Except that the barista is a little less talkative.
If you've ever avoided your usual coffee spot after realizing your favorite barista wasn't staffing the counter that day, you'll probably find Cafe X appealing. The coffee station is completely automated, meaning your dirty chai latte with dairy-free milk will come out the exact same every time you visit.
Customers can use on-site kiosks to place their coffee orders.
The cafe can get busy, with both a morning rush and a lunch rush regularly coming in, but the upsides of an automated coffee service are its speed and efficiency.
The menu includes the usual items, like cappuccinos, lattes, and drip coffee, all priced at $3. Those prices rise just a bit if you want single-origin beans to be used in your coffee order.
Cafe X partners with local bean roasters to give customers more options when building their drinks.
Blum said the single-origin beans, meaning beans that are harvested at only one location, are a fan favorite and having a more in-depth customized ordering experience allows customers to learn about coffee with every visit.
You also have two milk options: Organic Clover milk, and a dairy-free oat-derived alternative aptly called Oatly.
You'll go through the same process if you order through the Cafe X app.
The system will ask for your phone number when you place an order. A pickup code will be sent to you in a text afterwards.
There's a screen attached to the coffee station indicating where to plug in your code to pick up your coffee.
Don't expect the robots to pump out any latte art. We're not there yet.
Also: If you're on the fence about the Oatly milk, I can confirm it's pretty tasty. I chose it with my dirty chai latte, thanks to an on-site product specialist who gave me a rundown on how the milk alternative would taste before I ordered it.
Advising customers on any confusing parts of the menu or process is just one of the tasks on the docket for Cafe X specialists. Refilling beans in the robot's coffee station is another.
Blum said that by automating certain parts of the service process, these specialists have more time to interact with customers. The goal is to help them do their jobs.
As far as how consumers are adjusting to the automation technology, Cafe X's community manager Blum said more than 50% of customers are regulars, meaning people are warming up to the idea.
"First it was more of a spectacle, but now people understand," Blum said.
There will be a third Cafe X location in San Francisco later this year, except this one will be on a street corner.
Tucked away in the structure will be the Robotic Coffeebar 2.0, the company's upgraded system.
The new version of the automated coffee station will up its drink-making rate to three coffee orders in 40 seconds, have nitro cold brew on tap, and will be programmed with a "collaborative mode," which will allow a specialist to start a coffee order before instructing the robot to finish it.
