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LA Coffee Shops With Outdoor Seating

Need caffeine and a patio, stat? We’ve got you covered.

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Nick Olin
December 17 2023

Like many things this year - birthday parties, college classrooms, our understanding of our parents’ emotional maturity, etc. - coffee shops are looking a little different. What used to be home base for freelancers, brunchers, and writers on deadline has been invaded by, well, everyone else, and become a confusing mix of takeout, delivery, and patio seating as a result. But fear not, fellow caffeine addicts; from cold brews to single-origin espressos to socially distant dog parks, we’ve got a list of 22 Coffee Shops with Outdoor Seating.

Doubting Thomas

Doubting Thomas

Bakery/Cafe

Historic Filipinotown

$$

Text ten friends if they want to go to a 1970s-themed Italian disco and chances are you’ll have ten friends show up at your door. So it’s not surprising that Let’s Go Disco is one of the most talked about LA bars—and we’re here to tell you it delivers on its promise of kitschy, retro debauchery. Attached to De La Nonna in the Arts District (the door’s to the right when you enter), the space has circular booths, neon lighting, stucco arches, and of course, spinning disco balls. While the dancing really gets going after 9pm when the DJs start, head over earlier to beat the lines and get a sesame-leaf-infused gin martini at the bar.

Superba Food + Bread

Superba Food + Bread

American

Venice

$$

Both Superba’s Pasadena and Venice locations (which we once referred to as “The ‘Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit’ of restaurants” for some reason) are back up and running with safe patio dining and pick-up/delivery services. Make sure to take advantage of their house-baked pastries, breakfast sandwiches, and cheesy soft-scrambled eggs - all of which are worthy of Miss Whoopi Goldberg herself.

Spoke Bicycle Cafe

Spoke Bicycle Cafe

American

Frogtown

$$

Half utopic outdoor cafe, half bicycle-rental shop (and the most on-brand Frogtown coffee shop that has ever existed), Spoke’s socially distant patio is now open, and it’s a great spot to sip espresso or dine on their (really excellent) veggie burger or banana toast made with Bub and Grandma’s bread.

The Rose

The Rose

American

Venice

$$

This longtime Venice staple - and one of the best places in town to drink with your dog - also boasts an expansive outdoor seating area complete with two covered tents, all-day breakfast sandwiches, wines by the glass, and of course, rows upon rows of string lights as far as the eye can see. It is Venice, after all.

Go Get Em Tiger

Go Get Em Tiger

Cafe

Culver City

$

With multiple locations throughout the city, Go Get Em Tiger is definitely in the running for the title of “LA’s Most Well-Known Coffee Chain.” It also doesn’t hurt that their latest Santa Monica outpost has an airy, outdoor seating area. The patio only has a few tables, but pair them with one of GGET’s excellent lattes, sandwiches, or simple and sweet iced coffees, and you’ve got a winning combination, ideal for everything from people-watching to killing some time between Zoom calls to finally penning your “Unnamed Pandemic Horror Screenplay.”

Tierra Mia Coffee

Tierra Mia Coffee

Bakery/Cafe

Lincoln Heights

$

With 14 locations throughout LA County, you’re never too far from this Latin-inspired coffee chain’s horchata lattes, mocha Mexicanos, and cafecito Cubano con leche drinks. But if you’re looking for an outdoor spot to read guides on “Designing sensuous spaces and erotic interiors” - if you’re, uh, into that sort of thing - head to Tierra Mia’s Lincoln Heights and Highland Park outposts for socially distant patio seating.

Civil Coffee

Civil Coffee

Cafes

Highland Park

$$

This cozy coffee shop now features outdoor seating. Located in Highland Park, Civil Coffee has everything from socially distant picnic tables to an extensive menu of teas to specialty drinks like the Caramel Turmeric Sweetie, made with espresso, caramel butter, turmeric spice, and milk, as well as a variety of breakfast snacks. Open 7am-5pm.

Dinosaur Coffee

Dinosaur Coffee

Cafe

Silverlake

$

One of our favorite Silver Lake coffee shops (and home to a few questionable WiFi practices), Dinosaur Coffee has introduced limited outdoor seating from 7am-5pm daily. So far they’ve only put out a few tables, so you might have to be strategic about snagging a spot. May the odds be ever in your favor.

Endorffeine

Endorffeine

Bakery/Cafe

Chinatown

$

In addition to espresso shots and pour overs, this Chinatown cafe also boasts one of the most creative patio set-ups in the city. Located right outside of their Far East Plaza outpost, Endorffeine has created a Lego-esque al fresco seating area complete with large, interlocking plastic bricks and socially distant tables - a fun, outdoor fortress worthy of being in one of the Danish toy company’s theme parks. Open Thursday-Sunday, from 9am-6pm.

Insomnia

Insomnia

Bakery/Cafe

Beverly Grove

$$

If you’re looking to spend all day in front of your computer, Insomnia is one of the best cafes in the city to do just that. Sure, the coffee itself is nothing to write home about and the sandwiches can be best described as “does the trick,” but that’s besides the point. You’re not here to wax poetic about single-origin blends or foam art techniques - you’re here to plop yourself down at one of their outdoor picnic tables, pen your Rick and Morty spec script, and make the most of your Final Draft free trial.

Menotti's Coffee Stop

Menotti's Coffee Stop

Cafe

Culver City

$

Menotti’s flagship location now has a gorgeous outdoor patio right on the Venice Boardwalk, complete with socially distant tables, really cute mosaic flooring, and some of the best cold brews, Spanish lattes, and nitros in town.

Sip & Sonder

Sip & Sonder

Bakery/Cafe

Inglewood

$

Established in 2017, Sip & Sonder in Inglewood is not only the the area’s first specialty coffee house - they also function as a publisher, creative studio, event space, and bonafide community hub. In addition, their flagship outpost on S. Market St. now also has limited outdoor seating, where you can enjoy a variety of espressos, hot teas, and pastries.

Great White

Great White

American

Venice

$

This outstanding Australian cafe in Venice - that just happens to serve one of the best breakfast burritos in town - is now offering limited outdoor seating. Soak in the last of LA’s winter rays while sipping on flat whites, enjoying an incredible brunch, and flipping through “something with culture,” like this collection of Frank Lloyd Wright designs or the Countess Luann’s guide to living life with “elegance and flair.”

Adams Coffee Shop

Adams Coffee Shop

Cafe

West Adams

$

Located in a beautiful, foliage-covered patio (and perhaps the only place where we’d allow you to publicly propose to someone) Alta Adams’ adjoining coffee and wine shop has everything to satisfy your outdoor dining needs - freshly brewed coffee, takeaway bowls of fried chicken and collard greens, and bottles of specialty wines produced by women and BIPOC, selected by their sommelier, Ruben Morancy.

Laveta

Laveta

Bakery/Cafe

Echo Park

$

Is there anywhere more chic than Laveta’s outdoor space in Echo Park? We’re putting our money on no. Outfitted with sleek, minimalist wooden furniture, austere slabs of concrete, and signature drinks like the namesake Laveta (made with two shots of espresso, organic maple syrup, and oat milk) and the berry mojito fizz, a refreshing mix of raspberries, blackberries, Korean omija berry extract, sparkling water, and mint, there’s no better place in town to put on oversized sunglasses and type away at your computer while narrating your life, Carrie Bradshaw-style.

The Semi Tropic

The Semi Tropic

Cafe

Echo Park

$

The Semi-Tropic has long been our go-to destination for getting work done. And now that they’ve converted their large outdoor space to a patio with socially distant picnic tables and heat lamps, this Echo Park hangout remains one of the best places in town to study for an upcoming test or analyze your ex’s Instagram for clues if they’ve moved on or not.