81572 Wed May 03 16:07:43 -0700 2006 19 2 Los Angeles Area 0 452232 This may be a naive question, but are there places in LA to get a latte leaf twirled into your cup by a Sub Pop listening barista, the way I came to take for granted in Seattle? (The Sub Pop part is optional, of course.) Would prefer to know about places downtown or Echo Park/Silverlake/Eagle Rock vicinity. Wed May 03 16:07:43 -0700 2006 0 Eric W 1 452242 If a latte leaf is the design carved into the foam, you can get it at Urth Caffe (Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills.) Sometimes it's a bird, though. The music tends to be banal, however. I recommend an iPod with Bose noise-canceling headphones. Wed May 03 16:44:42 -0700 2006 452232 0 PlonkMan 2 452245 just to show how ignorant I am, i have no idea what OP meant by latte leaf and by sub-pop. Wed May 03 17:17:50 -0700 2006 452242 0 Jerome 3 452251 That's ok Jerome, I'd much rather have your knowledge of Chinese food and world languages (and be a Jeopardy champion!) than know what Sub Pop is (a Seattle record label which signed bands like Nirvana) and a latte leaf (a design made in the foam of a cappucino, hearts are also common). More to the point, I have never had a really good coffee beverage in the areas the OP mentioned, although I would be happy to be proved wrong. How about Groundwork at Sunset and Cahuenga? Wed May 03 17:37:21 -0700 2006 452245 0 Chowpatty 4 452254 groundwork is nothing special. Wed May 03 17:38:47 -0700 2006 452251 0 sara 5 452492 Sadly, Urth is prob. my favorite, but I can't take the scene. Santa Monica is marginally more tolerable but too far for me. It def. ain't no Vivace or Victrola, though. Plus last weekend my husband finally mastered the art of pouring the heart into our homemade capps! The leaf, however, remains elusive. So folks *really* should please start checking out the Coffee Cellar in Mama's Hot Tamales on Seventh just west of Alvarado across from the Park. You probably love tamales, and you clearly love coffee consumed in an interesting atmo!! Music is more likely to be Susana Baca than Sleater-Kinney. So go to talk to Angel, the most excellent roaster, about his adventures in roasting, visiting organic co-ops in Central America, and barista tending. (He also knows how to do the visual milk tricks.) Menu is small and limited to the classics, plus a Mexican Mocha and Dulce de Leche he's carefully formulated. He's also now selling at the Silver Lake Farmers Market on Saturdays. Thu May 04 16:35:53 -0700 2006 452254 0 Bacco Mamma 4 452296 Does the "latte leaf" change the flavor in any way, or is it just a cute cosmetic? I don't remember anything like that in Italy or France... Wed May 03 19:37:10 -0700 2006 452251 0 Jerome 5 452299 It was most likely a Seattle invention. Just for looks. I think certain baristas are renowned for their foam-drawing abilities. Wed May 03 19:40:59 -0700 2006 452296 0 Chowpatty 3 452357 Latte Art Link below... Link: http://www.coffeeschool.org/latte_art.htm Wed May 03 23:37:50 -0700 2006 452245 0 K 4 452376 WOW. $600 for a 1 day course! Thu May 04 01:38:57 -0700 2006 452357 0 chica 4 452560 fun crazy link. I have my own answer to the following query which starts the link... "Theory/Lecture: -Why do latte art?" Thu May 04 19:39:11 -0700 2006 452357 0 Jerome 1 452252 i'm sorry to say that you won't find this is l.a. i have yet to find good coffee here. peet's is the best i've found, unfortunately. Wed May 03 17:37:49 -0700 2006 452232 0 sara 1 452262 Folks in the coffeegeek forum believe Redcat at Disney Concert Hall and the newly opened Tao Organic on 300 S. Grand, to be among the best bets for quality espresso in L.A. Call ahead to see if a barista on duty can do the rosetta leaf or other shapes. Coffee Klatch in San Dimas is considered among the best, but that is much farther out. Unfortunately, for Angelenos, at the moment, Seattle and the SF Bay Area are the preeminent locales for latte art. Fortunately, for me (as well as other "home baristas"), I can do it at home on my home machine :). Wed May 03 18:10:01 -0700 2006 452232 0 Richard 1 452275 Try King's Road on Beverly. Wed May 03 18:46:27 -0700 2006 452232 0 gwincc 1 452308 This isn't a direct answer, but if you are looking for good music at a restaurant, check out Zelo Pizza in Arcadia. I'm not sure if they have espresso at all -- let alone the leaf -- but it's worth it for both the music and the pizza. Other than that, I think I know what you are looking for, and I have never found it in L.A. Wed May 03 19:55:03 -0700 2006 452232 0 Eastsider 1 452336 I'm not sure if they do leaf swirls, but Night in Tunisia near LACC has that local, not-starbucks atmosphere I think you're looking for. Their Americano is the best I've had in LA so far. It's on Heliotrope (one block west of Vermont, just north of Melrose). If you stop by, the home-made gelatto shop next door is worth checking out too. Wed May 03 21:35:34 -0700 2006 452232 0 nicky-ah 1 452568 Although I've never seen it done there, I heard that Psychobabble (on Vermont near Franklin in Los Feliz) can do latte art. Maybe it's only one of the baristas there? In any case, it never hurts to ask. They're even open until 2AM (almost?) every day! 1866 N. Vermont Ave. (323) 664-7500 Thu May 04 20:26:22 -0700 2006 452232 0 j~ 1 452959 Being from Seattle myself, where there were generally 4-5 decent espresso places per block, you will be disappointed by the selection. If you are looking simply for the attitude, Chango on echo park ave. a is good start. I am not particularly fond of their coffee (organic, and a little on the metalic side), but it is a great place to spend some time. I happen to think the coffee at Coffee Table on Rowena in silverlake is very good, but heard a rumor the other day that they closed down (I have no idea if that is true). I also like Silver Lake Coffee on Glendale. I have never had the espresso there, but they generally have three different types of regular brew (light, dark and organic) that rotate quite frequently, and also sell whole beans if you don't want to shclep to the top of silverlake everytime you want a cup of coffee. Sun May 07 13:29:22 -0700 2006 452232 0 Mike 1 453003 Would you consider north orange county? Javatinis has a couple of baristas capable of latte art. More important is they roast their arabicas daily and their espresso has the thickest, richest crema I ever seen, it tastes good too. 148 main street seal beach. I don't know their number but you can probably look it up. Sun May 07 19:42:14 -0700 2006 452232 0 Dave 2 453258 Curious - do they have separate robustas at this place? Do they just buy them already roasted? I've seen places that sell coffee by area or region, but i've never seen them sold by species so I think it's a pretty interesting way to go. Tue May 09 02:34:34 -0700 2006 453003 0 Jerome