Wi-Fi (Maybe) Watering Holes: Balconi Coffee

Those who have been reading this blog for a while (and if you have, thanks) may recall that in its early years I often reviewed coffee joints in the L.A. area that provided free wi-fi. I've had fewer in recent times, because I haven't found many new ones, and several older ones I reviewed succumbed to an economy that encouraged folks to brew beverages at home. Plus, since Starbucks gave in and began offering free wi-fi last year, there's less incentive for independent coffee houses to distinguish themselves by offering the service.

I am happy, however, to report that one of my favorite WFWHs has come back from the great beyond. Two years ago, Cafe Balcony in Santa Monica lost its lease. Recently, it has come back as Balconi Coffee Company. Better yet, it is located in the Olympic Collection at Sawtelle and Olympic Blvds in West Los Angeles -- close to my office.

I'm hesitating to recommend it as a wi-fi watering hole, because I'm not sure if it offers wi-fi yet. Once it does, I'll be happy to add it to my WFWH list once again.

Wi-fi Watering Holes: The Talking Stick

A bohemian vibe permeates this coffeehouse, built in what appears to be a former diner space in a Lincoln Boulevard stripmall. You've got your standard mismatched chairs, tables, and couches. You've got a fairly large stage in the corner, with a nice sound system. You've got art on the walls. In addition, there's a used book shop/exchange in a side room (with stuffed chairs for comfortable reading) and an upstairs meeting room. Oh, and the coffee and the wraps are pretty good. Recommended.

http://www.thetalkingstick.net/

Wi-Fi Watering Holes: It's A Grind, Westwood

In a village that already has two Coffee Beans, a Peets, a number of Starbucks, and at least one independent coffeehouse with free wi-fi (Espresso Profetta), this is still pretty nice WFWH, as witness the fact that currently, on a Sunday afternoon, the tables are filled with UCLA types studying, collaborating, and sipping lattes. There's a nice blend of jazz and pop on the PA, the interior is filled with portraits of jazz, R & B and blues performers, and the service is polite (the barista brought my drink to my table). Plus, it's right next to a Trader Joe's and across the street from a Rite-Aide. They didn't have anything like this in Westwood when I went to UCLA a mere quarter-century ago. Recommended.

Wi-Fi Watering Holes: Espresso Profeta

This excellent WFWH is located in the slightly quieter part of Westwood Village, on Glendon across the street from the Napa Valley Grill. It's a quick (albeit uphill) bike ride from my house. It was previously known as West Burton Coffee and Tea (I'm not sure where the West Burton part came from, as it's nowhere near Burton Avenue in BH); it assumed its new identity a few months ago.

Besides the delicious espresso drinks (drawn Italian style), the standouts are the beautiful vine and rose covered patio (where I'm sitting now), the antiques-stuffed interior (many of the antiques are for sale), a large menu of teas, which the staff will happily make into lattes; and of course the free wi-fi, likely de riguer for any coffee, tea or boba establishment that stands in the shadow of UCLA.

Wi-Fi Watering Holes: Velocity Cafe

The Velocity Cafe sits on Lincoln Boulevard, south of Pico, in Santa Monica (or, as the cafe's Website describes it, "Satan Monica"). It features the usual bohemian decor, including a swordfish, giant mirror, and funky mural behind the coffee bar and a motley assortment of kitchen chairs, armchairs, and a futon. There's a rack of books to read, and magazines racked along the walls.

Pluses: Good strong wi-fi, with no password. Lots of electrical outlets along the walls. There's a breakfast and lunch menu. I had the Grommet wrap, which was tasty. The lattes and green tea freezes are pretty good. It's freeway convenient.

Minuses: Noisy Lincoln boulevard is right outside. The bar was out of soy milk.

Does Starbucks Need a Triple-Shot Venti?

Yesterday morning, Amy and I were having breakfast at Santa Monica's 18th Street Coffee House (which actually looks like my concept of a coffee house -- lots of dark wood finishes). I read Amy an article from the LA Times about how last quarter visits to Starbucks stores fell for the first time since -- well, ever. The way every head swiveled around to look at us, you would have thought I had mentioned E.F. Hutton. (That's a reference that will be lost on anyone under 30.)

The fall in Starbucks attendance strangely coincided with an increase in the price of drinks chain-wide (four months ago), a dip in the chain's stock, and rising gas prices (not to mention the sub-prime mortgage debacle) that have led some to believe that perhaps a $4 a day latte habit is not, financially, a good idea.

Throw in the number of local coffee bars that have taken a page from Starbuck's playbook and charge nearly identical prices for the same types of lattes, cappucinos, and froufrou drinks, and you'll find the Starbucks mermaid facing some rough seas ahead.

Perhaps a good starting point for Starbucks to regain its momentum is to reconsider its previous strategy of saturating the market with stores like a spilled machiato saturates a bar-towel. At some point, too many Starbucks is too many Starbucks. If you can hardly take a step without tripping over a Starbucks, it stands to reason that the sales in each store is going to go down.

Wi-Fi Watering Holes: The Funnel Mill

My bike ride today brought me to the recently-opened Funnel Mill Rare Coffee and Tea at 930 Broadway, Suite A, in Santa Monica.



This place is like no other coffee house I've ever seen. It's in a large, airy room, with tastefully chosen art, strategically-placed coffee and tea apparatus, and eclectic furniture. Unlike the normal coffee house's thrift-store-chic furnishings, the furniture here is upscale; the front room has comfy saddle-leather sofas and chairs. New-agey Asian music plays softly in the background.

The main attraction, however, is the coffee and tea selection. Funnel Mill features siphon brewing, like nearby Cafe Balcony; but unlike Balcony, it has over 200 varieties of coffee available. These range from the $3 a cup house blend (which I had -- it was terrific) to the Moet & Chandon of coffee: Kopi Luwak from Indonesia, which retails for $60 a cup or $450 a pound! Kopi Luwak is infamous for its origin (bizarre enough to rate mention on an episode of CSI): It is processed through the digestive system of a civit-like animal called a Paradoxurus. That's right, the felines eat coffee berries and, er, excrete them whole. The resulting coffee is said to be magnificent. If you've got a stray $60, maybe you'd like to try it.



The service is also excellent. When the owner saw that I was stacking my backpack and the material on which I was working on the table next to my chair, he brought over another chair to stack my stuff on so that the table would be free for my beverage.

Another bonus is the bike lane that runs on Broadway from about Ocean to Centinela --allowing easy access by bike.

The only criticism I have is the paltry baked goods selection -- seemingly only an afterthought for those who demand pastry with their coffee. I advise folks to first get breakfast at the nearby Swingers or Jinky's, and then settle down at Funnel Mill for an apres-breakfast beverage treat.

Wi-Fi Watering Holes: Java Man

I had a surprise lunch today with two friends who were in the neighborhood and decided to kidnap me for a nosh. I mentioned that I planned to go to a WFWH in the South Bay today; and they referred me to Java Man Coffee House in Hermosa Beach. It's within a short walk of the beach (which would be even better on a day that isn't as cloudy as today); and is ensconsed in a homey-looking green house-like diner on Pier Avenue, with lots of bumper to curb parking in front. (Alas, it's meteredand limited to three hours; and the restrictions are enforced until 10 pm.) The free wi-fi is courtesy of the City of Hermosa Beach, which has blanketed the area near the ocean with wireless Internet. The drink menu is large, and the cappucinos are pretty good.

My friends were concerned that if I reviewed this place I'd "give away the secret." Judging by how packed the joint is on this Saturday afternoon, I don't think there's a secret to give away.

Wi-fi Watering Hole: Synergy Cafe II (Sepulveda)

Synergy on Overland, which I previously posted about, now has a satellite location on the much busier Sepulveda Boulevard (4437 Sepulveda Blvd), from which I'm now blogging. I like it better than the other location: it has two rooms, both of which have ample-sized tables with outlets. One has the stage. The live music is pretty good. The panini are impressive, and the espresso drinks (from Groundwork) pretty good.

Wi-fi Watering Holes: The Rumor Mill Coffee & Laundry

This WFWH on Washington Boulevard in Culver City has two storefronts. One holds the coffee/food bar, tables and chairs, and a bay of about five desktop computers. The other holds a coin laundry. Not that important to me (because I have a washer and dryer at home) but probably a godsend to anyone who has to labor on the computer while doing the laundry.

Pluses: Nice facility. Very busy on a Saturday afternoon (i.e., now). Nicer decor than many; the place did not merely throw a bunch of eclectic couches, chairs and tables together for a faux homey effect. There's the usual art on the walls, and the condiments sit on an antique white stove. The espresso drinks and tea are very good. Open from the morning until 10 p.m. During the week, it has an open mic night (although I have not seen this yet). Lots of outlets, and the tables are located convenient to them. The Wi-Fi signal is strong. The free desktop computers are a nice touch.

Minuses: The concrete floor and bare-joist ceiling translates into a noisy space. This afternoon, the PA was playing Jack-FM, complete with commercials, unlike many WFWH which either play satellite radio, CDs, or their own Ipod playlists. Plus, the radio had some interference at one point, leading to irritating static and distortion. Parking is mainly on the street.

LA Coffee

This week, the LA Times food section published a bunch of articles about coffee, including the review of standout local coffeehouses linked above. It includes two of my favorites, wi-fi watering hole Cafe Balcony and Culver City's Conservatory.

Because of a medication I was taking until a few days ago, I couldn't drink any caffeine. Freed of that restriction, I've been hitting some java. This morning I had breakfast at one of the places listed in the article, Cafe Luxxe in Santa Monica. I had a cappucino and an espresso that were unbelievably smooth. The photo is of the cappucino -- one sip down.

Wi-fi Watering Holes: Interactive Cafe

This cafe (where I am sitting as I post this) is one of the most stylish and attractive wi-fi watering holes I've seen. On Broadway in Santa Monica, a block from the Third Street Promenade and a couple blocks from the beach, this former art gallery features an alfresco patio, round tables with chairs adorned with wrought iron grapes, some large half-oval pleather booths, cases of baked goods and ice cream, a row of pc kiosks in the back, and lots of art -- including an architectual-looking installation on the black ceiling, a gigantic tiffany-style vase, and a Pollack-looking painting that seems to stretch 20 feet across the west wall.

You'd expect haute cuisine in such a setting; but the fare consists of simple sandwiches, salads and soups (plus the expected coffee and espresso bar). There are also shelves of international magazines and greeting cards, which leads me to think this is primarily aimed at tourists and travelers. (It's around the corner from one major hotel, and within walking distance of others.)

Something else this WFWH offers that few do: printers. Two of the PC kiosks offer printer access, for a fee (something like $1.00 for each 10 minutes). There are two printers.

One disadvantage is the lack of (evident) electrical outlets around the tables and booths (although there was an extension cord at the seats near the computer kiosks, with multiple plugs). Otherwise, it's a nice location to grab a sandwich and some high-caffeine drink while getting some work done.