Coffee Cartel — Restaurant in Redondo Beach

My friend wanted to go to Coffee Cartel to do homework and asked if I wanted to come with her. Since I had the day open, I went along for some coffee and WiFi. Coffee Cartel is spacious. It's like one big living room with plenty of tables, wooden chairs, and old couches for you to sit and enjoy your cup of coffee and study. There's also a few bookshelves filled with books for your reading pleasure. After settling down on a couch that I was comfortable in, I walked to the front counter and ordered my coffee. I had a large vanilla latte w/an extra shot of expresso($5.10) and a sausage & cheese breakfast sandwich ($3.85). My friend also ordered a large white chocolate latte. Her latte wasn't strong enough that she had to order 1 more. She ended up spending over $10 on coffee for one study session. Yiiikes!! Pretty pricey for an average coffeehouse. The cool thing about this coffee house is the free WiFi but you gotta get the password at the counter. Parking is in a very small lot that's shared with other...

Coffee Cartel is my personal go-to coffee house. I used to live a couple of blocks away until the rents in the area skyrocketed and forced my wife and I to have to move further inland ... into the interior of Torrance.

But I still ride my electric-assist bike down to Coffee Cartel to get my morning mocha and do a little work on my laptop.

There's always an eclectic gathering of interesting people who frequent the Cartel.

Actually, I think their coffee's, espressos, teas, and food is way better than McStarbucks or McCoffee Bean and Tea Leaf. It's just a fact. Plus, they're just more personal, and feel like a part of the community.

Corporate franchises just NEVER feel that way, and that's because they're NOT and they never will be. It's not part of the corporate mindset or its infrastructure.

Plus, there are WAY more places to sit down and relax at Coffee Cartel. There's nothing personal, nothing homey about a...

Stopped into Coffee Cartel for a little content + caffeine moment and let me just say—that cherry rose tea latte with oat milk was giving. Floral, creamy, and just the right amount of indulgent. My friend had a matcha latte (don’t ask me what kind—something green and gorgeous) and we both were genuinely impressed.

We asked for our drinks “for here” hoping for some of those cute cups for photo ops (because, obviously)… but were handed disposables instead. Womp. Also, I had to ask twice for water and finally just handed him the pitcher—he was sweet about it, but still.

That said, the vibe is classic Redondo—laid-back, surfer-adjacent, and the drinks really were that good. I’ll absolutely be back. Just give a girl a proper...