clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

E.P. & L.P. Team Opening Australian-Style Cafe in West Hollywood

New, 6 comments

The new cafe is called Strings of Life, and should open this summer

David Combes, Louis Tikaram, and Grant Smillie
Genevieve Adams
Mona Holmes is a reporter for Eater Los Angeles and a regular contributor to KCRW radio. She has covered restaurants, dining, and food culture since 2016. In 2022, the James Beard Foundation nominated her for a Jonathan Gold Local Voice Award.

Australian restaurateurs David Combes and Grant Smillie, along with chef Louis Tikaram, are opening an Australian cafe in West Hollywood called Strings of Life. The project hasn’t started construction yet, and will be located directly across the street from E.P. & L.P., as soon as summer hits.

Australia’s distinctive flat-white — double espresso with steamed milk but no foam — began making LA appearances as early as 2014. But the recent explosion of Aussie cafes throughout LA is staggering. In the last year, places like Ministry of Coffee opened in Westwood, Roo Coffee hopped into Silver Lake, La Brea welcomed Bluestone Lane, and Pollen brought food and Aussie coffee options to Echo Park, to name a few. But some were established well before these recent spate of Aussie cafe openings, including Bondi Harvest in Santa Monica.

Combes, Smillie, and Tikaram opened E.P. & L.P.’s ultra-popular West Hollywood restaurant rooftop in 2015. Even though the rooftop is well-known for the view, cocktails, and small bites, Tikaram put together a modern Southeast Asian menu for L.P. that continues to impress, landing a spot on the Essential 38.

Bondi Harvest

1814 Berkeley Street, , CA 90404 (310) 586-7419 Visit Website

Echo Park

, , CA

E.P. & L.P.

603 North La Cienega Boulevard, , CA 90069 (310) 855-9955 Visit Website