Day 28: Muddy Paw Coffee
Clearly, Silver Lake can’t get enough coffee. With coffee shops on almost every corner there is truly something for everyone, even for dogs! Muddy Paw Coffee invites you and your fur babies to come and have some great coffee while helping other four-legged friends. They are part of an East Coast Roasting company that added their LA location this past year. The brilliant thing about Muddy Paw is that for every pound of coffee sold here (or online), they donate $0.50 to animal rescue organizations. How cool is that?!
Their roasting company, Port City Coffee Roasters, is located in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. They roast in small batches that can then be shipped right to your home within 48 hours. You can also purchase a bag in the coffee shop, none of which is more than two weeks old. You can even team up with Muddy Paw for your organization’s fundraiser by designing your own coffee blends and bag logo to sell.
Twice a month there are adoption days that allow customers to come and potentially go home with a new family member! If you’re looking to adopt a pet I highly recommend checking these events out. Even if you don’t find your new forever buddy here you still get some yummy coffee! All of their events are posted on their Facebook page, here. They also have free jazz nights! I can already tell this summer is going to be awesome! So much good stuff is going on here!
I love these t-shirts!
There is only an outside patio area for seating, but lots of places to sit down and it’s obviously dog-friendly. There are hooks along the wall in case you need to keep your babies close by (and without tying them to your table or chair, which I love. It’s the little things). There are a couple booths for seating as well and a fire pit. This place kind of feels like home already!
As we approach the end of this series, I’ve discovered that there is still so much to see and explore, not just in coffee, but in this city as a whole. LA and the surrounding areas have so much to offer, when you think about it it gets pretty overwhelming!
With that said, here is the final coffee song of the week. Hope you enjoy it!
Salud!
“The Coffee Song” by Mr. Success (originally by Frank Sinatra)
Day 27: The Conservatory for Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa
Today I ventured out west to experience how they do coffee in Culver City. “The Conservatory”, as the locals call it, has been around for years serving up quality caffeinated drinks. They gather green coffee beans from around the world and roast them in-house to bring out the best flavors for each type. You can buy a bag of fresh roasted coffee, or have some right there in the shop. All of the baristas are expertly trained to serve you a beautiful coffee drink every time. They also offer an entire wall (literally) of loose-leaf teas.
The cocoa drinks made here are all to-order and can be tapered to your liking. If you want it less sweet, or more spicy, all you have to do is let your barista know and it’s yours! There are plenty of pastries and baked goods to choose from as well. Get there early though, the small space filled up within the first hour of opening!
I was especially excited to come here not for coffee, even though the coffee is definitely something to be excited about, but I had done a wee bit of research and discovered something that sent my heart all aflutter. Something that the textural fiend inside of me yearned for. Something that apparently has been around for years, and I’ve just been living under bedrock. I present to you…
The “Babyccino”!
In all it’s glory
If you know me at all, you know I have a very special place in my heart for milk foam (or any foam really). I’d contemplated many times to request a simple cup of foam just to satisfy my strange craving. The light airiness, the tiny micro-bubbles that dance on my tongue and then disappear slowly… ahhhhh! The babyccino was just the thing that I have been looking for! It’s a cappuccino cup of steamed frothy milk served with a sprinkle of cinnamon on top and a spoon. Pure heaven!
Day 26: Healing Coffee Roasters
Healing Coffee is a small neighborhood shop in the Mid-Wilshire area of LA. They roast small batches of beans from all over in-house to offer some great tasting cups. I think this might be the best Ethiopian coffee that I’ve every tried! But what sets this coffee shop apart is their focus on educating people on all things coffee. They have classes for everything from becoming barista, to a roaster, an appraiser, and more!
The owner of HCR travels the world doing extensive research to find quality coffee beans to bring back to their shop and to distribute wholesale. The baristas are all certified coffee appraisers too. That’s pretty impressive!
In addition to classes, you can have an Ethiopian coffee ceremony experience here. It’s a traditional practice that is done to welcome guests into one’s home or for a special occasion. The ceremony traditionally runs for about 2-3 hours and includes the roasting and grinding of the coffee beans and 12 cups of coffee being served to honor the guests. It’s definitely something I’d like to go back and try!
Day 25: Stumptown Coffee Roasters
Originally from Oregon, Stumptown brings its charm to LA in Downtown’s Art District. It’s the only California location so I am so great fun they chose to come here! The name comes from one of many nicknames for Portland, OR. When early residents had to cut down trees in order to clear land for building there were tree stumps left all over the city, hence “Stumptown”.
This coffee house doubles as a roasting facility. Every batch that is served or sold here has gone through their in-house roasting process. They obtain beans from multiple sources and aim to help sustain the lives and communities of the farmers that provide for them.
Their drinks are made by some of the best baristas around. From a pour over to the smoothest mocha, they know what they’re doing here. Stumptown even makes and bottles their own cold brew. You’ve probably seen it in a number of grocery stores already. It’s just the thing to grab for on days like this (it’s currently a scorching 90 degrees outside)! They serve pastries made by Sugar Bloom (who seems to have LA’s coffee scene on lock). They have some out of the norm items like their kimchi SPAM musubi croissant it the Elvis morning bun. Tasty looking little things, they are!
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- Iced latte
Inside there’s mostly the coffee bar and a bar table (no seats) along the front window. Outside there’s tables and chairs to catch some fresh air while you relax and savor your drinks. You can also sit inside and watch the roasting process when it’s running at the bar stools that face the window to the roasting room. All around, Stumptown is a laid back place to start your day and/or refuel… PDX style.
Day 24: Woodcat Coffee Bar
Woodcat is a fairly new addition to the Echo Park area of LA. They opened in September of last year, serving up the usual coffee drinks to local patrons.
Everything at Woodcat is pretty simple from the menu to the furniture and small accents that decorate the space. Their beans are from San Francisco based Wrecking Ball Coffee Roasters. The pastries are from LA’s Sugarbloom Bakery (also mentioned here). There’s lots of stool seats throughout the bar, and a single table for a group of friends near the entrance.
The vibe here (at 6:30 am) is no doubt quiet and mellow. I’m sure things perk up as the day goes on. Some usual café music plays while small conversations can be overheard. There’s free WiFi and plugs all over so don’t hesitate to be productive when you come in!
Eat. Go. Learn. Live. 