Coffee snob tour of California

Jose is a self-confessed coffee snob, and I'll admit I'm probably turning into one too. While I still frequent Starbucks (the horror!) if I'm feeling desperate, I'm definitely beginning to see the light in terms of truly well-roasted and well-brewed coffee. There are no gourmet coffee shops in Los Altos, which is tragic, but I think Red Rock in Mountain View is probably worth a try.A great part about these shops, though, is that you can buy their beans to brew at home.
Please enjoy these photos from my recent pilgrimages with Jose to notable coffee roasters in Northern California and the LA area!

Barefoot Coffee Bar

5237 Stevens Creek Blvd, Santa Clara, CA

Perks at UCSD brews this coffee, and it's AMAZING! Fun atmosphere, yummy pastries and not too far from Los Altos.

Verve Coffee Roasters

816 41st Ave, Santa Cruz, CA

Our favorite cafe of all of the places we visited, definitely a great place to relax and caffeinate. It was also my favorite espresso of all, and the best part is they roast the beans right next door to the cafe! Their employees and baristas are chill (it is Santa Cruz after all) and it was a fantastic stop. 

Samovar Tea Lounge

3 locations - we visited 297 Page Street, San Francisco, CA

 Ok you caught me, this isn't coffee. But it deserves a spot in this blog because of its ridiculous selection of specialty loose leaf teas. It has everything from black to white to herbal to oolong. Not cheap by any means, but a fun destination for a little snack and more caffeine. By this point in the day, we were definitely buzzing...

Element Coffee 

2364 Ventura Blvd, Camarillo, CA

Our daily breakfast stop while in Oxnard, which brews Intelligentsia coffee beans. It's a relaxed, open atmosphere with a comfy couch (a big plus for me) and yummy pastries. Element was probably my favorite place we visited in the area, and it's Jose's hangout spot when he's at home. Try their vanilla latte sweetened with agave syrup - AMAZING!

Intelligentsia Coffee

5 coffee bars across the country - 

we went to 1331 Abbott Kinney Blvd, Venice, CA

Coffee at its most pretentious... I can't say I loved the "experience" of my coffee here, it was too rushed, a little crowded, and not comfortable to sit for any period of time. The baristas were snobby, but I guess with all of their awards, they're entitled to a little pride. However, there's no denying that their coffee is fantastic and the blackberry thyme muffin we shared was pretty foodgasmic. Worth a trip, but don't plan on bringing a book or making friends with the baristas!