The coolest coffee shops in Los Angeles

Los Angeles’ coffee shops feel almost infinite in number, with choices ranging from speciality roasters for true coffee nerds to cool cafés suitable for all-day co-working and after-hours spots for late-night lattes and zingy caffeine-fuelled cocktails. Along with LA’s tantalising array of restaurants and slew of incredible bars, the City of Angels has managed to wrangle to coffee crown away from Seattle, the birthplace of Starbucks and the US’s original caffeine capital. As Andres Piñeros, founder of The Boy and the Bear coffee shop, says: “Right now the coffee shop scene in Los Angeles is super diverse: there are Hispanics, Central Americans, South Americans, Asians, all really into coffee. Each culture has a different way of seeing and tasting things. It makes each coffee roasting company in Los Angeles that little bit more interesting.”

We’ve tracked down the best coffee shops in each Los Angeles neighbourhood to give you a jumping-off point for exploring this energetic scene.

The best coffee shops in central Los Angeles

Maru

Los Feliz, Arts District

Best for: Your morning coffee before a hike, remote working
Location: 1936 Hillhurst Avenue, Los Angeles
Prices: From 5.50 USD for an iced latte

Maru takes its moniker from a native Korean language, San Ma Ru, which means ‘mountaintop’. The roastery and coffee shop has locations in Los Feliz and the Arts District. Locals love its calm, minimalist interiors, soothing music and friendly baristas, who are an unusually affable bunch, even for Los Angeles. It has a distinctly neighbourhood feel, which is why a trip to Maru is a really lovely way to start your day. Grab a takeout or linger with your laptop for a morning of remote working, while staying fired up with speciality espresso, cold brews, matcha lattes and tea.

Go Get ‘Em Tiger

Larchmont Village, Los Feliz, Highland Park, Santa Monica and Culver City

Best for: Kick-in-the-pants energy to tackle your day, speciality drinks
Location: 230 N Larchmont Boulevard, Los Angeles (and further outposts across the city)

Founded by US Barista Champions Kyle Glanville and Charles Babinski, Go Get ‘Em Tiger has, well, go-get-em energy. It continuously rethink how consumers interact with coffee, and is also LA to its core: the Larchmont location opened in 2013, during the first wave of renewed energy being infused into a previously stale coffee scene. It is now a local stalwart, with further outposts across the city, including Los Feliz and Highland Park. Select from speciality roasts, iced brews and refreshing sweet teas, accompanied by breakfast burritos, pastries and fluffy waffles. Can’t make your mind up? Try a Business & Pleasure, which is a flight of three drinks: a shot of espresso with a side of fizzy hoppy tea (the business) and an almond-macadamia milk cappuccino (the pleasure).

The best coffee shops in West Hollywood

Dayglow Coffee

West Hollywood

Best for: creative flavours, coffee beans from around the world
Location: 3206 Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood Los Angeles
Prices: From 8 USD for an original coffee cocktail 

This pastel pink and neon shop on Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood, is evocative of an indie romcom, in the best way possible. From the chill music to the adorable décor to the specialty drinks menu, Dayglow is a definite mood. The non-alcoholic coffee cocktails rotate in and out, but the Andy Warhol is a staple of the menu – equal parts espresso and cream with a little cinnamon, citrus, and vanilla to perk it up. Expect similar creative combinations; take one to go and channel your energy into exploring the other storefronts along Sunset. For an end-of-day drink, Dayglow stays open until 7pm, which is slightly later than its contemporaries.

Verve

West Hollywood, Arts District, Manhattan Beach

Best for: A conscious cup of coffee, outdoor seating
Location: 8925 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles
Price: From 5 USD for a pour-over

Originally from Santa Cruz, California, Verve opened in Los Angeles soon after, planting a flag as one of the early California specialty coffee roasters. Today, five Verve locations dot the city, infusing each neighbourhood with earnest seed-to-cup energy. Each cafe is great, but this West Hollywood location in particular is beautiful, and has a huge shaded porch perfect for lingering over a cold brew on a first date. The Cascara Spritz is particularly refreshing, with a rich tea-like flavour, while sweet lattes are accented by honey and lavender notes. The coffee program revolves around what it calls the Farmlevel Initiative, transcending boundaries of distance, language, and culture to connect coffee farmers with coffee consumers. What’s more Verve pays farmers premiums to produce great coffee with the brand in mind.
vervecoffee.com

Farm Cup Coffee

West Hollywood, Echo Park, Century City

Best for: An uplifting takeaway coffee
Location: 7748 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90046
Price: From 4 USD for an americano

Farm Cup Coffee isn’t quite a coffee shop, but a bright yellow vintage 1964 Citroën van parked permanently on Santa Monica Boulevard, with a loyal following. Founders Tony and Emerson work directly with farmers in Mexico, as well as local LA roasters to craft an array of delicious brews. Signature drinks include The Daydreamer turmeric latte, with ginger, cinnamon and honey, or Pistachio Rose Matcha, mixed with rose syrup and pistachio milk, served hot or iced. Pair your cup with a sweet or savoury pastry, or breakfast sandwich.

The best coffee shops in Highland Park

Kumquat Coffee Co

Best for: True coffee nerds, remote working
Location:  4936 York Boulevard, Los Angeles
Price: From 8 USD for an original coffee cocktail 

Nestled on a busy street in Highland Park, Kumquat Coffee Co is a coffee and tea bar founded by Q-graders (the accreditation for grading coffee) Andres Jinhan Kim and Scott Sohn. Their dedication to serving excellent coffee is obvious in every perfectly brewed cup – a pilgrimage to Kumquat is a must for anyone dedicated to the best beans around. Visitors can stock up on bags of beans from all round the world, as far-flung as Maryland or Korea. Limited outdoor seating is snapped up quickly, but inside is light and airy, with plenty of room for laptops. Pair your cup of coffee with a breakfast burrito, with fillings including turkey, bacon and turmeric tofu.

Café De Leche

Highland Park, Altadena

Best for: Latin American flavour, remote working, community spirit 
Location: 5000 York Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90042

Owned by Anya and Matthew Schodorf, Café De Leche is a laidback corner coffee shop and roastery, which specialises in handcrafted, small batch coffee. Anya, a native of Nicaragua, grew up in San José, Costa Rica, and a Latin American influence runs through the menu. Join locals sipping on signature horchata con espresso (a blend of Mexican horchata and coffee), a creamy cold brew or hibiscus lemonade.

The best coffee shops in downtown Los Angeles

Eightfold Coffee

Arts District, Echo Park

Best for: A reliable cup of joe, remote working 
Location: Suite 313, 555 Mateo Street, Los Angeles
Price: From 3.75 USD for an americano

The Arts District Eightfold location is the perfect place to take a meeting. Seating is more comfortable than an average shop, so you won’t be squirming an hour in. Plus, unlike some other more experimental menus, Eightfold focuses on the basics, crafting perfect lattes, black coffee and iced matchas to meet any palate. Drinks are accompanied by a menu of equally reliable breakfast burritos, filled bagels and pastries. Though it exclusively serves the famously flavourful Heart Roasters coffee out of Portland, Oregon, Eightfold is otherwise fairly dedicated to LA local businesses. Stop by on a weekend for occasional pop-up partnerships, where local flower shops or cheesecakes are sold alongside the great coffee.

The best coffee shops in Culver City

Equator Coffees

Best for: Sustainably minded, inclusive vibe
Location: 8900 Venice Boulevard, #105, Culver City, CA 90232

Founded by partners Helen Russell and Brooke McDonnell, Equator Coffees is a stalwart of the Californian coffee scene, with locations across the Bay Area. Its first Southern Californian spot opened in Culver City in 2022, with futuristic interiors by Kellie Patry and a bright, spacious layout that lends itself to remote working. Equator Coffees was the first California roaster to receive B Corp certification and is renowned for its Fair Trade organic blends and inclusive vibe. Expert pours are accompanied by pastries and bread by Los Angeles favourite Bub & Grandmas.

The Boy and the Bear

Redondo Beach, Culver City, Westchester, Pasadena, Sherman Oaks

Best for: Colombian-style coffee, remote working
Location: 2712 W. Washington Boulevard, Culver City CA 90066
Prices: From 3.75 USD for a ‘Quick & Black’

The Boy and the Bear founder, Andres Piñeros, hails from Colombia and his warm and convivial coffee shops focus on Columbian coffee and culture. Rich and chocolatey coffees are brewed closer to the way Colombian farmers take it than the way US baristas normally do. The Redondo Beach outpost remains the flagship, while the concrete-clad Culver City cafe is light and spacious for co-working. Watch our exclusive interview with Piñeros over on Instagram.

The best coffee shops in Venice

Flowerboy Project

Venice

Best for: coffee and flowers
Location: 816 Lincoln Boulevard, Venice, Los Angeles
Price: From 5 USD for a cold brew 

Flowerboy Project’s moniker gives you a hint of what you’re in for: space has a fun work-in-progress feel, which is part clothing store-part coffee shop-part florist. Situated one of the busiest stretches of Lincoln Boulevard, drop in for fresh bouquets and cold brews, or park on a seat outside to watch the world go by. The menu – rendered in children’s fridge magnets – is welcoming and straightforward. Ask the florist/barista for help picking a drink (the dirty rose girl is a winner).

Blue Bottle

All across Los Angeles

Best for: Grabbing a cup on the way to the beach
Location: 1103 Abbot Kinney Boulevard, Venice, Los Angeles
Price: From 5.75 USD for a cappuccino

Mere blocks from the Venice Beach Skate Park and, beyond that, the Pacific Ocean, something about this specific Blue Bottle café has a welcoming vibe that the other 20-something Blue Bottle cafés in Southern California aspire to (including outposts in Los Feliz and West Hollywood). Maybe it’s the breezy come-and-go atmosphere – there’s hardly any seating – or the baristas who love working there; either way, this is the perfect place to stop by for a coffee before or after a morning surfing. If you’re done with caffeine and looking for something refreshing, ask for the Cascara Fizz. Made from the under-appreciated coffee cherry, this one always hits the right spot.

No Free Coffee

Best for: Seeing and being seen
Location: Pop-up  – location changes so check Instagram

The famous pop-up No Free Coffee, set up by Mario Kristian, blends his love of good coffee and high-quality streetwear. Every time they open in a new space for a couple of days the lines are down the block from open to close – which is one heck of a good sign in a city with coffee shops on every corner. The original Instagram bio – “We do coffee, but the clothes really hit” – says it all: an NFC sweatshirt with the two-heart logo has attained cult status. If you make it to a pop-up (get there early and plan to stick around for a while), make sure you add a grapefruit tootsie to your order; they always sell out, and once you’ve tried one you’ll understand why.

For something a little stronger, explore the ROADBOOK insider guide to the best bars in Los Angeles.