Best Coffee in LA
I'm a self-proclaimed coffee snob...probably from years of drinking coffee, working in the coffee sector, and actually working for a British commodities company..BUT..it's hard to find good coffee in L.A. I'm not talking about over-roasted and lower quality beans being passed off as quality simply because there's a cultural trend for it (you know who and what I'm talking about)...so Chowhounds, I'm throwing down the gauntlet:
Where are your favorite places in LA (from the Valley to downtown to the beaches and beyond) for coffee and why? Quality of beans, barista skills, latte art, self-roasting, ambience that makes you want to come back?
Bring it on,
Thanks,
Peanut!
peanut112
Jun 27, 2006 06:32PM
As much as I hate to admit it, Urth Cafe probably has the best coffee. It's rare to see a scenester place also serve good food.
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I agree. URTH CAFFE has the best coffee I have found in LA. The WeHo branch is the most scenester (which I find fun for people watching). The Beverly Hills and Santa Monica ones are more subdued.
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Admittedly, I'm no expert, but I like the coffee at Peet's.
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I like Peet's too -- esp. for a chain. If you're looking for something specific to LA, I'd recommend Ground Works coffee (they have a few stores throughout the area www.lacoffee.com )
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I second the Peet's nomination! Has anybody tried the new Freddo? I had a non-fat one the other day and it was surprisingly tasty.
Then again - this is probably not what a coffee snob is looking for
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For the trivia file: Peets Berkley (I believe that is the original location) was the progeniter of the Starbuck$ chain, that is where they original Starbuck$ people learned about coffee. Mr. Peet was a brilliant genius with coffee beans. I believe one of the founders of Starbuck$ split from Starbuck$ and acquired control of Peets.
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The original Peet's -- founded by Alfred Peet -- is still alive and well on the corner of Vine & Walnut in Berkeley's "Gourmet Ghetto" (around the corner from Chez Panisse), right where it's been since 1966.
Yes, the people who founded Starbuck$ learned at Peet's, and went north to seek fame and fortune by creating the McDonald's of Espresso.
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As someone who has actually worked at Peet's, they're not THAT different -- Peet's sold out to places like ABP long ago. Speaking of Bay Area coffee, does anyone know of places in LA that stock or serve Blue Bottle?
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Blue Bottle is my favorite coffee so far! Both at the Saturday Fairy Bldg. Farmers Mkt. and Linden St. spot! I have not been able to find it in L.A. but have ordered whole beans which they roast on Mondays and it's in my mailbox on Wednesday.
http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net/
edit, I ment Ferry Bldg.
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Blue Bottle is amazing coffee. I had in San Francisco not too long ago.
Since you can order Blue Bottle on line, I have another great selection for coffee: Raven's Brew Coffee, roasted in Alaska! My personal favorite from Raven's Brew is Deadman's Reach (Served in bed; raises the dead -- so reads the label).
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According to the Peet's email list - you can get a small cup of the new freddo on the house on Sat. from 2-4pm (actually they are doing this for 3 weeks, the last of which will be this Saturday)
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I like the plain old ordinary espresso at El Cochinito on Sunset in Silverlake. Nothing fancy about it, as a matter of fact they use La Llave coffee out of the can. But there is just something about their machine, the grind, the water, whatever that combine to make the finest cup of espresso in Los Angeles. (My girlfriend swears by their cafe con leche.) Can't get anything else fancy and coffee related there, the atmosphere is stark and plain. The roast pork is awfully good. I think it kicks butt over any of the fancy, modern, coffeecentric places I've been to.
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Right on! I swear by the cafe con leche there as well
!!!!
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Having posted on a similar subject not long ago after getting here from Seattle, the best I have found, by far, in my first couple of months in LA is Polly's Gourmet Coffee in Long Beach. Urth and Susina are perfectly good, they are good at everything, but Polly's is about the coffee, which they roast there. The owner does barista training, etc. Basic, Seattle style goodness, but to my admittedly limited experience absolutely unique in this city. If anyone who knows Polly's can recommend equivalents elsewhere (is Groundwork in Santa Monica similar caliber? Anything nearer Pasadena?), particularly with an in-store roasting component, I'd love to hear it.
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Pasadena Coffee Company on Walnut. They roas their own beans. I've only been there once and actually did not care that much for the coffee that I tried.
http://www.pasadenacoffeecompany.com/
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Favorites include:
1. Sabor Y Cultura in Hollywood (buy beans here)
2. Urth Caffe (good food and coffee, annoying environment)
3. Priscilla's in Toluca Lake
4. Zona Rosa in Pasadena
5. Novel Cafe in Westwood (good drip coffee)
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Surprisingly enough, I have to second the recommendation for Novel Cafe in Westwood. Haven't tried their espresso drinks, but they do have really good basic drip coffee. They're generous with refills, there's never a wait for a table, and they let you linger and read/study/sip for as long as you want.
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I second Priscilla's. Their coffee is great and the staff seems to know their stuff, especially the guys that work in the am with the commuter/studio crowd.
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assuming that you are talking about the place that used to be Espresso Mi Cultura - I completely agree.
I'm not sure its' still the same. But, I've since moved to Long beach and I miss that place.
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Peets.
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Mama's Tamale's off Alvarado on the south side of MacArthur Park has amazing coffee.
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There is nothing better than a fresh pot of strong, hot coffee at Mama's on a weekend morning. They used to roast it on site. It really is among the richest coffees i've ever had.
Somecrust Bakery on Yale in Claremont has great coffee (Santa Cruz), a brew bar, and they pull a fine espresso. The mocha lattes are made with a housemade chocolate syrup and the whipped cream is fresh and delicious. And it's close to the Claremont Depot, so you can ride the Metrolink out to get your fix.
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Thank you mcsss. Angel at Mama's makes amazing coffees, all fair trade/shade grown/organic/yada yada. More folks need to know about him.
Folks who say Peet's -- y'all need to get around a bit more!
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Haha, I should actually disclaimered that Peet's is my favorite of the big chains (Starbuck$, Coffee Bean, Gloria Jean's, etc.) -- my fave LA-only option will probably be Groundworks though.
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There's an Italian barista who works at the Beverly Hills Il Fornaio (301 N Beverly Dr., (310) 550-8330), and when he's there, the lattes are exceptional. He works the machine for the restaurant, not the take out counter (which does not generally have particularly good coffee beverages), and he is not always there. But, when he's working the machine, it's really, really good. (Hard to explain, but it tastes concentrated, almost like it's condensed or something.)
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Somehow I can't get my mind to embrace the term "barista", it always seems like a cloying Starbuck$ marketing ploy. Now "barrister" I can handle. ;-)
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Javatinis, on Main Street, off PCH, in Old Town Seal Beach. They roast their own daily, and will custom roast a pound at a time for you in about 20 minutes, from a selection of about half a dozen beans (~$12-13/lb). IMHO it's much better than Polly's in Long Beach, and far superior to the chains. And you have the beach just a block away.
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Thanks for all of the responses, and keep 'em coming. I'm pretty familiar with all of the places mentioned thus far, with the exception of Novel Cafe...and I have to disagree about the quality of Urth Cafe. It is a scene, for sure, which attracts some. There's a few definite pluses about Urth, depending on the barista, such as the latte art, but overall, I find the quality of their drip coffee to be over-extracted, and kept in circulation for too long. In addition, they expose their espresso beans to air and light for too long which a)causes a reduction in the quality of the crema and b)degrades the overall quality of the bean by exposing it to other aromas/flavors etc. inherent in that environment. That is of course, my opinion.
Angel is a great barista and is passionate about coffee at Mama's Hot Tamales, and Zona Rosa is great too.
Peet's, well if you have to go somewhere corporate and relatively insipid, I guess that's the least of the evils.
Thanks all.
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To many of us, Graffeo in Beverly Hills provides the best coffee, yet you will not be able to judge by walking into the store, in that they only roast light roast, dark roast, and decaf, and only sell the beans, ground or whole, period! Not in the drinking business. Yet they have been around for many decades, are based in SF, and truly put out a fine product, which is used by oh so many restaurants both here in California as well as many other places in the country, as they ship overnight.
Buy some, and use your own method of preparation and see how it compares.
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We too drink Graffeo which is excellent. The Whole Foods on Fairfax and Santa Monica gets a weekly shipment as well.
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Graffeo has been my favorite place in S. Cal. to pick up beans for a long time. I pay my 99% CH inspired AmEx bill a couple of doors down in the office partly as an excuse to grab beans - only tried Dark Roast though.
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Perfect selection. I will make the drive from Sherman Oaks to get Graffeo dark roast, yet I can walk two blocks to Coffee Roaster!
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I agree with Graffeo in Beverly Hills as some of the best beans in Los Angeles. If you are in the Los Feliz or Siverlake area Psychobabble Coffee House of Vermont and Franklin brews only that and on the West Side, Clementine in Century City.
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The Problem with Graffeo is the Beans. Irregular Size beans make for Roasting issues, small ones roast faster than larger ones.
Premium Beans like LA MILL uses are far superior and all the same size! There is no better cup of coffee in LA than Providence's which comes in a French Press and is LA MILL beans, unbeatable! $7-
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Would you say that overextraction causes coffee to taste too "strong" or bitter? I hate to judge Urth from one visit when I had a cold drink, but the coffee tasted overpoweringly strong and dark.
I love all kinds of coffee, but felt like Urth was overcompensating for serving mediocre coffee by brewing a big strong dose of it. As if people would just say "Yee haw, this is good and strong" without realizing that the coffee itself didn't have any aroma, flavor, nuances, fragrance, or subtelty. Its only characteristic was strong.
Like I said, that's just from one visit, but I'm curious what you think since you seem to know your coffee. Or what blends at Urth are people's favorites.
If Graffeo is as good as it is in SF, it's definitely worth a visit.
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Riddle me this, peanut. Does the form of business entity or the nature of ownership directly affect the taste of coffee?
I started drinking Peet's when I attended high school in the Berkeley/Oakland Hills and we could just manage to zip to their Domingo St. location by the Claremont between 2nd and 3rd periods once one of us got a drivers license. I think that back then they had a total of five stores, all in the Bay Area. Among their best coffees then was the Major Dickason's blend, although the Arabian Mocha - Java was pretty darn good too. And I mean coffee, brewed, black, maybe sugar, not frou-frou drinks.
As I got older, went off to college, etc., I couldn't find anyplace with comparably flavorful beans, with the sole exception of Coffee Connection in Cambridge/Boston. So I ordered Peets by mail order.
Fast forward 15 years. In the interim, Starbucks happened. Peets stayed a regional player and then decided, apparently, that they needed to grow or die at the hands of the aforementioned bohemoth (and presumably some of the owners wanted to cash out via IPO, can you blame them?). And thank god, because otherwise I wouldn't be able to get their beans in SoCal. I continue to buy my beans from Peets and brew it myself because IMHO their single origin beans and their blends remain the best, and their roast brings forward the flavors I enjoy from flavorful beans. The Major Dickason's and Mocha-Java blends remain the same quality wise as when they were a privately owned, 5 shop operation, and they've added good new ones (e.g. Sierra Dorado). So, while Peets is now "corporate" I don't believe the quality of what I buy has suffered a bit, which is why I buy it. If you find their product "insipid" I would respectfully suggest that you may be brewing it wrong. That is, if you brew your own coffee at all.
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Well put, DonnyMac. I'll be the broken record and say that Peet's coffee is delicious if and only if you can find a store with high turnover on whole beans. This is true even in the Bay Area, where I know of some diehard 'hounds who will drive an extra few miles to go to the busiest Peet's. I've had bad Peet's coffee, but only when the beans have been allowed to sit around too long.
Starbuck's, on the other hand, is never good no matter where you buy the means--or when. Always overroasted, always burnt tasting. Even old Peet's beans taste better than supposedly fresh Starbuck's beans. Come to think of it, does Starbuck's even aftertise the roast dates on their coffee? I think not. Peet's always clearly labels their coffee so you don't have to buy something old.
I'm also a fan of the Major Dickinson, and of some of the fair trade (Cinco Hermanas comes to mind, light smooth coffee from a farm run by women in South America). There was also one interesting blend that was advertised as being aftertaste-free. I don't know if that's really desirable in a coffee, but it could come in handy at the office! And it did taste good; anyone remember the name?
Pei, formerly nooodles
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I like Peet's too. I don't care if it doesn't have "small coffee shop" cred.
In Pasadena, there's a place on Raymond between California and Del Mar that roasts their own coffee beans. Don't remember the name.
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It's Jones Coffee Roaster's, and its very good. The LA Times food section today apparently enjoyed their french roast. They brew good espresso there, as well supplying beans for purchase. Not much of a hang, more of a warehouse, but great product.
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Have to schedule an early meeting soon in Pasadena. Would Jones Coffee Roaster be a place to get a good cup of coffee and be comfortable enough to talk business in a very casual way? Do they do specialty drinks, meaning at least lattes or caps, just the basic brewed coffee and espresso? Don't need a Starbux environment, just some tables and chairs would work.
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It's very bare bones - they have a few benches and a table or two. They have adapted some of their warehouse space to a little sitting area, basically. If your discussions were to be completely casual, and not all that private, it may work. They do specialty drinks, including iced drinks.
They don't have air conditioning, as I recall. In Pasadena in September, that may indeed be a deal killer for you! I'd consider Europane or Lovebirds in the same area, or Equator if you want somewhere funkier. Coffee is best at Jones, but that's probably about it.
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Jones alert. Excellent coffee. Please note however if you are going to buy 5 pounds of beans the price online is about one-half the price instore!
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Us Peet's drinkers are a very loyal bunch. Peet's even markets that fact in their advertising.
I started drinking it in college at Berkeley and had to mail order it for almost a decade after returning to L.A.! They have been extemely consistent in their quality all these 30 years and I sometimes wonder if they inadvertantly "ruined" my ability to like anybody else's coffee! I mean I've had good and great cups of coffee in the U.S. and Europe, but it's always Peets I crave first thing in the morning.
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Cafe Balcony on Santa Monica at Rochester. This place knows coffee. Beans selected with care and locally roasted in small batches. Each cup individually siphon brewed to exacting standards. Of course, you have to go when the owner is there (which is often, thankfully), as some of his managers can't tell coffee from motor oil.
Cafe Balcony is truly a great cup of joe. And they do latte art.
Another stand out is Kaffa, down in Orange. I know it isn't LA proper, but its greater LA. They do latte art here too, by the way.
Sabor y Cultura in Hollywood is very good.
Of the other places mentioned so far in this thread. Peet's is pretty darn good for a regional chain. It's better than Urth (good for tea, coffee's not bad), Priscilla's, Coffee Roaster (I've tried to like it, but I don't).
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Yesterday, I had one of the best lattes I've had in a LONG time at Portos in Glendale. The "kid" working the machine took great care with every drink, the milk was heated/foamed perfectly and the coffee flavor was wonderful. I know it must have been good because I used half as much sugar as I normally do.
I had a decent coffee drink at Kaldi in Atwater Village this morning, but that might have been the coconut syrup talking (I know I know...but it was good!)
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YES! I just told someone in another thread that the espresso at Portos is surprisingly good (I order cafe Cubano). Unexpected for a busy bakery.
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Of the ones not posted here, try Antigua Cultural Coffee House in El Sereno. They get their beans from a family plantation in Guatemala and they sell lighter roasts which is probably what you are looking for.
http://www.antiguacoffeehouse.com/
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I tend to like non-chain coffee shops and I think the coffee at Cafe Americano (http://www.cafeamericano.net/index.htm) is pretty good. It has a unique but subtle taste and the atmosphere of the shop is cute and friendly.
It's near Koreatown on Wilshire and Wilton.
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Coffee Roaster in Sherman Oaks roasts their own coffee & makes excellent lattes. Good espresso.
And on the Westside, Coffee Conservatory in Culver City (on Washington across fr: Sony Studios) takes great pride in their hand-roasted beans. Also excellent lattes & espresso, I think.
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Have never tried the latte or espresso at Coffee Roaster in Sherman Oaks, but their standard cup of black coffee you order when you walk in the front door is one of the worst cups I have ever had, and that was as recently as a week ago last Sunday when Pane Dolce diagonally across the street was not open yet. It was so bad I had to throw half of it in the gutter and finally get across the street once Pane Dolce opened to get a real cup, not a real good cup, of coffee, but light years better than the roaster's. God, McD's and Denny's have better.
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Rocky Roasters in Canoga Park (on Canoga Avenue north of Vanowen) is also an independent coffee roaster. Some of their roasts are better than others, but the store is beginning to find "its voice," and I think anyone willing to try out something new and slightly different try this place.
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For the most part, I brew my coffee at home. This - because I am both cheap and picky.
I like plain, black coffee. Nary an almond, hazlenut, vanilla frappaccino passes my lips. Sure the occasional latte is delicious but mainly, I just want a good cup of joe.
And believe it or not, it is truly hard to find an actual, good cup of brewed coffee at most coffehouses I've tried. The one exception I have found is Groundworks.
As I was ordering a frothy-foamy item at Groundworks (across the street from my office), I was bemoaning the lack of good brewed coffee anywhere. The guys who run the Groundworks told me that the acrid/burned drip coffee at Starbucks, Peets and CBTL is intentionally undrinkable. It makes the consumer order an espresso drink for far more money than a simple brewed coffee. They invited me to try theirs - and it is actually good.
For my homebrew, I buy Peet's beans. They have an excellent selection of beans and offer at least one fair trade option. Peet's also makes a great foamy frothy concotion - but their brewed coffee is acrid swill.
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The guy who told you this at Groundworks is full of it. No one at Peet's is making their coffee intentionally undrinkable.
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