbers!”

The coffee at Hot Numbers is AMAZING! and always so consistently good!

Nice café with cosy ambiance. Pancakes are amazing but limited servings. Only complaint is that tables are limited and that they often become a workspace for some.

Lovely place to sit and relax in a sunny courtyard . Great coffee and a marvellous sausage roll. The staff were friendly and helpfu l- highly recommended

Interesting and tasty food, garden is comfortable and convivial

A truly wonderful spot to sit and have hot drinks and cake with friends or to work! They cater to lots of different allergies, intolerances, and diets, and the food and drinks are always delicious.