Cafe Diem

My husband and I stopped for lunch on Saturday, which we occasionally do. We enjoyed the food but not the atmosphere. Things have changed a bit. With the free wifi comes the "homesteading" of the best seating. Mostly young people with books and laptops, nursing a coffee or other beverage. One booth with four young men brought a board game but I didn‘t see if they had bought food or drink. We had to watch out for laptop power cables loose on the floor. Two young women didn‘t even bother to pretend to be patrons, unpacking from their packs their own drinks and packaged snacks. I suspect they are personal friends of the counter help and not required to pay. I don‘t know how this place can turn a profit. I mentioned to my husband that I didn‘t think we fit the. demographic anymore. Coffee not that good either.

Place usta be great, has really gone downhill. Hear they have a fairly high turn over of employees. And those employees, dont have much good to say. Went into there today. Was really disappointed that my coffee, plain jane black. was burnt. very acidic. Probably sat there too long. Gal at counter was rude, too busy talking to a regular. I almost just left but from now on I will just save the time and go to the Cafe. They never fail.

I want to like Cafe Diem. I really do. I like patronizing local coffee shops, and as a freelancer I have all day to do so. I often will do a whole day‘s worth of work from a coffee shop -- buying coffee throughout the day and lunch at lunch time before going home. I‘m quiet, friendly, and try to tip well.

And for a while I did like Cafe Diem. But something happened last Friday that will ensure I never go back. After going a few times and getting $.50 refills for as long as I stayed, I was told on Friday, mid-day, after maybe 3-4 refills, that their policy was one refill. That meant 1) I had to pay $2 for the first cup, 2) I had to pay $.50 for the second cup, and for further cups of coffee, 3) start back at #1.

I understand a "one free refill" policy -- after which you buy another cup at full price. That‘s fine by me. But when you charge me a high market price for the first cup, followed by a high market price for a refill (which I was willing to accept and pay as many times as I wanted my cup refilled) and for the third cup you want me going back and paying a high market price for a new cup again (even though you‘re using the same coffee cup so there‘s no increased expense of dish washing, etc.)... That‘s absurd.

Further, while their food prices compete with Panera, total portion size does not. And Panera also has free wi-fi, as well as free refills on their coffees all day.

Cafe Diem, you‘ve lost my business. Panera, you get it!

If you want a nice atmosphere from a local coffee shop and are willing to pay high market prices for your coffee... AND you don‘t want to stick around for more than one refill... Cafe Diem is okay. That‘s why it still gets 3 stars. But if you want to stick around (which I thought they were friendly toward), be prepared to pay.

Dear reviewer on October 3,2008,

I‘m really sorry to here you had such a lousy experince for your party. Unfortunately, you wrote it on the wrong resturants site. We don‘t sell alchahol. And all the private parties we have had I, the owner, have been present at. We have had 3 Campus Crusade parties, 1 wedding shower, and 1 graduation party. All I have been at for the decorating and the serving of food. I would feel horrible if any of my customers had an experience like your.
I hope that never happens to you again.
The Owners of Cafe Diem 229 Main Street

limited seating, good coffee, nice staff, food is fine. atmosphere is great we like the old building and the view of main street. our favorite thing is that they serve fair trade coffee. fair trade is all we buy for our own house, so it´s nice to know that a business takes an ethical stand even though it is less profitable for them because the coffee typically costs more because the laborers are paid fairly.

I have mixed feelings about Cafe Diem. I‘ve been going there for years, but mostly because it is a convenient location downtown. The people who work there are very friendly, but rarely come out from behind the counter. The coffee is fine, but definitely not great. Although Stomping Grounds has its own flaws, I believe it deserves Story County‘s Best Coffee/Best Cafe awards over Cafe Diem. The coffee doesn‘t even compare to the quality at Stomping Grounds. I believe Cafe Diem only thrives due to its downtown location and homey/eclectic feel. If it were harder to get to, I think I would never go.

Hopefully the original person who opened this place is NOT there anymore. Had a party there, they did not have enough help and we ended up just helping ourselves to the food we had ordered in the kitchen and dished it up on plates OURSELVES and SERVED it because they didn‘t move to do it!!! I am not kidding. I thought, if you don‘t have the business sense to hire help or even BE here when your first big party is set (he was hoping to bring in business by us having it there...ha, fat chance), then you don‘t deserve a thriving business! He never shook our hand when we first met him, we HAD to approach HIM. Someone thought highly of himself, that‘s for sure. He also finally sent someone with the key when we wanted to decorate...we waited over an hour past the appointed time. Then the person he supposedly left in charge told us our liquor bill would be an enormous amount, but the other bartender told us that we had reached the goal we needed not to pay some cover charge. What a scam. I hope that old fogey is long gone. He was a mess.

This is my favorite cafe. The coffee and teas they offer are delicious. The prices may be a little high on some selections, however, it‘s worth it. The music is very relaxing. The decor is warm and inviting. Service is friendly. It‘s a great place to study or relax.

Excellent atmosphere, you feel like you‘re in a real neighborhood coffee shop with a nice mix of business folks, Ames residents and students. The food is great and the coffee the best in town!

and THEY don‘t cover the outlets or try to hurry you out if you aren‘t eating...

Very causal - needs more seating (tends to be a study hall hangout). Food is a bit pricey. Coffee is good (not weak). Free refills!

Nice place, could use more like it in Ames.

The first time my husband took me into Cafe Diem we were not impressed by the coffee we had, but the service was great and timely. So we went on our way and decided about a month later to return and try the place again and found that people behind the counter had improved and our coffees were WONDERFUL....so much that we stop in once a week and also visit the Ankney Cafe as well. We have bought our travel mugs (ok, the husband spoiled me by getting me one) and Cafe Diem is our favorite place. We also love the music / poet nights as well. We love the warm and cozy sitting arrangment. I also use the wireless too while we are there. THANK YOU THANK YOU for coming to Ames and Ankeny.... Smiths

Coffee is too weak for, in my opinion, anyone that actually cares about coffee and its taste. They use great beans so it‘s up to them to make it a bit stronger so when I‘m feeling lazy I don‘t have to get two shots of espresso in my coffee to make it tolerable.

This place is totally cool! They just ran an art series of African inspired paitnings that showed the horror of what is going on in sudan. It is great to see a place use it‘s space to promote social issues!

Good sandwiches and good drinks. And, the owners are great community supporters who sponsor music and dance. There is Argentine Tango dancing on Sunday afternoons.

I love coming here with my friends. There is always a very pleasant atmosphere about the place and the service is great! Plus they employ very friendly and outgoing girls! WOOT!

I miss Iowa and this sounds like a great place to get back to my roots - I‘ll be seeing you soon!

Good environment. The staff is always very pleasant. Service is fast. The drinks are as good as anything you can find. BUT, Internet is sloooooow.

This place is weak... the wireless sucks... and they don‘t even have noodles

The staff at Cafe Diem is wonderful and friendly. It is a great place to sit and work and enjoy coffee.

Cafe Diem is by far my favorite place to get coffee in Ames. Main Street gets completely overlooked as a place to spend some free time and the cafe has a great atmosphere. My friends and I spend a lot of time doing homework or grabbing some lunch. And their chai is to die for!!!

They have the best coffee in town, hands down. They get it freshly roasted from Jave Joe‘s, and boy, can you tell the difference...rich, aromatic, truly a notch above. That and the noncorporate atmosphere make it a real plus for Ames.

Like any coffee shop, the prices are kinda high. I go there because the chai is good (they don‘t use Oregon brand) and it‘s a nice place to hang out and work while being immersed in a vibrant atmosphere.

The one thing I‘d change if I could would be to lessen the noise from the machines. I think the espresso machine is the primary culprit.

This is an awesome place! Simular to what you might expect to find in Chicago or the twin cites.

this place is great. i like to go there because its a great place to hang out with friends and play games or just chat, also you can look things up online too.

I really like the atmosphere here, the coffee is great!

Amazing place. Has people of all ages. You can watch a dance class while you sip your latte and read a book. Many grassroots and community groups take advantage of Cafe Diem as well.