Finding the best coffee in LA

Charlie Deitchman '23

Executive Podcast Coordinator

A good cup of coffee can change the course of your day from a bad day into a great one; but finding that perfect cup can be hard. I love Starbucks, Alfreds or Philz as much as the next person, but there is something special about the experience of going to a small coffee shop and getting a (maybe overpriced) coffee. This article is your guide to what I believe to be the best coffee in LA.

To stay fair during my rankings, I ordered the same drink from each coffee place: an iced vanilla latte with whole milk. Each cafe was scored on both the coffee itself and the overall vibe of the shop, because I am a firm believer that if the vibe of the coffee place is off, the coffee by default tastes worse.

The first cafe I went to was Laidrey, located in Tarzana. The shop had lots of seating, which is good if you want a place to study, and an overall pleasant vibe. I thought the coffee itself had a nice taste and was not overly sweet. However, it was very expensive, costing $6.75 without making any customizations. I’ve had a lot of very similar— if not better— coffees at a much cheaper price. For these reasons I rated Laidrey a 7/10.

Next, I visited Black Heart Coffee Co. in Lake Balboa. Black Heart was much less expensive than Laidrey, costing $5.75. You could tell that the shop had a very community-driven vibe, and looked pretty popular. However, when I tried their coffee, I personally did not enjoy it very much. There was some background taste to it that I couldn’t place which gave it a strange flavor. They also used vanilla beans, which in theory would have been really good. However, all of the beans sank to the bottom even when I mixed it. Overall, I gave Black Heart Coffee Co. a 5/10.

Next on my list was Espresso Profeta in Westwood Village. It is rumored that some Marvel directors have deemed Espresso Profeta to have the best coffee in LA. When I went, the coffee shop itself had a very relaxed and homey atmosphere, and there was a lot of outside seating. When I ordered, the employees weren’t super friendly, but it was very busy when I went in so that is understandable. Despite this, the coffee itself was very good. It wasn’t too sweet, which I liked, but it was a bit bland. Like Black Heart Coffee Co, the coffee cost $5.75, however, I think that Espresso Profeta’s coffee was much better. Overall, I gave this coffee an eight out of ten.

Following this, I went to Aroma Coffee and Tea on Tujunga Blvd. in Studio City. I have been a longtime customer of Aroma, so I have tried this coffee before. But, to be fair, I gave it another analytical taste. The restaurant has a very cozy atmosphere with an almost maximalist aesthetic. There is a ton of seating both inside and on their back patio. The coffee was a bit too sweet for my taste– however, adding an extra shot of espresso instantly fixes this problem. This was both the most flavorful cup I had gotten yet and the cheapest, costing only $4.25. Overall, I rated Aroma a 9/10.

Finally, I tried 10 Speed Coffee in Calabasas. The restaurant had a rustic vibe and plenty of seating. It was a strange combination of a coffee shop, restaurant, bar, bike shop and potentially yoga studio. The coffee was reasonably priced at $5.50 and was pretty good. It was very flavorful and had a little bit of smokiness to it. Personally, I felt like the coffee was a bit too sweet, but it was still better than some of the others I had. 10 Speed got an 8/10 from me.

An honorary mention goes to Living Cafe in Topanga Canyon. I was originally going to include this cafe in the rankings, but they did not have an iced vanilla latte, so for consistency purposes, I removed it from the list. I ended up getting a honey latte instead, and it was genuinely one of the best coffees I’ve ever had. The coffee was also fairly affordable, costing $6.50. As a bonus, I also met Taylor Russsell, the star of my favorite movie, there, so it was an altogether great experience and coffee. 10/10!

Of course, everyone’s taste is different and people have their own preferences on how they expect the perfect cup of coffee to taste. That being said, based on the coffees I tried for this review, Aroma Coffee and Tea is the best coffee in LA. I am also well aware that there are hundreds of other coffee places in Los Angeles that could very likely be better than the ones on this list. Your perfect cup could be just around the corner!

The taste tester herself