Olive and James Cafe Tea — Restaurant in Los Angeles

I kept seeing this place all over social media, and some of my friends even have it on their top café list, so I finally had to check it out!

Parking Only street parking, and if you’ve ever tried parking on Melrose on a weekend… well, you already know the struggle.

Ambiance It’s a cozy, intimate spot not super spacious, but there are a few seats to chill. The staff was really friendly and helped me pick what to try.

Drink: Matcha Tiramisu Latte This is their most famous drink, so of course, I had to order it. Visually? 10/10. It came out so pretty, definitely Instagram-worthy. Taste-wise, the matcha flavor was STRONG way bolder than most other cafés. But the tiramisu cream on top balanced it out well, and even the little cookie on top was surprisingly good.

Now, about the price... $8 for a matcha latte?! Yeah, it’s definitely on the expensive side, and honestly, for that price, Not bad, but not something I’d come back for regularly.

Would I come back? Maybe not every week, but I wouldn’t mind dropping by again to try something else. If you’re already hanging out on Melrose, it’s worth stopping by, especially if you’re a hardcore matcha fan. If you want fancy matcha, go for it! But if you're just looking for a solid matcha latte at a reasonable price, there are better...

Being relatively new kid in the block, it's no surprise that the place had pretty long line on a Sunday noon. You could easily spot the place given the queue that went to the front of the cafe.

The place was actually super cute and looked like a gallery, unfortunately as it's super packed I couldn't really enjoy it and even hard to get a seat. As I was about to order, I was told to anticipate 15-20mins waiting time for any matcha order. Yeah, the place was that busy that it took awhile despite having quite many baristas. Mine was legit 20mins or prolly more that I got a chance to walk to Le Choquette getting myself pastry then walk back and finished my almond croissant before another 5 minutes wait till my drink was ready.

I had to admit the matcha was bold and delightfully umami. It was also great that the default was unsweetened and they did ask if you wanted yours being sweetened with various options from honey to vanilla. I opted for vanilla with almond milk, which I really loved. Nonetheless, I still agreed with many other reviews that this was way overpriced for that petite size. Prolly considering the price tag gave you a cute...

Not gonna lie, both drinks I had were yummy and the place was cute BUT it’s too overhyped. The line goes out the door every time, which is a good sign, but this place doesn’t feel equipped to handle so many customers. The line prevents you from accessing the lids easily, you feel rushed to get out of the way, and there should really be 2 cashiers at all time and there should be more capacity to make more drinks. Maybe it will die down and it will be perfect.

Anyway, just be aware that you will wait so this is your reminder to be patient and DON’T get upset at staff because you’re opting to wait. There have been a couple instances where I’m excited to pick up a cute matcha but the line is too long so I leave after waiting in line a few minutes. But please, don’t let this review discourage you from trying it. Again, the drinks were so good and the prices were great. I can see why this place is so popular. Once you try the drinks, it WILL ABE WORTH IT. There are a couple small tables inside but a few more tables available outside. And it’s always nice to walk around Melrose with a treat in hand. Oh, and the cheesecake...