"Wow. You would never expect this much value and flavor from this fine establishment. Hidden gem for sure."

"Freshly made chai latte and bagel cheese spread. Friendly customer service"

"I had a good Americano from this little cafe. The americano was smooth for the most part and offered good coffee flavor. The 16 oz Americano was well priced at $3.25. You can't find this price at many places in town. The place is to go only and offers a variety of coffees and teas, breakfast and lunch sandwiches, and hot dogs and giant pretzels. They have a host of snacks and fountain drinks. The lady who was working at the cafe was friendly and had a good sense of humor. This place is located at the Fashion Valley MTS Transit Center."

"So-Cal's Best Hot Dog? I'm gob-smacked... (I think that's a thing?) as I always wanted to visit this small cafe/food stand under the Fashion Valley trolley stop, but as it is a bit far from the mall entrances and my normal parking near the food court, I never got to go until today. The stand itself seems to be a bit in east coast-gritty surroundings, and I'd be lying if I said it wasn't, being on the San Diego River, but it reminded me especially of Boston or Chicago, where these kind of stands - under the "T," or Elevated rail, are common. I frankly didn't expect much, as I ordered a flavored coffee, and small hot dog, but boy was I surprised! This stand has the best food I've eaten in Fashion Valley, including some of the sit-down restaurants, and I think it may literally have the best hot dog in southern California. (To be fair, I did have one better hot dog, during a test-run at the Santa Monica Pier, but I am unsure if they adopted it. And "Top-Dog" in Berkeley may be the best in Nor-Cal.) The dog itself, was high quality, more like a Washington DC "half-smoke" if you're familiar with the legendary cart vendors on the mall there. That is, it's more like a dense sausage texture than a supermarket hot dog -- so much so that I asked him to show me the brand, which he did, but I wasn't familiar with it. Good snap and the greasy mouth feel a dog should have, unlike some of the exotic Top Dog sausages, which can be too dense and fat-free. I got onion, relish, mayo and mustard, as a test, because, as you may know, many stands, like in NYC, don't have mayo, much less the other stuff. Ans, since this is more of a transit stand, I expected the toppings to be like those in a picked-over 7-11 bin, stale and crusted together, but the nice gentleman (sorry I didn't get his name), not only had mayo, but the bun was also superb -- a sesame seeded delight-in-itself -- and all the toppings were very fresh and uniformly applied in a dog that came east-coast style in a sheet of light waxed paper. If you know my other sandwich posts, you know that I am extremely demanding and would not mislead you. This food destination, more than stand, is worth going out of your way to visit -- by trolley or car. (If you park nearby, you'll have to go around the fence which has no cut-throughs.) But, if your experience is anything like mine, you will be enthralled. Bravo, Hot Blend -- Bravo... Oh yeah, the whipped cream-less : ( coffee was tasty too, if a bit cloying. Please post your own experience if it differs. Not sure if your experience will be consistent, and would not want to mislead anyone, as the stand is out of the way for most. EDIT: Went back in November of 2025 and the quality was still great. Hard to find unwavering consistency these days..."

"Great prices, friendly service :)"