Zweeting Roasted Vegan Dinosaur - LA Coffee Shops In May

Four coffee houses to try this month: one with outstanding mochas, another with amazing pies, another created for writers, and one with horchata lattes.


 Best Mocha

Stamp Fine Foods

4500 Los Feliz Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90027
One of the best mochas I ever had. Very creamy. This coffee shop in the Los Feliz area also has a pretty large breakfast and lunch  menu. The décor has lots of wood giving the place an old timey feel. I couldn't resist ordering a meal here seeing the customer's plates around me. I had the vegan banana buckwheat pancakes. Good stuff.

Best Pies

Dinosaur Coffee

4334 Sunset Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90029
Yes, there is a dinosaur in the bathroom. Hearing about this is one of the reasons why this coffeehouse piqued my interest. Another was the excellent reviews on the coffee. The reviews were correct, the coffee is good. They also have a pie or two brought in daily by Nicole Rucker. I had a delicious slice of blueberry pie. Also across the street is the LA County Store - all things made locally. It is where I purchased my coffee cash wallet.

Writer's Paradise

Zweet Café

4682 Eagle Rock Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90041
While I enjoyed my mocha here, I really liked the vibe. When I walked in, there was a writers group meeting at one table, a black board field with "inspirational" coffee quotes, and many interesting items to gaze at as you think about the next line in your novel. An added bonus was that after 3:00, a number of pastries are priced at a dollar for that little extra sugar push to get you over the edge.

All Types Here
Jameson Brown Coffee Roasters
260 Allen Ave.
Pasadena, CA 91107
This coffee shop has a special drink menu. On the day in May I went in, they had a creamy iced horchata latte which had lots of yummy cinnamon in it. Jameson's had a good flow of people coming and going from students to professionals to firefighters. I liked their cool mood music and the fact that they had a rewards program with specials on your birthday. It is also away from the hustle and bustle of Old Town and PCC.

Religion, Vegans, and Macs: LA Coffee Shops March

Religion, vegans, and Macs were what I found during my March coffee shop excursions. I am constantly surprised by the uniqueness of the Los Angeles coffee scene. See below:

Holy Grounds Coffee and Tea

Serenity Now

Holy Grounds Coffee and Tea

5371 Alhambra Ave.

Los Angeles, CA 90032

Serenity. This coffeehouse has a very Zen-like courtyard with a large stone fountain and hummingbirds buzzing around the flowers. Religious icons were placed throughout the courtyard including statues of Mother Mary, a golden Buddha, and a fertility goddess. There was even an area for tarot card and tea leaf readers. Very tranquil. Oh, and they also serve a good mocha and pastries from local bakeries. They also have a small lunch menu. Good place to work.

No Animals Harmed Here

The Butcher's Daughter

The Butcher's Daughter

1205 Abbott Kinney Blvd.

Venice, CA 90291

This place surprised me as the daughter is a butcher of vegetables - a total vegan establishment.  Inside was bright and airy with a central island where baristas worked and patrons sat around eating their butchered veggies and/or drank excellent coffee. They also have another counter for to go orders in case you want to take your beverage with you as you stroll along the shops on Abbott Kinney. Definitely a unique establishment.  I listed it under my coffee house visits as that is why I came - for the coffee, but it is more of a café with wait staff and reservations for the tables, so not necessarily a place to sit and write all day.

Groundwork Coffee

Hollywood Grab and Go

Groundwork Coffee Tea Community

1501 N. Cahuenga  Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90028

Across the street from CNN headquarters and cat a corner to Amoeba Records, Groundwork Coffee is at the gateway to Hollywood. It is only two blocks south of Hollywood Boulevard and is very busy with people coming and going. It is a good place to grab a coffee and head out to visit the local sites or have a quick lunch. The plates from the brunch menu looked very good as did the big cinnamon rolls.  All of the street parking, even on the small side streets, is metered at $1.00 per hour.

Mac Life

Found Coffee

1355 Colorado Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90041

Nice clean open coffeehouse. Chill jazzy music was playing low. The crowd was predominantly Occidental College students. And anyone on a laptop, was on a Mac. There was not a single PC in the place. Considering the décor was predominantly white with blue seats, I wondered if there was a connection. For food, they sold a number of pastries.

Found Coffee

Off the Beaten Path: Coffee Shops February

Los Angeles had a whopping .03 inches of rain in February. That's right, not even a half inch for the entire month!   Taking advantage of the beautiful weather, I visited a coffee stand in Griffith Park and walked across the border to Tijuana and found a really nice coffee house there.

Enjoying the sun in Mexico

 

Nice little find

Tierra Mia Coffee

5528 Monte Vista Street

Los Angeles, CA 90042

Quaint coffee house in Highland Park that makes a very good Mexican mocha.  It is in the middle of a residential neighborhood with a small Mexican restaurant next door that has good Yelp reviews. An off the beaten path little gem.

 

Only in no rain
The Trails Cafe

2333 Fern Dell Drive

Los Angeles, CA 90068

It is hard to beat the location being in the center of Griffith Park. You are surrounded by trees, across the street from the trail to the Griffith Park Observatory. While called a cafe, there is no indoor seating. It is really more of a stand with a few  sandwich items and snacks, and lots of coffee choices. Perfect for a caffeine pick me up before or after a hike.

 

International stop
D'Volada

Calle Ignacio Zaragoza 1692

Zona Centro

20000 Tijuana, B. C.

Mexico

American-style coffee shop with good coffee, pastries, and smoothies. It is a nice respite  from the hustle and bustle  of the tourist area of Avenida Revolucion. Interesting chairs, some small some big and plushy, with outdoor seating for taking a load off and people watching. I had a delicious Mexican Mocha (in Mexico).