French Tea Sandwiches Star at This New Instagram-Ready Coffee Shop on West Third

At the charming new Madame Coffee on 8036 West Third Street, customers can grab an espresso brewed from a La Marzocco machine to go along with its pre-packaged French-style afternoon tea sandwiches. And those items can be photographed in front of its Instagrammable wall covered in greenery and hanging red geranium ivy, with a neon sign that reads, “Keep it Simple, Stupid.”

The idea of “simple” set the stage for partners Lionel Azoulay and Ariella Newton’s Madame Coffee, which opened last month. The beverage offerings are straightforward and brewed from Counter Culture Coffee beans. The pastries, from croissants to beignets, are sourced from local Boule de Pain bakery. There is a handful of house-made sandwich options, including smoked salmon with butter, egg and potato, and tuna salad with cucumbers, which fill a glass case on the counter.

Newton fell in love with the tea sandwiches on her and Azoulay’s travels to France together. Azoulay, a French native, has been working in the restaurant industry for nearly a decade and opened a bakery and sushi spot in LA; Newton has worked alongside him at a number of his establishments. “I love coffee,” says Newton. “I was frequently trying different coffee shops and I’d wanted my own coffee shop for some time now, so we made it happen here together.”

Madame Coffee is open Monday to Saturday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Jean Trinh/Eater LA

Mulberry Street Pizzeria’s celebration slices

The longstanding New York City-style slice chain will be celebrating its 31st anniversary with 31-cent cheese pizza slices on December 6 from noon to 5 p.m. at all five of its locations, from Beverly Hills to Encino. An extra feel-good bonus? Proceeds will be donated to the California Prostate Cancer Coalition.

A conversation with Nikkei chefs

The Japanese American National Museum-led project Discover Nikkei will be hosting a free Zoom video conversation with international Nikkei chefs, including Niki Nakayama of LA’s n/naka, Telma Shiraishi of Restaurante Aizomê (São Paulo, Brazil), and Roger Arakaki of Sushi Ito (Lima, Peru). Gil Asakawa, the book author of Tabemasho! Let’s Eat!: A Tasty History of Japanese Food in America will be moderating the talk that will cover the topic of Nikkei food and cultural backgrounds. The conversation will take place on December 3 from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. and folks can register here.

A Filipino comedy show and dinner

There’s a free Filipino comedy show dubbed “Motherland” taking place inside the Kusina Filipina restaurant in Eagle Rock every Wednesday, with plenty of pancit, sisig, and beer, reports Danny Palumbo for Los Angeles Times.

A pop-up market featuring Black vendors

Prosperity Market, which has been producing pop-ups featuring Black farmers, chefs, and food purveyors, will be making its way to the Original Farmers Market by the Grove on December 3 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. There will be more than a dozen vendors selling everything from coffee to spices at the event which will also have a DJ spinning tunes and activities for kids.