Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen - Inglewood
Cafe · Inglewood ·
Crispy chicken sandwich, soul bowl, avocado toast, latte
Crispy chicken sandwich, soul bowl, avocado toast, latte
"Condola and Issa meet for a work lunch, but tension arises when Molly shows up. They talk about Hilltop’s signature dishes, including the drop-top open-faced sandwiches. Note: Issa Rae is an investor in this Inglewood cafe, which has locations in Windsor Hills and Eagle Rock." - Mona Holmes
"Located on the ground floor of the new Perch apartments along Eagle Rock Boulevard, this new cafe and daytime restaurant is an outpost of a South LA–based operation that began in Windsor Hills/View Park and expanded to Inglewood. Owners Ajay Relan and Yonnie Hagos bring the same Tectonic Coffee beans and beloved menu items — beignets, a breakfast sandwich with lemon-chili mayo, and open-faced “droptop” sandwiches — to a space built for daytime laptop work: about 1,000 sq ft of interior with a 30-foot window-facing bar and, while indoor seating is limited due to social distancing, a temporary 100 sq ft patio with six tables. Open daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., it joins a growing local cafe scene and will compete with nearby Found Coffee, Little Ripper, Swork Coffee and Habitat Coffee." - Mona Holmes
"Yonnie Hagos from Hilltop Coffee in View Park-Windsor Hills and Inglewood: In the midst of civil unrest, we’ve seen members of our community take to the streets to protest peacefully." - Eater Staff
"Founded by partners Ajay Relan and Yonnie Hagos with producer-actress Issa Rae, the split-level coffee-and-kitchen concept (originally opened in View Park in 2018 and later next to Inglewood’s City Hall) had been consistently packed before the crisis. Both locations shifted to delivery and takeout when dining rooms closed, but revenue plunged—owners estimate business is down 80–90 percent—and expansion plans for a third site in Eagle Rock have been put on hold. While hopeful about returning to normal, the operators are wary of taking on SBA loans, emphasizing thin margins and instead engaging proactively with landlords and bankers for relief." - Mona Holmes
"A new Downtown Inglewood outpost opened as a 3,500-square-foot, split-level space with a central bar next to Inglewood City Hall and KJLH. Co-founded by Ajay Relan and Yonnie Hagos with producer-actress Issa Rae of HBO’s Insecure as a partner, the cafe occupies a spot that formerly housed Sweetie Pies (closed 2017) and was designed to celebrate the founders’ South LA roots. The team serves coffee made with beans from Tectonic Coffee and a daytime menu of breakfast items, bowls, beignets, and the signature “droptops” — thick open-faced sandwiches that reference South LA car culture. Rae has positioned the location as a neighborhood creative hub and community space, building on the original View Park site opened in 2018 and her broader plans for a nearby production headquarters. The cafe is framed as part of a broader wave of large-scale, community-oriented coffee projects in South LA and is open Monday–Friday 7 a.m.–5 p.m. and weekends 8 a.m.–5 p.m." - Mona Holmes