Michael T.
Yelp
When in a new city I ALWAYS seek out a local coffee roaster, and within a beautiful half mile walk of my hotel I found Rose Park. This quaint little coffee shop is discrete, quiet, and cozy but a bit austere in my opinion. No matter though, as the lively conversations, friendly staff, beautiful Long Beach art deco views and delicious coffee warmed it right up.
I was greeted by a big table featuring all of their current roasts and explored the tasting notes and origins of each. The helpful barista came over to talk me through many of them, and when I found one I wanted to enjoy I asked for a pour over, only to find out they didn't do that so I couldn't.
Womp womp. I'm always saddened when I'm limited like this, and it's a reason I would normally give four stars, but the baristas appreciated my interest and went above and beyond to make this such a wonderful experience from that point I can't give less!
GET THE FLIGHT. If you're a coffee enthusiast or coffee curious, this is the way to go and what a deal at $7. I got the two coffees + cold brew BUT I politely asked if I could swap a winter blend espresso for the cold brew and they were happy to oblige. Not only that, but the baristas were super attentive and allowed me to pace my own experience, letting them know as I was ready to move from coffee to coffee so it was always hot and delicious.
This was a great coffee experience and I had wished I could've taken some beans home with me that day.
The experience on that morning was so good I came back another afternoon for something cool and refreshing, and sampled the espresso yuzu tonic. I'll admit, this drink was too much for me and I could only enjoy half of it. The flavors were right, but it was just a lot of tannic sour puckering flavors at once in the size they serve. Not bad, just not my thing. Better enjoyed there perhaps.
Rose Park is a solid option for coffee seekers in the area and worth the extra effort to visit!