The Rook Cafe

Cool spot on freret. I'm not a coffee house monkey or a coffee queen but it was nice to get out of the house, meet a friend and kick the day off on the right foot. When I walked in there was a note indicating the barista was "away at the moment" which gave me ample time to read all the drinks and their special ingredients as well as scope out the available pastries. There was a plate of day old pastries for a discount that I obliged, and paid in cash which, I believe lowered my tab even further. The spot was quiet, clean, cozy, funky, and on my way out--the chess board next to the coffee station said "blacks turn". So I moved a piece and flipped the sign over to "whites turn". Love a low key coffee shop vibe.

I have been coming to this cafe for 7 years and loving their drinks/environment to chill and work. I set up with my laptop a lot but I've also taken naps on their front couch. The specialty drinks are creative and delicious. My favorite is the Mr. Spock which involves jasmine tea, lavender and steamed milk. They have chess themed things throughout the shop and local art for sale too!

I love the offerings hereSomehow no one else in town has figured out the ice cube trick- but coffee cubes in your iced coffee makes a world of difference (They do it with lemonade too)Definitely the most unique and interesting drink menu and the vibe is cool too- Note that if you're in a hurry, this isn't your place- if no one's around, no problem but even a few ppl in line on a saturday morning can be a half hour wait as there's usually only one person working

Neat little art-y cafe. Good atmosphere imo with artwork covering every wall. I got a gruyere and onion pastry, and while it could have used more gruyere, it was still pretty good. Decent tea selection (compared to many other places ive tried in new orleans at least)

Gotta love it when your local coffee shop create a new menu! The rook added some more comfy couches in the front.

The ambiance and space was quiet when we went but the drinks were not what we expected. We ordered The Spock and The Holy Grail, and there was little to no flavor in either drink as described. Perhaps our standard was too high or the barista was not keen to our manners. The drink's were not the $16 price tag we paid. I hope that if you do visit your manners are better than ours and the barista is more generous.

I stop in here whenever I'm in the very cute Freret area and get a coffee and a delicious pastry. They have several different comfy seating areas and WiFi, or you can sit at one of the sidewalk tables and watch the people and dogs go by.

The Pawn coffee here (coconut almond mocha) is fantastic. Its flavorful and its scent gives you a proper morning jolt.

Great vibes here! Huge menu, lots of community events advertised at the front, there's a community chess game going on, lots of community art. I wish we knew about it earlier in our trip!

Very cool ambiance! I love the theme that carries over from the art into the drink names, and the way the whole cafe is set up. The art on the walls is unique, engaging, and altogether pretty spectacular. I didn't stay to drink my coffee, however. It's really rad that they offer coffee ice cubes for any cold drink. I think I just had a bad experience for reasons unknown. My drink was really bitter and unpleasant, and I didn't stick around to order a replacement. I'd give them another try for sure - chances are good my time there was a one-off.