Jeff B.
Yelp
(Snacked 08/04/23 FR @1:30pm): Because I don't drink coffee, I may never know how awesome their bold self-proclamation namesake is!
I came across Awesome Coffee purely because of the name as a place to meet a prospective tenant for a vacancy at my family's nearby Koreatown apartment building. Since coffee was off the table, was there anything else I would find awesome here!?
PURCHASE
Large Chocolate Chip Cookie ($4.25): Because the food options were slim pickings at this time, by default I went with this to snack on. I couldn't tell whether or not it was baked in-house or purchased elsewhere. It had a nice thickness, a decent amount of chocolate chips, and a snowing of powdered sugar on top. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't anything special.
16floz Iced Matcha Latte ($4.75): This was an Incredible Hulk green-colored drink with the matcha flavor present throughout from start to finish. I felt somewhat healthy as I slowly sipped this cold drink.
16floz Iced Matcha Lemonade ($6.50): I treated the person I was meeting with to this drink. Unfortunately, I was unable to try it, but it had a rich green color and looked quite refreshing especially on this particular hot day.
16floz Iced Blood Rose ($6.00): The aroma was undeniably floral with roses and lavender while the flavor was as if I had a bouquet in my mouth. With a hint of lemonade and the waft of an older woman's perfume, this drink on ice helped soothe the hot weather. I honestly wasn't sure whether or not the floating petals were edible (I ate some with no ill effects), but they made the drink look pretty and serene. It was nice, but this was a one-and-done for me https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=Q21BJnNxPusvRGCN4i0l7A&userid=8jVT2inwc8GIQ6sH2UG9Vw.
SERVICE
Initially, I was immediately greeted by a lone woman behind the order counter who robotically took my order. Several minutes later, she called out your order instead of your name (actually, you never provided your name), and placed it in the pick up counter area. I found this a bit difficult because I'm certain other customers have ordered the same thing hence the potential for confusion. Case in point, I actually grabbed the wrong drink and started drinking it because I thought it was mine. Once we were done with our meeting, I wasn't sure if you left the items on the table or brought them back to the counter (I brought them to the counter). Otherwise, all was pretty straightforward.
PARKING (FREE)
Located within the Wilshire Gramercy Strip Mall, they shared a tight medium-sized parking lot (I believe there was also a backside parking lot or at least that was where I parked for the hour-plus I was there) with several businesses as was the case with most businesses in Koreatown. Otherwise, there appeared to be plenty of time-limited spots along the main drag of Wilshire Blvd. and all surrounding streets. Just make sure to carefully read any and all posted signs - 'nuff said.
ATMOSPHERE, DÉCOR, AMBIENCE
Situated on the second floor, it had a surprisingly spacious long interior with an eclectic display of several chandeliers, a faux library nook with leather chairs, an array of chairs, tables, and a long seating bar along the windows. It appeared nearly everyone was on their respective laptop. Everything else was clean and very minimal. Ample natural lighting came through the many large front glass wall windows and doors while electric ceiling lights filled in the rest. There weren't any TVs, while smooth jazzy covers of current songs played in the background.
ATTIRE
Totally casual, so I would normally be in a t-shirt, boardshorts, and flip-flops.
OVERALL
Generally speaking, Awesome Coffee and its kitschy atmosphere was fine, but there wasn't anything specific that would bring me back for more. Again, I didn't drink coffee, minimal drink/food menu options (I saw pictures of creative food on their Yelp page but none at the business), relatively pricey, and parking could be an issue. On the bright side... I really liked the music playlist, it was chill, and the service was adequate. Plus, I loved to support any small business whenever possible. I found good value based on the prices, service, and experience noted above (TOTAL paid experience was around $24.00 BEFORE any discounts and/or tip). And, they accepted my credit card of choice... AMEX! 3.0 STARS