National Coffee Day is today and you should celebrate on one of LA’s first hometown roasters, LAMILL (1636 Silver Lake Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026; 323.663.4441). This spot is a mix of retro meets modern and they serve up perfectly brewed single origin or blend that can be found in their Americanos, Macchiatos, Lattès, or my personal favorite, Cappuccinos (full menu here). They also have specialty drinks like the Salted Caramel Latte or Crème Brûlée Cappuccino at their Silver Lake spot. Plus, they offer little charts on their menus to explain what each drink is, which I don’t know about you, but is extremely helpful with all the coffee drinks that are out there today.
LAMILL is more than just a coffee shop though. They have a menu of dishes that are some of the most beautiful (and tasty) in the city. Order up Avocado toast (add a poached egg); Baby Kale, Brussels Sprouts & Farro Salad; Breakfast Sandwich of scrambled eggs, cheddar, and chives, on a brioche bun; Steak Frites; Braised Short Rib Hash; Shrimp & Grits with habanero-bacon jam and baby kale; Croque Monsieur with black forest ham, gruyere, béchamel, and a small herb salad; and Fried Chicken & Scallion-Sage Waffles with spicy-honey butter. Desserts include an Affogato (bliss espresso over madagascar vanilla bean ice cream) and Warm Brioche Doughnuts (or holes) with maple-espresso glaze.
When I visited LAMILL, we ordered up the Shaved Market Vegetable Salad made with rainbow carrots, fennel, breakfast radishes, pickled pink and gold beets, and lemon vinaigrette; the Roasted Cauliflower & Black Quinoa with apples, walnuts, and an almond gremolata; and the Asparagus & Poached Eggs, made of two eggs, roasted asparagus, and a chili-almond gremolata. Everything was fresh, colorful, and delicious. I loved that it was a lunch that didn’t leave me feeling heavy and in need of a nap. But if you do go that route, they have all the caffeine to boost you up and get you ready for the rest of your day.
In addition to their menu, you can feast on bakery items like croissants, red velvet cupcakes, orange-glazed cherry scones, pumpkin breads, gluten-free lemon-poppy seed muffins, zucchini-walnut breads, coffee cakes, vegan spiced apple muffin, salted chocolate chip cookies (my fav), jalapeño-cheddar biscuit, gluten-free banana-chai bread, Gruyère-mushroom muffin, vegan peanut butter cookie, and gluten-free spinach-feta-sun dried tomato muffin (just to name a few).
What better day to celebrate craft coffee than today!? LAMILL has been on the coffee scene since 1998 and they’re one of the originators of craft roasting in LA. SO, head over to LAMILL for a caffeine jolt and some delicious food to pair it with!
