The moment I had been waiting for. I signed on to Twitter a few weeks ago for the first time in months, just in time to find out that Verve Coffee was opening their first location outside of Santa Cruz that day (January 30) in Downtown LA. I have tried Verve's coffee at a variety of locations (Superba Food+Bread, Single Origin in the Grove, Cafe Dulce, and their Roastery in Santa Cruz) and have been pretty consistently pleased. I had first anticipated Verve's arrival in LA with the buzz and rumors about Blue Bottle and Stumptown taking over the Arts District. And all of a sudden, in seeing their beautiful airy space, impressive Strada machine, and a collaboration with Juice Served Here, I realized that Verve would fit seamlessly into LA. Aside from frustrating parking situations, my experiences with Verve thus far have been flawless from the kind baristas to the juice samples to the great espresso. Verve serves two blends for espresso--Sermon (Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia) and Streetlevel (Colombia)--that are equally delicious. I had Streetlevel when I went and it is a nice balance of caramely sweet and juicy citrus. Overall: lovely space, good espresso, nice people. I will definitely be coming back regularly (although I will be biking to avoid parking). 

Recommend: If you are feeling in the mood for espresso, get that. But if you are feeling in the mood for juice, try the Green Milk! Divine. And if you are feeling the mood for both, they make coffee juices! And they make their own almond milk in house. Mmm. Also, feeling hungry? Verve serves food from Short Cake and Cafe Gratitude.

Note: Verve is set to open two more locations soon, so keep your eyes open for that! One will be in Melrose and the other in the Arts District.

Price: $$$

Vibe: Airy, spacious, hip downtown

Espresso Rating: 8.5/10

Overall Rating: 9/10

Address: 833 S. Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA

Hours: 7am-7pm everyday