Donovan H.
Yelp
When your business advertises itself as having the "World Famous Vanilla Latte", you better make sure this is an out-of-this-world experience. Which takes me a very well-known coffee franchise that is based in the Los Angeles area (with 18 locations in Southern California as of 2024). This is none other than "Alfred Coffee". The location I am writing this review on is none other in the heart of Beverly Hills as it sits at the corner of Santa Monica Blvd and N. Beverly Drive. Parking can be a challenge on the surface streets but there is a nearby garage (within walking distance) where the first two hours offer free parking.
The exterior is known for its large signage with white block letters complete with a black & white stripe awning (that resembles piano keys) and graced with a forest green painting along the walls. The inside is very well-lit and aesthetically pleasing but since this location is very busy, seating is very limited. I wanted to add that their menu is actually quite extensive as they offer so much more than their iced latte but also a ton of unique specialty drinks. They also have all of the popular coffee drinks (in hot or iced), matcha, tea, and many alternative milk choices (oat, almond, soy, etc). Finally, their food menu is quite extensive with breakfast sandwiches, bagel sandwiches, and even breakfast burritos.
During my visit, I came on the morning of Sunday 7/28/2024 at around 11:30am. As expected, there was a long line of customers that made its way to the outdoor patio area. However, orders were handled quickly and in a timely manner. Since I was saving my appetite for lunch, I decided to skip ordering the food. But I did order their World Famous Vanilla Latte (in iced) priced at around $6.00 (as of 2024). Total time it took to order my drink until it was ready took around 4 minutes; not a bad turnaround time in what was a very busy morning.
As far as the overall taste of this iced latte, it was just alright for me and wasn't worth the hype of it being "world famous". And in all honestly, it almost had that generic gas station/mini mart iced latte taste to it. I couldn't quite pinpoint what was off about this but I've had so many better drinks at other coffee shops in the area ("Maru Coffee" and "Alchemist Coffee Project" just to name a couple). However, the customer service, ambiance, and overall experience I had at "Alfred Coffee" was a positive one; the only dilemma is that their drink wasn't that good. With that said and done, I am giving them only an average 3-star rating.