4/5 stars
I think this is the most reviewed spot in Greater Cincinnati that's still filling up all 5 stars -- not surprising since it's always filled up. Let me tell you why people love this place, and why it doesn't quite have all my love:
1) LOVE - that their slogan, "Coffee and Compassion in Tandem" is embodied by a full Tandem bicycle on the back wall. +2 for the 2 riders who rode it up there.
2) LOVE - that they took a chance on the location. It's not the best neighborhood, and I'm not sure if they were first, but the only nearby business I know of is NewCov Crossfit. I can only imagine those Crossfitters stomping in and thumping their fists on the counter: "ME HUNGRY. ME WANT PALEO COFEE BURGER."
3) LOVE - that people love this place. Carabello has 6-7 two-person tables, a few larger group tables, and a coffee bar with stools. On a Sat afternoon, about half of the two-person tables and all of the larger group tables were occupied.
4) DON'T LOVE - that people love this place. The study group tables were a little too rowdy for my liking. So it's a good place to socialize, but not good if you're coming to work on your novel about knitting.
5) LOVE - that each table has fresh flowers, freshly sourced from not nearby
6) DON'T LOVE - that the accompanying chairs look borrowed from a Frisch's Big Boy.
7) LOVE - that the chairs don't wobble. Even for a.......big boy.
8) LOVE - that they have multiple employees, like 3, which is 2 more than most independent coffee shops.
9) LOVE - that one of those employees unsolicitedly offered water to accompany my coffee.
10) DON'T LOVE - that a small coffee was $2.75, the soon-to-be cost of gas
11) DO LOVE - that it tasted much better than gas. Also, that they have more options than Coffee Emporium or Starbucks.
12) DON'T LOVE - that they have more options than Coffee Emporium/Starbucks. It makes it harder to choose and they all sound the same. But I chose the brew from Peru, mainly because it's the closest on the map to Colombia. And coffee is 1 of 2 things that Colombia does best ;)
13) DON'T LOVE - that their storage was publicly visible, which made it feel like your messy grandma's extra bedroom.
14) DO LOVE - that they're actively fulfilling their slogan -- the owners globally source their coffee themselves (see photo) and are active humanitarians. And you can never get that mad at a humanitarian, unless you've drank too much coffee.