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

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.

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