as part of our weekly bible study meet up, ellie and i went to intelligentsia on abbot kinney. i’ve been here a few times before but never stayed long enough to appreciate what a gem this location is. it has such a different vibe from the intelligentsia in silver lake (which i posted about here) which is more slick and less chill. going to this location is a nice change of pace and after a lot of patience, we finally scored spots on the balcony bar overlooking the whole shop. we people watched (since we had the perfect spots) and wrote and drew and laughed and of course had amazing coffee. i always love intelligentsia’s coffee (especially their iced lattes on a hot day) but i do wish they had hemp milk instead of soy and honey instead of simple syrup but i guess i’m just too picky lol. overall, i think i like this location just as much, if not more, than the silver lake location. i think i found myself a new favorite spot.
whenever we go into town, we usually end up going to capers at some point for the best iced coffees i have ever tasted. the cafe has other good drinks and good (but overpriced) foods but their iced coffees just can’t be beat. so maybe i did just write a whole post on iced coffees but this is my blog so i can post whatever dorky stuff i want… right? btw how pretty are my friends? love them!
coffee and great conversations with friends are one of the things i cherish most about being home. casey and i met at milk+honey, a great local spot, and chatted and laughed for hours. the best part about this coffee shop (besides my other best friend ellie working there) is how beautiful it gets at dusk. this was my new camera’s first run and i’m so glad i got to capture these moments
while in wellington, i had lots of coffee but none came even close to flight coffee at memphis belle! back in college, i watched this video by these lovely people and thought the coffee shop in it was just darling! fast forward a few months and i found myself in this same coffee shop across the world completely by coincidence. when i first walked in, it seemed familiar but i didn’t know why. after a while, i realized it was the same coffee shop and was so excited! we ended up getting coffee and hanging out here everyday while in wellington. it reminds me so much of my favorite coffee shops like night owl or alta or gypsy den back home which added to the homeyness of this city. overall, if you ever go to wellington, memphis belle coffee is a must!
while we were in hawkes bay, we went to opera kitchen for a quick after-church coffee. while the coffee wasn’t half as good as groove kitchen espresso, it was still a really cute place with a great atmosphere! it is next to the Hawke’s Bay Opera House which is so beautiful and modern. though i loved napier, this area was my favorite part of hastings, napier’s sister city.
wherever i go, i love to try different local cafes and coffeeshops. no starbucks or chain coffee shops for this girl, besides the starbucks in rotorua because 1) its the only coffee shop in town and 2) my awesome friend from church works there but anyways… while in napier, i went to groove kitchen espresso for coffee and lunch and it was fantastic! maybe the best coffee i have ever had (sorry intellegensia). the atmosphere was so chill and the cafe doubles as a disco club at night so they have a really sweet dj set up right next to where the coffee is made. overall, this cafe was an epic find!