It's just too pretty. That should have tipped me off.
Actually, I’m not even sure if they call themselves a cafe because they just might be too cool for that. I stand corrected, they are a coffee bar. As I’ve mentioned a few times, I’m still rather new to the Abbot Kinney neighborhood. On Fridays, I take the opportunity to take a walk and grab coffee and breakfast before work. After my abrupt disgust and animosity towards croissants last week I decided to try a new cafe. I strolled down the street in the opposite direction and saw a large cup of coffee in the air, pointing to me saying, “This is what you’re looking for. I’m a fucking cup of coffee as a sign. Get your ass in there.”
I didn’t see the name of the place, but took my place in line. It was one of those moments where the camera pans over to the line ahead of me and creates a larger depth of field, making the line seem abnormally long. I was supposed to be at work at that moment and saw 15 minutes of my life being sucked away. I decided to wait. Because I needed that coffee dammit! I looked around and began to question my decision. The gaggle of girls in front of me had ripped jeans, tall flat footed boots worn over their jeans. Big black framed 90’s glasses adorned the blonde who parted her hair very far on the left. The guy in their group had a buttoned up cardigan with tightish pants and converse sneakers. They were all beautiful. Where the ef was I?? My eyes swept the outdoor sitting area that was next to the line. It was just cubes of wood used for both benches and tables. Dogs were tied up and left to wander while their owners sipped on frothy coffees. One little mutt had an afro. Her owner had both Uggs and fingerless gloves on. I am totally allowed to judge that.
As I slowly crept my way into the entrance I peered through bodies to see what kind of tasty delights were encased at the counter. I couldn’t read a damn thing, and the little menu they had on the side table by the door only included teas. It was finally my turn and I was greeted by a very nice barista, but one more belonging with the beautiful people who ordered in front of me. He was very helpful and chipper, sporting a short haircut with stringy bangs he was trying to grow out. The rest of the baristas were very obvious hipsters and I was beginning to feel more out of place. After all, I’m in ‘young professional’ garb with the faux pearls to prove it.
The place seemed very modern and ‘cool.’ The back area was for sitting as well, keeping up with the wooden cubes as furniture and I saw people drinking teas and coffees off of trays. To stay and have your coffee or tea there, gets you an ornate glass decanter with a small cup on a tray. You serve yourself your coffee for as long as you’d like. I very much like the idea of this, for a day of lounging at a cafe. I do not like the idea of this when I’m waiting for my coffee to go, as the process is still the same. Upon asking for a medium coffee to go, I was asked if I wanted the Kenyan rubbledygarb. I can’t for the life of me tell you what that man said to me. I asked him to repeat it and still had no words. I just smiled and told him that was fine. He proceeded to tell me it was very good. Great. What I didn’t know, was that they were going to brew my very own individual cup right now, in front of me. As I was already running late this was not very helpful.
I finally got my coffee and picked out a Cranberry something muffin with Rosemary. This was the first one I saw and let’s face it, I’m a sucker for anything Rosemary. I try and put that shit in everything. It’s a little taste of heaven. I was rung up and almost swallowed my gum when I was told my total was $8.50. Jesus. Thank god I didn’t choose to get fancy this morning or my ‘breakfast’ would have been over $10. I decided this was a necessary step to try this place out and immediately knew I probably wouldn’t return. This is just a little too out of my price range for a breakfast consisting of no eggs. In fact, this is on par with most lunches I purchase. No bueno.
I walked over to add milk and was met with two options: Half and Half, and Soy milk. I think that says it all. I have a strict routine I’ve been following for a while now, of using both Half and Half and Skim milk, due to the fact that at home I uses non fat Half and Half. I’m kind of used to the fact that some places don’t offer Skim as an option, but no 2% or anything? That was a bit strange. I had a very short and nice conversation with the woman next to me, who exclaimed, “Don’t you just love their coffee!” I took a sip. And it’s great. No joke. They know what their doing. BUT. Do I love it for $4 a cup? Not really. Throwing some cinnamon in my Dunkin Donuts ground coffee at home does the trick for me, and that’s FREE.
Sorry to say, Intelligentsia, I don’t think I’ll be returning to wait in your long line and then wait longer for you to brew my expensive cup of coffee for one. Excellent service and charming baristas, but that’s just not worth the price. Seeing that it seems you have regulars strolling in and a long line in the morning, I don’t think you’ll be missing me.
Roaring Tiger 