Go Get Em Tiger is a new coffee bar opening today in Larchmont Village from the team behind G&B Coffee, Kyle Glanville and Charles Babinski. This is the concept that LA's coffee aficionados have been waiting for, with a paradigm shift from the high-volume third wave shop like Intelligentsia Silver Lake, which here takes on a minimal, relaxed vibe designed in conjunction with Joe Wedding.
Referring to the initial morning mantra, the name implies a kind of initiation or the type of salutation ones gives to someone who's about to do something big. Hence, the motorcyclist on the front chalkboard and the floating astronaut mural behind the bar. This bar gives customers the liquid fuel to tackle the day.
Yes, it's just coffee, but it's the simplicity of both the presentation and extreme amount of care and attention put into every cup that's going to separate Go Get Em Tiger from the current crop of coffee bars. In addition, the service model is quite different from the "get-in-line" approach that Glanville might have actually helped launch during his years at Intelligentsia. Instead, there's an amply spaced bar where customer cozy up and order directly with staff, whereupon orders are sent via iPad to the espresso machine at the end of the bar. Drinks are then presented in custom hand-thrown ceramic mugs and enjoyed while standing, similar to the style at the recently opened G&B Coffee in Downtown's Grand Central Market (that bar will continue to hold the G&B moniker).
Over a series of tests using manual brew methods, like the popular Hario V60 method, versus automated methods such as the Curtis Gold Cup and the rather old-school Fetco batch brewer, the latter came on top. Not only did advanced spectrometer tests show that this was the best possible extraction of filter coffee available right now, it simply tasted the best. These servings will be brewed into Italian-designed glass-lined carafes for quick service — no more waiting for single cups to brew.
Espresso will be pulled in a fully automatic four-group machine made by La Marzocco. In recent years, baristas have been able to use "paddle" switches to estimate when an espresso shot was fully extracted, but Go Get Em Tiger will use a custom rig that cuts off each shot at a level of precision that no human could match. Nifty. Finally, Go Get Em Tiger will pre-grind shots so that up to ten shots can be pulled without much wait. That means getting a cappuccino within thirty seconds of ordering, theoretically.
Everything's been scaled for efficiency so that customers can interact most with baristas, learning about coffees or simply left alone to hang out with other caffeine addicts. The modular design of the sturdy plywood chairs along the front window alcove or the lack of seating at the bar should result in high interaction among guests.
The usual approach of using various roasters from around the country (and world, as some will come from Canada and Australia) holds here, with the likes of Heart Roasters and 49th Parallel getting plenty of shelf space. In addition, brewing equipment for home enjoyment will be available for purchase.
This is one coffee bar to get excited about, in a neighborhood that hasn't had this type of experience before. Now go get 'em.
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