1725 Broadway, Santa Monica
310-264-0662
This bright and breezy café occupies a special place in my personal coffeehouse pantheon. In many ways it was my first love. The best seats for working are the indoor booths near outlets; the large, shaded outdoor patio is a great place to meet up with friends. The drinks here are reliably good but rarely outstanding. Lunch offerings include sandwiches, organic wraps and quesadillas. Come for the atmosphere, ocean breezes, and celebrity sightings.
Atmosphere: 5 stars
I am a sucker for fresh air, good light, and a friendly vibe. 18th Street is less than a mile from the beach, and with its ceiling fans it is comfortable on all but the hottest days. Given the area, many of the regulars are graduate students and screen writers. This helps make 18th street a comfortable place to work for long periods of time. However, the patio is just as large as the indoor area, and there is almost always plenty of room for a casual cup of joe. A large murals and other pictures decorate the inside of the building.
The booths are the best working spots, and most of them are close to an outlet. Seating is consistently good. My only complaint is that the pretty tile tables are an awkward surface for a laptop or single piece of paper. Also, the smaller booth on your right as you come in is too high for comfortable typing.
Parking. There is a small lot in the alley to the west of the building, a little street parking on 18th Street, and a good amount of metered parking on Broadway. Be careful not to park in the synagogue’s lot, tow trucks will come.
Boxing Ring. Rumor is that there is a secret celebrity boxing ring in the basement. Who knows? Several boxing pictures and photographs do adorn the walls.
Neighborhood. The Santa Monica Co-op is right down the street, a good place to stop for smoothies, bulk bins, and organic lipstick. Like all of Santa Monica, the area is gentrified and gentrifying.
Hours. 7am – 7pm weekdays, closes 6:30 on Friday; Opens at 8:30 on Saturday. Closed Sundays.
Wireless. None as of January 31st, 2007.
Credit Cards. Yes. Five dollar minimum.
Service. Friendly and efficient, but without the speed of many of the chain stores.
Coffee: 3 stars.
The drip coffee is self-serve and affordable. 18th Street brews Groundworks beans. A small cup is $1.50 and a large cup is just $1.75. Refills, 50 cents. Espresso drinks are well-made and well-priced. (Small cappuccino is $3.40.) Also serve a wide variety of teas, many of them organic. Usual Los Angeles assortment of “Ice Blended” drinks as well.
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1 comment:
I have been coming to this cafe for years and I always order food and coffee (my trips rage from $10-30 per several hours I spend writing there). However today a pasty, sandy-haired employee/barista asked if my wife and I had ordered drinks b/c apparently they have had a rash of unpaying squatters. I told him we had ordered drinks and had since bused our own tables, but he shot us a hesitant look and sarcastically said "what ever you say." To make a long story short I told him we probably won't give our business to the cafe anymore and he said well if for some reason we do return he will probably say the same thing. It was close to the rudest customer service I've ever experienced (and I worked at a coffee shop for several years so I understand the pressures of business to make sure people buy things but he approached us as if we re vagrants)
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