A Love Letter to the Coffee Shops of Figueroa
Heartbreak feels good in a place like this.
I moved in February and I think I made a mistake.
My life changed a lot in the 3 years I lived off Figueroa in Highland Park. I thought it was time for a change of scenery.
Fig saw me at my best, and definitely my worst — At 7am for a hot girl walk, at 2am leaving Goldline with a burrito.
I feel in love on this street.
I fell in love with this street.
When people ask what my favorite Fig coffee shop is — my simple answer is ‘it depends’. Do you want to sit and read? Are you meeting someone? Do you care what kind of straw they offer you? Do you prefer Ethiopian beans? Espresso or Drip?
I’m incapable of giving a short answer. The coffee shops on Fig are personal to me. Here’s the long answer.
It took a while, but I finally got over my ex, and I did it at Kitchen Mouse — the same place we decided to be exclusive over brunch a few years before. I don’t get my usual cappuccino here, and why would I? It’s one of the few places that still offers unlimited drip coffee. Perfect for me since I plan on staying a while.
You may be used to seeing Kitchen Mouse with a line out the door. It’s a great hangover brunch spot because it’s vegetarian, it feels healthier than it is. But on a weekday at 7am, I was often 1 of 3.
At this time in my life, I’d come in at opening, air pods in, nose deep in Esther Perel’s ‘Mating in Captivity’, ready to down gallons of coffee.
I do love the food there — I usually pick between the Morning Glory Bowl, Breakfast Tacos, or every once in a while, they have a Socca special - a savory pancake loaded with herbs. Sometimes I went around the corner to their side bakery for a croissant and would bring it back to the main restaurant (which didn’t sell croissants but had wifi).
During this break up, all I could stomach was a side of tofu scramble, which comes like a scoop of ice cream in a soufflé ramekin. It paired perfectly with 6 cups of drip coffee, and only sort of kept my stomach from eating itself.
I told the staff they should sell their turquoise mugs. I knew people stole them. They’re for sale now in their gift shop.
Civil is just a block down — the only coffee shop on Fig with padded seating (hard to come by these days). It has an east coast charm that’s especially endearing in the colder months. I liked to sit in the window when it rained and wait to walk home until it stopped. I’d bring a stack of books with me, a couple to write in and a couple to read. I felt like Hermione when they didn’t all fit in my bag and I’d have to carry them down the street.
At Civil I order an oat capp to stay. Always hot. They don’t have real glasses for iced drinks. I always thought that was annoying. Sometimes I’d get a double shot latte if the day called for it. They’d come in these big mugs that required two hands to hold.
I also really enjoy their toast — now and then I’d get their gluten free bread because it’s actually quite good, and I felt better eating it. They must lather butter on both sides though because no matter which bread, their toast is crack. I don’t eat much dairy, but I’m known to make really unexpected exceptions — this buttered toast being one. Their Chocolate Chip Cookie being another. I brought it to a Chocolate Chip Cookie blind tasting once, but it ended up coming in second place, behind Just What I Kneaded’s vegan cookie.
If I’m not sitting in the window, I’m sitting outside in the back patio — which is the same patio as the bar, Good Housekeeping — but it feels soo different in the morning. It actually took me a few times to put together it was the same space. Please tell me I’m not the only one.
Often I’d sit back there and wouldn’t even get a coffee. I just wanted to get out of the house and be around people. That felt okay because there was always plenty of seating available. This patio really is the neighborhood watering hole. Always running into a friendly face — or at least someone I recognized from instagram.
Go Get ‘Em Tiger is my favorite coffee on the block. I don’t really have anything profound to say about it except they really. know. coffee. If you order a cappuccino to go, they know to make it a few degrees hotter than if you had ordered it to stay. I love that.
However, it’s not my go-to because it’s not a great vibe — seating isn’t comfy, the street is super noisy, and the lights ‘inside’ by Triple Beam are always flickering. Music was often too loud for my airpods to cover up. Their coffee keeps me coming back though.
I used to say their food was severely underrated, but they slowly got rid of my favorite menu items. RIP chickpea frittata — it came with a perfect little side salad and dank pickled radishes. Their vegan banana bread is also really special— ate it way too much last summer.
Eventually, someone put me on to the strawberry corn muffin — it was served hot, fried in butter. That shit is wild, and not to be messed with on a regular basis.
Kindness & Mischief was the closest coffee shop to my house. It was just a block from what I considered to be the main strip of Fig. I was less likely to run into people there, and I loved having a sneaky spot like that. Plus the coffee is good.
The staff is almost too friendly — your name becomes ‘love’ or ‘hun’ the moment you walk in. They’ve never charged extra for alt milks which they’re very proud of for some reason, even have a sign about it. Everyone is so perky, even early in the morning. They’re so earnest, it’s impossible to grump back.
Here I usually got a double shot iced latte to go. Sometimes I’d get their Miso Caramel Latte — which didn’t taste like miso or caramel. It just had a salty finish I liked. They don’t serve it anymore.
Kindness also stocks Sunset Cultures shrubs + kombucha. Sometimes they have pastries from Just What I Kneaded + loaves of Bub’s. That came in handy when I didn’t want to bother with Cookbook.
One morning, someone came up to me and said they read my newsletter. At first I was really flattered, then quickly felt embarrassed when I remembered what I was wearing. It was 7am on a Tuesday after all.
Homestate isn’t really a coffee shop, but they do have drip… AND this absolute treat of a drink — Cookie Milk Iced Coffee, which tastes exactly like you’d think it would. They literally steep chocolate chip cookies in oat milk. Not a daily driver but a fun drink to keep in your back pocket for when you visit Fig.
I guess that’s me now — someone who visits Figueroa — driving up and down 56th looking for parking.
It hasn’t been that long, but it feels like a lot has changed since I moved. A new all day cafe opened next to Auto Zone — They have padded seats and a big patio… They serve iced coffee in real glasses, even natural wine + cocktails.
But I’m busy flirting with coffee shops in a new neighborhood now…
Special thanks to Mar for taking these pics before I moved.
If you like this kind of content from me, throw it a heart and maybe I’ll do more :)
The photos are so good
Pretzel is famous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!