GoodBoyBob: Santa Monica's Hidden Coffee Shop
You won’t find yourself going too far into the coffee world without bumping into multiple connections. The community is small and committed to their craft, creating a spot on the map for Los Angeles in specialty coffee. For example, a notable and well connected name in the coffee world, Tyler Wells, consulted both Highland Park’s Civil Coffee and Santa Monica’s Goodboybob in creating their respective coffee programs. Here’s how the full circle coffee family tree goes down:
The three owners of Handsome left the now corporation that is Intelligentsia to start a smaller brand of roasters. They hired the Morales brothers, Alex and Alan, who later left Handsome and started their own coffee cart, Civil Coffee. And back to the corporation Handsome Coffee Roasters went, after Blue Bottle acquired the company in 2015, just four years after opening. That same year, the Morales brothers turned their coffee cart into a brick and mortar shop, hiring Tyler Wells, one of the three original owners of Handsome, as a consultant to oversee the brew program.
In 2017, after consulting with Wells, Goodboybob started their own roasting. You’ll find their specially roasted beans in the shop, in addition to some of the rarest beans you won’t found anywhere else in LA. Another notable in-house creation is their highly acclaimed almond milk, sweetened lightly with dates and flavored with cinnamon and vanilla extract.
Parking isn’t easy and the signage isn’t huge but the effort to find it is worth it. Tiered shaded bench seating outside its ivy-covered store front makes for a great patio experience. Inside, two plush leather chairs, a wide mid-century couch and a small seating area make the experience cozy and living room like. The outdoor patio is great for posting up to work and the food addition to their menu can keep you filled up and working for hours.
Their daily coffee and daytime food menu is from 8am-4pm, with extended hours on Friday and Saturday night to give you the option to chill on the patio with some dreamy patio lights and a tucked away feel. Keep your eye out for the small sign that says “COFFEE” to find the alley you need to walk down to get to this secret Santa Monica coffee shop.