East Village Cafe — Restaurant in Monterey

East Village is quite likely my favorite place in Monterey.

Bold claim I know, but give me a moment to elaborate.

The mood is calm and quiet. ALL of the staff are friendly and helpful. The place has an air of artistic integrity while staying away from hipster douchebaggery. The tea, alcohol, and pastries are great. The place has events all the time including an Open Mic Night on Wednesday nights that is always a fun event with lively music, unique personalities, and an air of intense competition among artists from around the local and not-so-local areas.

For those less comfortable with the notion, East Village IS a hotspot for homeless in the area. Although the staff make sure to enforce the customers only policy for the indoor area, the outdoor patio can often have quite a few homeless individuals along with their pets. I don't take any stars off for that because (1) East Village isn't at fault and (2) Homelessness is a problem on the entire peninsula that should be addressed on a community level, not on a 'remove stars for businesses with a problem' level.

It's ultimately a cute shop and one of the few places with reasonable parking in the vicinity. It's close to the transit plaza and Alvarado street so there's no shortage of places you can go to hang out.

The staff are generous, sometimes serving popcorn and always having free samples of various pastries. (Real talk, the popcorn is probably to get people to buy more drinks but I like popcorn and I think that's rather clever so whatever).

Ultimately, it's a place where I feel comfortable and happy to visit as a local. Oh, right, and the prices aren't gouging the locals like many of the tourist-trap shops in the area. All in all,...

I have an amazing experience every time I go to East Village Cafe. The people who own the place as well as the employees are the sweetest people on the planet! They are very generous, and always very kind and welcoming as soon as you walk in the door. You can just feel the good vibes in the air and can tell that they trult care about their customers. The have lots of tasty goodies (I personally like getting chamomile tea with soy milk and honey 😊). Be sure to check out their next door business as well, Maybe on Monday! Both are cute places in a lovely part of downtown Monterey. Thank you, guys, for going...

This place is my favorite cafe in town. The service is great and I love both the food and the drinks. One word of feedback that has nothing to do with the cafe itself – the last 3 times I've been in, I've tried to sit in the back to enjoy a drink and read. Each time, there was someone on their computer having a Zoom call with the audio of their client audible to all. It ruined the ambience for me and I had to leave.

I would like to suggest making a policy that people take calls outside to preserve the space for others to enjoy! Thank you for considering...