La Colombe Coffee Workshop — Restaurant in Los Angeles

There's no shortage of amazing coffee in Silver Lake. Moreover, there's no shortage of nationally recognized amazing coffee within two blocks of Sunset Junction. I'll be honest ... I love the usual players in the high-quality, local caffeine game - and go there regularly too - but when I want to stop and just have a great cup of coffee without too much pretension or pomp, this La Colombe is my stop.

Yes, it's a chain. No, the coffee doesn't taste like it is. That's not to say it's the greatest coffee ever, but it holds its own in that category. The draft coffees are highly drinkable and refreshing on a hot Los Angeles day. The espresso is sharp and just the right amount of butter if you want a warm smack of caffeine.

The nibbles are worth looking at as well. Sweet or savory there's something here for you. I'd recommend the bacon and chive scone.

Seating ... sit outside! Out front you can watch the world go by. Excellent people watching. In the back - up the hill - is another covered area that seems to attract the laptop crowd a bit more. There are seats inside, but they aren't the most comfortable for long stays.

This should be one of your coffee stops in Silver...

It could’ve been better. It’s a very aesthetic, cute new coffee shop on Sunset in Silver Lake. But it just doesn’t have the appeal to me that Intelligentsia has.

Very aesthetic and airy inside, high ceilings and lots of very minimalist and contemporary styling. I liked it for the most part, although the seating is all VERY uncomfortable. They have weirdly shaped little stools to sit on with small, cramped tables to try and fit this aesthetic they’re going for, and it just doesn’t feel good at all. Not a good place to come if you want to get some work done or relax and chat for a while. Intelligentsia is much better for that.

As for the coffee, it tasted pretty good! Nothing really wrong with it, but nothing incredible either. In an area that’s so saturated with coffee shops to choose from, I really just wanted to be impressed a bit more. But I still enjoyed it!

It also closes pretty early, which is another detraction on this one when compared to Intelligentsia just down the street, which stays open later.

Overall, a promising new addition to the coffee shop options in Silver Lake. Loved the aesthetic visually inside, but not...

This is a great spot if you're just looking to grab a coffee and go.

It is a pretty bad spot if you're looking to meet up with friends or do some work - and that's probably why Intelligentsia (less than a block away) is sometimes hopping while La Colombe is more or less empty.

So it really depends what you're looking for in a coffee shop! It seems silverlake is known for its sit down and work or talk coffee shop culture, with probably 5 coffee shops within a 10 minute walk that allow you to do just that.

This La Colombe location just seems to really not want that. They don't have wifi for one, which is pretty rare in 2022. On top of that, the music in their larger back sating area is the opposite you'd want if you're working or meeting with friends. It's about 20db too loud, and seems to be intentionally bad music (think early 2000s hip hop that never made it to the charts).

So depends what you're...