The Downbeat Cafe

I went here on 6/25/10 I think.

After a long ride down Pico, I realized that the highway, although very slow due to a dilugue of traffic, is still faster than most street journies. I made it to the Echo Park and Silver Lake area for the first time though, but I had to endure many stop and starts at stop lights, and a hot car.

The Downbeat was not doubt a joint. It was treated by most like there living room, and there was no shortage of nifty on the heads of those who did not hesitate to show them off.

No free wifi though. This is ridicoulous at this. Yeah, I can see you're trying to avoid the whole "everyone just looking at their laptops instead of interacting" thing, but really. As a business you're are trying to compete for business, and this is not standard for any good cafe.

I went to downbeat for a meeting I had scheduled, but I don't believe I will be returning. The coffee was acutally good, but the food lacked any real effort.

Pier 212

The beach was calling me and I answered by heading out to Pier 212 along Venice beach. Another great cafe. I had two dry cappuccinos with a tuna sandwich that came with two sides. The ambiance was antiquated and artsy. Though there was young and somewhat hipster-y folks strolling around with neon green stunner shades and black and white tight-fitting wife-beaters.

I meet a couple that was bike-touring from Santa Cruz to San Diego. I told them about my bike-touring adventures from last summer and told me about their experiences. That trip was so much fun, I must go bike-touring again.

As I left the cafe, I was returning my plate and returned to someone was hoovering over my laptop and bag. I saw the man looking a little emaciated, but did not want to judge. Though I'm glad I did not leave my leave my personal effects for too long.

I will return to Pier 212 for certain.

The Spot Cafe

Well, back to business.

After my sabatical from this blog, I have ventured out, but now far, to The Spot Cafe. A very nice litle place. I was greeted with a warm entrance and red welcoming walls. Strong coffee and strong internet signal. There was a minimum to purchase on a credit card, and now because that I am broke, I purchase everything on a credit card.

It's funny, I haven't gone the typical route to being low on cash. Most adjust and start eating Pb and J sandwiches. Not me, I'm puttin' all on the card. Being in grad school, I have gotten so used to leverging against my future that I now do it all the time now. It only seems fair; there is a fair chance that I can repay my depts. I must a Keysian at heart, and besides, being solvent is overrated.

So, The Spot Cafe is a thumbs up. My credit score however, is a thumbs down. Oh well, maybe I can pay off my debt in another life.

Teaforest

Ah, much better. The Teaforest on Washington is a lovely eshtablishment. Great coffee, nice atomosphere, friendly customer service. I was just pondering the notion of noting attrative baristas, but will refrain because it might be seen as creepy.

I stayed in the area, Culver City, and avoided any instance of traffic. Yesterday I was defeated three times by an impasse of automobiles. It was infuriating and frustrating. I also had several oversights that did not help the situation at all. From incorrectly following directions, to odd occurances (a palm tree in the highway divider caught on fire), to over-looking details like knowing what bar to go to (who know that Barney's Beanery was a chain?). So, today I traveled only 10 city blocks.

The teaforest has been great. I will try to return soon!

A starbucks tale

Well, I had intended to checkout the Amoeba on Sunset to say that I have been to the troika of Amoeda's in existence. Unfortunately I was derailed by a human error in the directions to the music store. So, I ended up in Pasadena so that I would not have to double-back. Traffic going south was as bad as it was going north.

Negotiating traffic in this town will be a huge challenge. Especially getting to all of these cafes, but what do you do. The enternal questions will be highways or streets to get where I want to go. Althought I gotta say it hasn't been as bad as I anticipated.

At the starbuck's, I got the giftcard so that I could get onto the internet. It a while to figure out how to do this, but I finally got on. This starbucks on Arroyo Pkwy is pleasant, has a strong internet connection, and the coffee is good (just like any starbucks).

Alright, I'm out to see if I can catch that Amoeba.

Venice Grind

Well, no way to start off this blog than with my favorite Cafe in LA so far--The Venice Grind. I've been coming here for a few months. Atmosphere is good, coffee is ok (not very strong though), service is adequate, but most importantly the internet access is good. There is a free wireless service in this area called Mar-Vista. The free and dependable service is key.

There is cool art displayed on the wall, and there are a lot of interesting people around for people watchin.

Well, pretty straightforward start to this blog. But I really want to follow through with this so I'm going with the K.I.S.S. method in the begining (Keep It Simple Stupid).

Ok, hopefully more tomorrow.

Hello, and thanks for stopping by.

Hello, my name is Chris.

I am a graduate student at UCLA, and interning at a non-profit doing research. My work will be done remotely, so I'm free to bum around wherever I want. The goal is to hit-up as many L.A. cafes as I can around this city--as long as they have internet access. So, Im gonna look up places to go, and regale you with tales when I hit-up a new place.

Hope you like it.