Daniel and Angie Kim opened this well-placed Santa Monica cafe during the pandemic, enduring under difficult circumstances to serve some of the Westside’s best coffee. One of the few LA shops to serve Arkansas’s celebrated Onyx Coffee, Interstellar has an all-day menu of sandwiches, pastries, and innovative coffee drinks.

From iced chai with added espresso shots to lavender lattes to straight drip coffee, House Roots manages to do it all well — and with a smile. This daily caffeine driver in Granada Hills also offers a robust collection of sweet and savory pastries to really get the morning going right.

Located more inland amid Santa Monica’s production offices, hidden away Goodboybob coffee is one of the few shops to have a selection of Cup of Excellence beans, though they’re at a fairly hefty price point. Still, the standard coffee roasts and fantastic food menu are worth venturing to this location, which sports ample outdoor seating. Goodboybob also opened a Culver City spot inside Citizens Public Market food hall.

Culver City's modernist coffee bar is the perfect place for a late morning or early afternoon pick-me-up, with espresso and single brews prepared by affable baristas. With a massive selection of beans from roasters around the country, it's a coffee geek's paradise. Cognoscenti also has locations in Fashion District and Downtown LA.

It’s easy to see why Hilltop has settled in so nicely to its South LA neighborhood of View Park-Windsor Hill. The drinks, everything from the house brew to the lavender latte, are prepared with care while the food, like the bowls and toasts, are simple but effective.  

This tiny pale green takeaway in Hollywood may hide one of the city’s best coffee menus, from its house-roasted beans to its creamy cappuccinos and rotating menu of speciality coffee drinks.

Find espresso drinks, shaken lattes, and delicious ice cream shakes at GGET. Additional outposts in Los Feliz, Arts District, Highland Park, Culver City, and ROW DTLA follow much of the same formula, with expanded food menu to match.

LA’s craft coffee scene really took off at this Silver Lake coffee bar back in 2007. After all these years, Intelligentsia still has excellent coffee brewed by the cup and a patio that’s as inviting as ever.

From cold brew to lattes and espressos, there’s something for everyone at Echo Park’s VanillaBlack. Try the best-selling Layla Latte, an espresso with hints of lavender and vanilla.

This ultra-minimalist space in Chinatown has settled in nicely to Far East Plaza. The rotating roaster selection gives coffee enthusiasts something new to try on every visit.

This East LA and South LA chain of coffee bars goes into neighborhoods underserved by bigger names. The care and attention given to the coffee is on par with what one would find at the Blue Bottles and La Colombes of the world.

Is there anything that Milpa Grille in Boyle Heights can’t do? The shop turns out incredible pre-Hispanic Mexican food from its small but mighty shop, while also playing host to in-house pop-up Macheen for breakfast burritos and tacos. In line with the restaurant’s deep roots, expect a similarly-focused coffee program with beans from Café Estelar as a base for drip, espresso, and specialty drinks galore.

Pasadena's best coffee shop may well be Copa Vida, a corner stalwart that also offers a full slate of food options to go along with its sunny vibe and well-calibrated espresso drinks.