We stopped by Amai Coffee and really liked it!…read more Food: I ordered the cream cheese croissant, hojicha latte, and a regular latte. Everything was really good! The cream cheese croissant was my favorite, it was warm, flaky, and had a good amount of cream cheese. The hojicha latte was really good too and had a nice flavor. The regular latte was also good and tasted fresh. The staff was really nice and friendly, and we didn't have to wait long for our drinks and food. The cafe was also clean and had a cute, cozy vibe. It's a nice little spot to grab coffee and relax. Overall, I really enjoyed it and keep coming back!

I come to Amai frequently because it's one of the few coffee shops in the area that opens at a…read morereasonable hour for people who work early. The drinks are consistently good, which I really appreciate. That said, the hours have been a little iffy lately. There have been several instances where I've shown up around 7:15-7:20 AM only to find the chairs still up on the tables and the lights off, so I'm assuming someone didn't show up on time. The most recent instance was this Wednesday (9/2/26), when I arrived around 7:20 AM and the shop was still closed. It was a bummer, especially since this isn't the first time it's happened. I tried my luck again yesterday (9/3) and today (9/4) around the same time, and luckily the shop was open. Shoutout to the girls who were working yesterday and this morning for showing up on time and making some fire drinks! . I hope the opening hours become more reliable, especially for the early workers.

Wonderful place! I really enjoyed the coffee and the vibe here. Definitely recommend.read more

EVER SEE A "SANDWICH BOARD" SENDING YOU TO HEAVEN??? When…read morethey said Goodboybob they should'a said GREAT! This placed is tucked away for the cognoscenti only betrayed by a sidewalk announcement "telling you where to go!" But not THAT PLACE! This place has got some amazing coffee, great burritos, resymade sandwiches and overnight oats and VINO, Kombucha and any beverage you can want. Their baristas are "sur catégorie" and the food is so good you might dream about it. THIS IS THE ONLY RESTAURANT I ALWAYS TIP 20% or MORE! THIS PLACE IS MADE BY MINDFUL TEAM AND THEY ARE AWESOME!

I've been dying to come here and now I can't wait to come back!!!…read more This place has been on my to go places for Santa Monica! We never go since the walk is so far from Oceana hotel but this time we had scooters! The menu had so much yummy choices and it was so hard to pick one!! I did end up getting the strawberry cloud matcha which was perfect!! Not so sweet but you can't still taste the strawberry! My husband got the world's best vanilla latte. I had to have him try it since he's a "vanilla latte connoisseur". He said it was one of the best! I also tried all the pastries. Olive cake and chocolate banana bread were fiireeeeeee! Loved how moist banana bread was! The olive cake was also still really good the next day after you warmed it up. Both were not overly sweet which I love! The cookie was okay. We didn't like the salt on top of it. It was kind of weird too that the staff if I wanted salt in my matcha. Not sure if that's a thing??? Ambiance is casual. Love the spacious seating indoor and outdoor. There's also a pick up window! I can't wait to come back again and try another drink!!

La La Land Kind Cafe is a trendy coffee chain that started in Dallas, TX, in 2019 and now has 10…read morelocations in Southern California (as of September 2026). This Santa Monica location is located in the hippest part of Santa Monica. [Parking]: There's a small parking lot behind the cafe, but it was completely packed and I just ended up finding a metered parking spot a block away from the cafe. [Atmosphere]: The cafe has one of the sleekest modern looks out of all the cafes I have visited and honestly this cafe is the epitome of LA cafe culture. The indoor tables were all occupied, but there were plenty of outdoor tables to sit at and watch people walking their dogs. [Ordering]: There was a waiting line, but our party only waited about 5 minutes. While our drink was ready in 10 minutes, I didn't hear my name called for the avocado toast. Apparently, the avocado toast was ready and it was sitting at the counter right next to the drink counter. Since our party sat outside, I simply didn't hear my name called. [Menu]: The top highlighted items to order here are Avocado Toast, Banana Cloud, Matcha Squared, and Strawberry Fields Matcha. *** Medium Banana Cloud Latte (creamy, nutty, spiced - made with fresh bananas, vanilla bean and banana cloud top, secret sauce, espresso or ceremonial matcha, cinnamon - ceremonial matcha $7.30): I couldn't taste the matcha at all, but the drink somewhat lived up to expectations as it had a strong banana taste. Personally the drink was just a tad sweet for me, but if you wait until all the ice melts then the sweetness should be about right. La La Classic Avocado Toast (avocado mash, chili flakes, lemon zest, cilantro garnish - cut in half $12.50): It was one of the nicest-looking avocado toasts. Generous with the avocado, but the toast was cold. I actually liked the chili flakes as they gave the toast an extra spicy kick. *** Overall, this is a really nice spot to have a first date or just sit on the outdoor patio and relax, but there are better spots in LA for drinks. A solid 3.5-star and the avocado toast was memorable, but bumping down to 3-star due to inconvenient parking and mediocre service and drinks.

kavahana: won a giveaway a long time ago and finally got to try it. they actually recently opened a…read morelocation in hollywood but we were by santa monica this day so went to the og location. first time trying kava nectar and it was such a unique experience. we got the mango lassi w 2 shots of the kava nector and mango matcha w 2 shots as well. the kava nectar doesnt rlly effect the taste of the drink but u can def feel it. my tongue got alittle tingling after a few sips and i felt the relaxing affect a few mins in. felt like being tipsy without any of the bad alcoholic effects. but my friend didnt rlly feel it so everyones tolerance is different‍ also fun fact: kava nectar has a reverse tolerance effect so the next time you drink it the less you need to frel the same effect. overall p cool experience! highly recommend trying kava nectar atleast once!

Kavahana is a coffee/tea shop on Pico blvd/4th street in Santa Monica. It's an Island inspire…read morelounge serving up kava nectar drinks for smiles, relaxation & socializing, inspired by the Pacific Islands and Hawaii. I like their bar setup atmosphere with plenty of natural light. I came mid afternoon to try some of their refreshing cold coffee drinks. I got a Cold Brew. And it was refreshing and thirst quencher especially on a very warm day. Some drinks are overly priced. Interior decor was very aesthetic, spacious and imbues an Hawaiian vibe. Their male staff was attentive and professional. Street parking only. Overall, it was an interesting coffee shop that I have been to; I had a good experience and cold coffee drink.

Mahi mahi fish taco. So very good. With pico de gallo. Perfectly tasty…read more Great environment Highly recommend this restaurant food dishes really good

Robano is the kind of neighborhood café I wish I had within walking distance. I stopped in while I…read morewas in the Ocean Park area and immediately understood why locals seem to treat it like a regular spot. I ordered the salmon plate and an iced matcha latte, and both were fresh, satisfying, and exactly what I was in the mood for. The service was genuinely friendly and welcoming, adding to the relaxed neighborhood feel. The patio is the real draw. It's a great place to post up with a laptop for a few hours, whether you're answering emails or pretending to be productive while people-watching on Main Street. If I lived in the neighborhood, I could easily see myself coming here all the time. Between the good food, friendly staff, and comfortable outdoor seating, it's the kind of place that quietly becomes part of your weekly routine.

The pastries are decent. Very very cute interior seating…read morewith garden seatings. Cute ambience. Coffee is mediocre.

The building looks like a remodelled church - designed to elevate audio. This works for choral…read moremusic, not dining ambiance. looks fantastic though. My biggest gripe however is split between the waiting time and, to the disappointment of my high expectations, the food. I don't mind waiting for good food, but when I see the entire queue behind me served before me, and I get served burnt quiche (black), then I mind. If the establishment wished pictures of the said burnt quiche - they are available upon request. on a positive note - the salad dressing was lovely.

I was in Santa Monica and craving some cookies. I saw these recommended on Instagram for their…read morechunky cookies. While the physical location is small, there's outdoor seating to enjoy our sweets and goodies right away. We ordered the peanut butter chocolate, chocolate chip, chocolate chunk sea salt and walnuts, and cookies and cream. We also ordered the pistachio latte and matcha cream top. My favorite cookie was the peanut butter chocolate followed by the chocolate chip walnut with sea salt. My mom's favorite was the chocolate walnut sea salt. The pistachio latte was yummy with real pistachio pieces sprinkled on top

Friends who came to have dinner with us requested that they be allowed to bring dessert…read more Well...YES! We were delighted with the box of cookies and tarts that they brought from Paderia in Santa Monica. The chocolate chip walnut cookies were fat and soft with a slightly crisp exterior. The thickness of them allowed a plethora of rich chips to reside inside. I'm not a fan of chunks of nuts in cookies but these were chopped in tiny pieces, so did not take away from the overall soft texture. The soft peanut butter chocolate cookie was also a huge fattie with peanut butter chips within the chocolate cookie. Both were enhanced with a quick warm-up. I loved both of these cookies and think the chocolate chip is the very best you'll ever find. We also had Portuguese egg tarts. The pastel de nata (if I recall, this is what they are called) I ate was small but good, but I have had others that were more to my liking, with a sweeter custard and a more caramelized top, which I guess is a personal preference. Not to say it wasn't delicious - it was! I love the cookies so much I'll be checking out their Irvine location soon, which is much closer to me.

One of my favorite go-to spots for donuts in LA! I particularly enjoy their cake donuts which…read moreconsistently have good flavor and textures. I got my free birthday donut here (sign-up and add your birthday in the app) and I got the Celebration Cake donut. The donut was sweet with a crispy glazed exterior and a soft and fluffy interior. It was also still slightly warm which I liked since it gave me the impression that this was freshly made. It did get a bit too sweet for me towards finishing the donut, so eating half at a time is honestly good enough. This is more of a grab-n-go type of spot, but I think they have some outdoor seating in front of the store. There's also parking which Sidecar can validate. I would highly recommend this chain and it's one of my spots I take visitors to. Also, if you download the app you can get a free drink and donut for your first time :)

Sidecar is supposed to be very special donuts and they do have a unique selection of donuts, but…read moreit not for me. I found their donuts to be stale and no fancy type is going to correct that. The place is super cute and very clean. The staff is fine, nothing to write home about. They really don't see too interested in the customers. But they are okay. Parking is pretty easy. What they do make well is coffee. I love dark black coffee and they have that and more and it is very good. Their prices are high-- I think too high. They do have a decent selection on hand. I would go there for coffee, but I won't bother with their donuts anymore. I really hope they work on making sure all donuts are fresh. Their cornbread is good. I have a friend who wanted to try them so we went back and I still found them stale tasting, but great coffee.

EDIT TODAY:…read more Management reached out to me the same day to reassure me they're putting a table back there, it's just going to be resized to better fit the new layout. This is the kind of awesome customer-first efforts that makes me such a fan of Primo Passo. I moved my review back up to 5 stars. Thank you so much, guys!! -- I've loved coming to Primo Passo for a long time. I actually drive from Culver City there because of the vibe, staff, coffee, and ability to chill, work, whatever. Even with no WiFi I've never complained because I just hotspot if I need to. But today I stopped by and one of their seating areas- namely the long table and seats near the front- was just totally gone. Replaced with more shelves of things to sell. The seating they've already had has been nice but limited. But now they've made if even harder to get a spot there. I mean, they could have put in the shelves and replaced the long table with a fairly large square table with seats (trust me, I scoped out the space for it) but so far nothing. Just shelves with more products and a big stand around space. With fewer and fewer 'third places' making people feel welcome, I'm disappointed in the less seating at Primo Passo meaning either I get even luckier grabbing a place to sit or I'm just SOL. The people and coffee are still lovely, but I won't be stopping by as often anymore. I was willing to do the drive before, but now I'll need to be in the area and not needing to bank on a place to sit and work or chill. I suppose the Starbucks across the street will do, but there are tons of those everywhere.

We stopped by to get afternoon coffee around 12:30, and it was pretty busy with only a few seats…read moreopen. There's a lot of seating and space though, so it's a good spot to either hang out or even work (no loud blaring music!). We got the cinnamon cardamom flavor in both a flat white and latte. It was a delicious homemade syrup that I would recommend trying! Then my friend got a Guatemalan pourover that was good as well. Sidenote - the bathroom is well maintained and clean for those of you it matters to.

5-star for convenience, good hours, location, service, availability of products, but a 4-star for…read morethe coffee. It's not phenomenal, but nor is a church the typical place to have high quality coffee. I enjoyed the atmosphere, the ability to study and take my time. It's a place of comfort to stay indoors or sit on the outdoor patio. I really enjoyed it here. Pick up a book or some gift item while visiting.

Everything is delicious especially almond croissants tamales everything! The people are really nice…read moretoo