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Hot new coffee shops, patio dining, The Lonely Oyster, Mallorca, OOO, Savannah King, Gray Malin Montecito, Opening Night at the Bowl, MORE
GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Shops
Back on the grind
It’s been a busy start to the year for the LA coffee scene. In the last few months alone, four new power players emerged. A fifth, lil’East, opened at the tail end of last year. Below, a caffeinated rundown:
→ Concierge Coffee (Arts District) hails from Berlin, and feels like it, too, with concrete floors, exposed wood beams, Friends & Family pastries suspended between stone and glass, and a soundtrack of house music. Specialty drinks include a hojicha latte and their take on the requisite cream top.
→ How’s It Going To End? (Montrose) is a serene suburban coffee shop in up-and-coming Montrose with a native plant garden designed by in-demand landscapers Terremoto. The coffee’s good, the naturalist vibe even better.
→ Camel Coffee (Los Feliz, above), a Seoul import, is prone to long lines of influencers so plan accordingly. Early or mid-mornings (after the pre-work rush) are safe bets. There’s no drip or cold brew here, only excellent espresso drinks, speakers bumping Tyler the Creator, and a chocolate chip madeleine called Le Tigre (the house pastry, well worth trying).
→ LOOP Espresso Club (Eagle Rock) is part Tokyo listening bar, part home-away-from-home for creative freelancers. Situated on Eagle Rock’s sleepy main drag, the drinks at this Colorado Boulevard spot will jolt you one way or another, among them, seven cream-based concoctions ranging from hazelnut to tsokolate (Filipino hot chocolate).
→ lil’East Coffee (El Sereno) feels Brooklyn-ish, with its tiny storefront and sidewalk seating. The flat whites are excellent, cold brews come over crushed ice, and pastries are made by Sasha Piligian (a mix of seasonal items and standbys, like cherry-rhubarb hand pies and slabs of carrot-coconut cake). –Emily Wilson
LA RESTAURANT LINKS: NYC chef James Kent, who was remaking Santa Monica Pier’s culinary offerings, died at age 45 • LA craft brewery Eagle Rock Brewery is closing • Why the family behind Sunset Blvd’s iconic Arby’s decided to hang up the hat.
WORK • Thursday Routine
Boogie down
MORGAN MCLACHLAN • co-founder and chief product officer • De Soi Non-Alcoholic Aperitifs and Amass Brands
Neighborhood you live in: Echo Park
It’s Thursday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
We do have an office, but because I’m on the road a lot, and my lab is at home, I end up working from there on Thursdays. Usually I’m meeting with our sales team, working on new product concepts, tracking an upcoming production, and/or tweaking formulations.
What’s on the agenda for today?
Today, at De Soi, we’re launching our new summer flavor, Spritz Italiano. I couldn’t be more pumped. It’s a perfect balance of citrus and bitter.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
There are so many great places in Los Angeles, but I’m deeply committed to my neighborhood spots. Being from the Pacific Northwest, I’m a bit of a princess when it comes to seafood, so I was thrilled when The Lonely Oyster moved in down the street. I’m always excited to see what Chef Dom is cooking up, and Sam makes elevated bartending look effortless. One of my other beloved local spots is Elf Cafe, which I’ve been going to since it opened in 2006. It’s artful and reverent (yet relaxed) Mediterranean vegetarian. And they have an apéro hour!
How about a little leisure or culture?
I am a mom who loves to boogie. I don’t hit the dance floor as much as I used to, but A Club Called Rhonda is my trusted supplier of good music, good vibes, and good peeps. I also love the baby disco attached to Club Tee Gee in Atwater. Also really fortunate to have Zebulon in my backyard. With my family, I just try to get out in nature as much as possible. We’re all better for it. I love hiking up by JPL, in the Angeles National Forest, Griffith Park, and of course, Elysian Park.
Any weekend getaways?
I just got back from a perfect stay in Yucca Valley, at a gorgeous desert zen retreat called @theserrahouse. The space is the epitome of serene, and has incredible views in every direction.
What was your last great vacation?
Mallorca, for a friend’s wedding last fall. I spent a few days in the gorgeous ancient town of Deià on the north coast for some arcadian quietude, as well as a few days in the heart of Palma at the charming Hotel Cappuccino. I expected Palma to be a bit of a tourist trap, but it was adorable. There were killer tapas everywhere. I loved visiting Mercat de Santa Catalina to see the local flavors and commerce, and bought some beautiful handmade espadrilles for my toddler from one of the island’s many artisans. Cala Llombard is an idyllic sandy beach in a shallow bay that’s perfect for swimming and eating the boquerones fritos served on newspaper from a small kiosk at the beach.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
For the most part, I buy most of my stuff secondhand or refurbished, but recently I purchased a pair of Chloe Nellie Western Boots. I’m now giving Uma Thurman in Even Cowgirls Get the Blues.
What store or service do you always recommend?
You can’t beat the Negroni at Bar Stella in Silver Lake.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Bowl Season
Hollywood Bowl Orchestra • Opening Night at the Bowl • Hollywood Bowl (Hollywood) • Sun @ 730p • garden patron, $1000 per
Shreya Ghoshal • Dolby Theatre (Hollywood) • Sun @ 7p • orchestra, $276 per
Angels vs Dodgers • Dodger Stadium (Chavez Ravine) • Fri @ 710p • section 28FD, $218 per
GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Object
Lady of the canyon
Jewelry designer Savannah King uses classical goldsmithing techniques such as chain weaving and granulation to shape her stone jewelry in her Topanga Canyon studio. These 22k-gold earrings with antique rose cut diamonds are showpieces from the designer’s “Lady of the Canyon” collection, which was inspired by the artist’s move from NYC, where she lived for 12 years, back to LA’s verdant canyons. –Zoe Schaeffer
→ Our Lady of the Canyon earrings (Savannah King) • $3925.
WORK • Office Life
OOO
I’m writing this from my backyard. The sun’s shining, there’s a cool breeze, and the birds are chirping. Summer Mondays on the patio, one of the many luxuries of remote work.
Another luxury work setting: the salon, reportedly the new coffee shop among a certain set. “Everybody brings their laptop and does their work, especially when they get their colour done,” a London hairdresser told the FT. [I’ve] had a couple of people do a Zoom meeting when they’re here with the camera on.”
And another: the golf course, where dealmaking on the fairway is aggressively back in vogue, per the WSJ. Weekday rounds have almost doubled since 2019, and some firms are targeting low handicaps in their recruiting efforts.
It’s a little much, maybe. (Fucking lawnmowers. I’m going inside.) It’s also likely contributing to the so-called “coordination tax,” a recycled term now being used to convey the difficulty in finding co-workers, who are almost definitely not at their desks.
At the same time, those desks used to sit atop giant computers that definitely could not fit into backpacks for the commute home, nevermind load Slack.
Now if you’ll excuse me, the birds are calling. –Josh Albertson
LA WORK AND PLAY LINKS: Home prices are rising nearly everywhere — but not in Hollywood • East End Studios plans $230M campus in DTLA • Renovations completed at SAG-AFTRA Plaza in Miracle Mile • Inside LA’s most exciting new wine shop, Thatcher’s Wine Brentwood • Coyotes plague Mar Vista.
GETAWAYS • Montecito
Butterfly effect
On the shores of Butterfly Beach, a 1965 four-bedroom rental in a coveted Montecito neighborhood has been transformed by photographer Gray Malin.
Malin bought the place after his own family’s stay there in 2020, then enlisted Santa Barbara firm Madison Nicole Design for interiors and decor. The finished product shares the soothing tones and comforting setup of Malin’s living-room friendly photography.
The home is outfitted with colorful wallpaper, custom furniture like window seats and bunk beds, and several outdoor spaces for dining and entertaining. There’s laundry on-site, three and a half bathrooms, a great room, formal dining room, and large, central kitchen. Picture yourself there? It’s available for booking as of last week. –Caitlin White
→ Gray Malin Getaway House (Montecito) • $22K for one week in July.
GETAWAYS LINKS: Chase Sapphire Lounge coming to TBIT at LAX • Santa Barbara County’s Refugio State Beach remains closed, hopes to reopen this summer • In Yountville, Thomas Keller pivots his caviar and champagne bar into RO Restaurant and Lounge • Kimpton to revive long-shuttered Coco Palms Resort on Kauai for 2026 debut • Hotel check-in/check-out times are broken.
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RESTAURANTS • The Nines
En plein air patios
Redbird (Downtown), open air dining from Neal Fraser in historic cathedral annex