South LA Cafe - Los Angeles, California

R. Robinson

Decided to pop into this little cute cafe located on Western and MLK. Easily a lovable location venue. The menu items are fairly priced at accessible prices so that all may be able to enjoy. I ordered a regular size hot chocolate for my kid ($3) and a regular chai latte for myself ($4). I really enjoyed my chai latte it had a very distinct flavor and wasn't watered down like Starbucks tends to be. There are very few places that are able to make a really good chai latte and I am very happy to have been able to locate another. My kid enjoyed his hot chocolate but, complained that it was not chocolatey enough. The barista welcomed us upon entering and seemed excited about making our first visit a memorable one. Everyone introduced us by name and welcomed us. We were also invited to take an " I LOVE SOUTH LA CAFE" button. (We love buttons.)

Aesthetically, I found this place to be really cute. Black, white, greenery on the inside and yellow, greenery outside seating. On the table there were little slidable placards to indicate if a table is "dirty" or "clean." Outside of existing COVID precautions I think this is a cute little detail that other businesses should invest in to support their self seating areas.

We will definitely be returning! Love the prices, the vibe, location, and the community engagement!

Almaz Irgebaev

The coffee was good, I also ordered an avocado toast and a carrot cake, both were delicious.
Very friendly staff, there’s some kind of deal with pins but I didn’t get it.
Affordable prices too, not like a bunch of overpriced coffee shops in LA. I would definitely recommend this place.

J C

Eddie was working on making drinks when I walked in. He said hello and let me know he’d be right with me. Once done he greeted me with a smile and was polite, helpful and I wasn’t sure what I wanted and he recommended me of his favorite drinks. His service was beyond top tier! He even told me about the food drive each Wednesday that the company does for the public. He was very enthusiastic about it. I’d recommend this coffee shop to others and even though I’m not a local I’d make the trip back over this way due to the great service and good vibes.

Tiffany Gardner

my go to coffee shop in South La. skip the Starbucks and support people from the actual neighborhood. Great place

A.

June 2024 update: 3 stars to 2. They are incredibly slow despite no line. Owners seem nice from all the promos in the cafe, but on a busy day, he came in and was consistently barking orders at staff in a pretty rude manner, then went back with a nice tone to speak to customers. In their reply, they sought direct feedback, but I would not feel comfortable speaking with these owners given how he spoke to his staff vs customers. They have not demonstrated that they have taken the feedback from my review into account, nor have they made improvements to their business management. It's really a shame. Good neighborhood spot, but never a great experience. I have walked 80 minutes to get coffee because of how consistently bad experiences are from this cafe.

Tldr; Worth checking out, more for the vibes and a good local spot than their drink quality or flavours. Seems like they're trying to invest in the neighborhood.

Come here a few times a month. One of the only coffee shops within walking distance. Have tried their matcha, lattes, and LA Freeze. They're all just okay taste wise, but convenient morning treats before running to the bus.

-Haven't yet tried their food, but it looks decent.
-Good community gathering place and lots of outdoor seating.
- Seems like they're training a bunch of new staff, so sometimes not enough attention, but getting there!
- Toilets aren't the cleanest but good enough to use

Tito Mejia

Love visiting my local spots in south central! Came for the grand opening and now finally revisited twice in a month. Horchata Freeze for me all day.

Danny Lybarger

This place is a knockout 10/10. Visited LA and spent my whole day working from here because of the food, service and vibes. The owners (husband and wife) were kind, present and engaging and the staff was just an impressive.

OMAR A. MUHAMMAD, TH.M

The South LA Café is a beautiful oasis in south Los Angeles. It is an eclectic place where multi-ethnic, multi-gender, multi-generational clientele gather to meet, greet, and study one another. The café is not too far from the USC campus. The coffee cake and coffee were 10 out of 10 excellent. The music was cool and relaxing. The atmosphere was fresh like a good coffee shop should be. I noticed they had all the plants that create the biosphere for health and wellness. They have free Wi-Fi and merch that one can buy to support the mission and remember their visit. The South LA café has another adjacent meeting room if you want to do larger group meetings. The outdoor seating area is perfect for that cool breeze feeling. I highly recommend that you visit. The South LA Café is the beautiful dream of a couple who wanted to bring something nice to South Los Angeles that supports community and encourages kindness. The service was excellent, and the food and service were good. I’ll give it a 10 out of 10 for the overall experience 10 out of 10. The prices are good value.