Approximately 63% of Americans are coffee drinkers, a statistic that holds weight in the sprawling metropolis of Los Angeles. While a good portion of java junkies are content to line up at the closest Starbucks, a smaller sect demands a little more when caffeine cruising. Fortunately, there’s no shortage of unique local coffee shops to keep Los Angeles buzzing through the day. Here are five of the most creative refueling spots for the caffeine-inclined.
Horror Vibes Coffee
5251 Lankershim Blvd, North Hollywood 91601
If caffeine isn’t quite enough to jolt you into the waking world, maybe a good scare will do the trick. If so, only North Hollywood’s Horror Vibes Coffee will do. Formerly City Vibes, Horror Vibes Coffee remains one of the most interesting local coffee shops for its embrace of the morbid and macabre. Instantly recognizable for its mural saturated with iconography of Halloween and horror cinema, there’s a lot going on beneath the surface.
Horror Vibes Coffee is a collaboration between owner Omaira Mahan and creative director Dane Archer. Together, they’ve concocted an eerily energizing menu with seasonal drinks like the Scissorhands (hazelnut dark mocha latte) and Nightmare on Maple St (maple cinnamon latte). They also unveil a host of seasonal offerings. For example, they currently whip up a neon latte called the Call of Cthulh-ube (green tea matcha with ube cream). Yes, you can get a Lovecraft-themed latte in LA. Praise the Great Old Ones.
Somemore LA
2717 W Olympic Blvd #106, Los Angeles 90006
Here’s a neckbrace for the whiplash you’re likely suffering as we pivot from Horror Vibes to Somemore LA. While they’re both creative takes on local coffee shops, Koreatown’s Somemore is easily the cutest of the cute coffee shops you’ll find around town… if not the world. For starters, it’s teddy bear-themed. We mean giant teddy bears welcoming you from the window, bear-shaped desserts, bear-shaped whip cream.
But every detail of Somemore further emphasizes the adorbs factor. The green grass carpeting and ivy creeping up the walls, the fruity lattes, and the decadent sweets. And that last one deserves some extra attention. Because when you go to Somemore LA, you better have a sweet tooth. This is the kind of place where you can get an Oreo baked into the middle of a chocolate chip cookie. You could get a sugar rush just reading that sentence.
Pam’s Coffy
4473 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles 90027
The latest addition to LA’s unique local coffee shops, Pam’s Coffy comes with an extra kick of star power behind it. For one, Pam Grier’s stunning visage is emblazoned across the tiny caffeinated corner. (For those unaware, Grier starred in groundbreaking blaxploitation classic Coffy among other cinematic milestones, in and out of the genre.) It should come as no surprise then that Pam’s Coffy is Quentin Tarantino’s ideal coffee shop. He owns it, after all. When he bought the Vista Theater years ago, he lovingly restored one of his favorite classic movie theaters to stand somewhere between history and his vision. And Pam’s Coffy was all part of that.
So what about the coffy… err, coffee? It’s actually one of the best parts about Pam’s Coffy. Tarantino’s coffee shop relies exclusively on a custom-roasted blend from Jones Coffee Roasters out of Pasadena. It’s the same butterscotch and vanilla flavored coffee beans that he’s been enjoying personally at home for years. And it’s such a cornerstone of the Pam’s Coffy experience that its available by the bag for the days that you can’t make it to the Vista.
Bloom & Plume Coffee
1638 W Temple St, Los Angeles 90026
Sometimes, you need to wake up and smell the roses. Or is it coffee? Either way, Historic Filipinotown’s Bloom & Plume has you covered. This black-owned family business opened in January 2019, promoting the South African philosophy of “Ubuntu”. Loosely translated: “I am because you are.” It may seem a bit abstract, but any coffee shop regular will recognize it as a basic cornerstone of community.
So, there’s a bitter irony that this rose among local coffee shops opened its petals a year before a global pandemic forced everyone to more or less become an island. Thankfully, Bloom & Plume weathered the Covid storm and is serving the community tasty cups of coffee aside tasteful flower arrangements. That’s right, they’re slinging bouquets and lattes; sounds like the perfect recipe for a spring morning in LA.
Trails Cafe
2333 Fern Dell Dr, Los Angeles 90068
Even amidst the dusty trails of Griffith Park, Los Angeles manages to produce creative local coffee shops… well, at least one, anyway. Well known to fans of the lush Fern Dell entrance, Trails Cafe is a rather simple, but satisfying fueling station for hikers seeking some chemical motivation. The surrounding picnic tables are often jam packed with Angelenos enjoying surprisingly quality coffee from the rustic snack stand. Not to mention notably delectable avocado sandwiches.
At one point, Trails Cafe was a hamburger stand (immortalized in an episode of Nickelodeon’s Salute Your Shorts). But that’s before Grammy-winner Mickey Petralia and TV exec Frank Lentz partnered up in June 2005 to create a cafe worthy of Griffith Park’s natural majesty. Today, it reliably serves up some extra pep for those calorie-burning steps!
