Every weekday morning I drive to Santa Monica, get to work, turn on my light and go down the hall to brew up some coffee. I add a teaspoon of cinnamon to the grounds and then turn on the milk steamer. When it whistles, I steam up some milk and wait until I have a good foam. Then I pour a cup of coffee, add the steamed milk and top it with the froth, a spoonful of sugar and some more cinnamon (love it). But come Saturday, I'm stuck. My setup is gone. There's no coffee maker next to an espresso maker on my home counter. No Breakfast Blend or Mocha Java. There is simply the (cute) lone French press and a half gallon of milk in the fridge. Sure, I could head down to Starbuck's and order up the concoction, but then I'd be that girl; the-brewed-coffee-(not burnt please)-with-a-dash-of-cinnamon-a-teaspoon-of-sugar-1/3-steamed-milk-and-froth-on-top-girl. I realize there are more difficult people, but if there was just a name for even brewed coffee with frothed milk I would seem less ridiculous. Think I'm kidding? Let's discuss.
Traditionally, a café au lait is coffee or espresso (depending on what side of the pond you're on) with steamed milk. A cappuccino is espresso and hot milk topped with milk froth. A latte is 1/3 espresso and 2/3 steamed milk with maybe a bit of foam (if you aren't at the typical factory coffee establishment). So where does this leave the coffee with foamed milk drinkers? S.O.L. is where. But on Thursday, in my attempt to fix this problem, I posed a question to friends. What do we call it?
I only got one answer. Frofee. Thanks Arash!!
By Sunday, I was ready. Breakfast at Blu Jam Cafe. Fire it up. I ordered Blu Toast (French toast with blackberry jam, cream cheese, bananas and powdered sugar...yay carbs!) and then I said it: so, I was hoping to get a cup of coffee with some steamed milk topped with maybe...1/3 foam? She looks at me.
"OK. No problem."
That was easy. A few minutes later, the friendly coffee guy brings out the cup o' froth.
"Here's your Cappulatte or your Cappulait. . . no, maybe you should call it a Coffoamie. Here's your Coffoamie!"
Nice. Whatever it was, it was perfecto. I mean this guy pretty much was born to make foam. It was sweet and airy and the stuff that CoffeeGeek would be proud of. The coffee was also perfectly brewed with no bitterness. Amazing. With that, I left resolved to order my Coffoamie wherever I go. Call me weird, but if you ever get to Blu Jam you'll call nameless coffee guy a genius--with whatever you order.
Until then, below are some coffee places in L.A. that are worth skipping Coffee Bean for:
Silverlake/Echo Park/Eagle Rock/Atwater Village
Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea
323.663.6173
3922 W. Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, 900
Sanjang Coffee Garden
213.387.9190
101 S. Virgil Avenue
Los Angeles, 90004
323.664.8248
1523 Griffith Park Blvd.
Los Angeles, 90026
323.906.8904
2106 Hyperion Ave
Los Angeles, 90027
Los Angeles, 90027
Silverlake Coffee Company323.913.03882388 Glendale Blvd., Suite BLos Angeles, 90039
323.284.8962
2100 Echo Park Avenue
Los Angeles, 90026
Kaldi Coffee & Tea
323.660.6005
3147 GlendaleBlvd.
Los Angeles, 90039
323.258.8278
4126 Verdugo Road
Los Angeles, 90065
323.258.56002160 Colorado BlvdLos Angeles, 90041
Mid-City/Hollywood/West Hollywood/Downtown
Black Dog Coffee323.933.19765657 Wilshire Blvd Ste 150
Los Angeles, 90036
Massimo's Mudspot323.936.1721759 S La Brea AveLos Angeles, 90036
Los Angeles, 90038
Groundwork(multiple locations)323.871.0107
1501 Cahuenga BlvdLos Angeles, 90028
Tiago Espresso Bar + Kitchen323.466.56007080 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, 90028
Caffe Etc.
323.464.88246371 Selma AveLos Angeles, 90028Cafe Audrey 323.465.55396701 Hollywood Blvd, Suite B
Los Angeles, 90028
Lost Souls Cafe213.617.7006Harlem Place Alley124 W 4th Street
Los Angeles, 90013
Culver City/Santa Monica/Venice
The Conservatory for Coffee, Tea & Cocoa310.558.043610117 Washington Blvd
Culver City, 90232
Teaforest Tea + Coffee Bar310.815.17238686 Washington Blvd.Culver City, 90232
Funnel Mill Rare Coffee & Tea310.597.4395930 Broadway, Suite A
Santa Monica, 90401
Bolivar Cafe & Gallery 310.581.23441741 Ocean Park Blvd
Santa Monica, 90405
Caffe Luxxe310.394.2222925 Montana Ave
Santa Monica, 90403
The Rumor Mill
310.397.54001739 W. Washington Blvd.Los Angeles, 9066
The Cow's End Cafe310.574.108034 Washington Blvd.Venice Beach, 90292
Culver City, 90232
Teaforest Tea + Coffee Bar310.815.17238686 Washington Blvd.Culver City, 90232
Funnel Mill Rare Coffee & Tea310.597.4395930 Broadway, Suite A
Santa Monica, 90401
Bolivar Cafe & Gallery 310.581.23441741 Ocean Park Blvd
Santa Monica, 90405
Caffe Luxxe310.394.2222925 Montana Ave
Santa Monica, 90403
The Rumor Mill
310.397.54001739 W. Washington Blvd.Los Angeles, 9066The Cow's End Cafe310.574.108034 Washington Blvd.Venice Beach, 90292
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