Stereoscope Coffee

Stereoscope in Echo Park is my favorite coffee shop in LA, so I made a trip to Buena Park from Hollywood just to visit this OG location. I was not disappointed. The atmosphere and crowd are slightly different, more lively, more casual, but the essential experience feels the same: warm and attentive service, delicious and joyful coffee. My go-to drink is a cappuccino, and Stereoscope makes the most exciting cappuccino, always clean and bright, served in their signature ceramic cups.

I came back a couple of times and the shop is always packed with locals, students studying at the communal table, young couples on a date, or older folks chatting lively in the patio drenched in sunshine. The shop opens till 9pm and visiting it in the evening reminds me the fun foodie night life in Asia.

One thing that deserves a special mention is that this store has soft serves Friday to Sunday. There are usually two flavors: espresso and a seasonal flavor. I can't resist the urge to order both flavors when I visited Stereoscope on a hot summer day and I relished them both.

Stereoscope embodies what, in my opinion, a coffee shop should be. While the coffee is diverse and high in quality, the employees and overall atmosphere of the shop are what really impresses me.
I noticed that the all the employees enjoy engaging in conversation and really know their coffee. They're also always walking around, making sure that things are clean and customers are satisfied.
Inside the shop, the seating is very communal. There's one long table, making it very easy to talk to other people, but because of that, it gets very loud inside. It probably isn't a good idea to study inside the café.
Outside the shop, you'll find a lot of smaller tables, all of which are well shaded. Even though we went on a very hot day, it still felt really nice to sit outside.
I only tried the Single Origin Espresso Soft Serve, but I'm super excited to come back and try other items.

Great place for craft coffee. I tried their espresso tonic, very refreshing especially on a warm day. They have Wi-Fi, indoor seating, as well as outdoor seating. Great local coffee shop.

Wow, how did they make their coffee ice cream??? It tastes like Haagen Dazs coffee ice cream, but in soft serve form. You can def taste the coffee, tastes very premium. This place is popping, gonna be hard to find a seat but hey, you just need to grab your coffee right?

The longer line at this place on an early Saturday by afternoon was definitely worth the wait. Quality made items & really great service makes this place such a win.

ITEM'S ORDERED:

Kyoto Cold Brew
Espresso Soft Serve
Matcha Tea

TASTE:

Espresso Soft Serve was actually the main reason why I decided to come here. Saw a few photos & it looked enticing. Just FYI, they only serve it Fri-Sun. I was hoping it wasn't going to just taste like a store bought coffee ice cream & it definitely did not. For me it was the perfect balance of bitter, sweetness, & creaminess. There's some finely ground espresso on top which makes it look even more aesthetically pleasing while adding to that espresso flavor. The roasted bitter espresso flavor works so well & is not lost while also being smooth, creamy & sweet enough.

Kyoto Cold Brew was one of the better cold brews I've ever had. Not watery at all, with a very prominent coffee flavor. Coffee flavor even came off as "fruity" & "sweet" in a nice way. I had to drive off & had not yet finished my soft serve. So I just put the rest in the cold brew & I do not regret that decision.

Matcha Tea is literally just that. Perfect for the matcha fan who cannot take the milk or just doesn't want some at the time. They use a higher quality matcha & it tasted as such.

SERVICE, LOCATION & PARKING:

Service was honestly probably best I've ever had at any coffee shop. Cashier was so genuinely nice & welcoming. Forgot to get her name but, she had shorter hair & was just hella cool. It was a busy Saturday morning & the line was pretty much all the way to the door but cashier handled everything like a pro.

Interestingly, I've been to quality coffee shops that look a lot more "pretentious". This one doesn't. Maybe little more rustic with the coffee bean bags & roaster in plain sight.

There's only really one long communal table along the middle of the place with side, bar seating. Also looked like a good amount of outside seating available.

They are located right on the corner of Beach Blvd & Los Coyotes. There's ample amount of parking in this shopping area.

Fantastic coffee experience in every way so I definitely see myself coming back here. I don't usually get lattes but the house made syrups sound enticing.

Just went in for a cup of hot americano. It tastes quite good with some caramel tones and roasted oats flavor. It looks like they do some coffee roasting on site. Usually there is a ton of people waiting in queue and a ton of people sitting inside and outside. There is no drive thru but there is plenty of parking around the strip mall parking lot.

Quality coffee and unique choices. Excellent pastries. The place was packed but so organized that our order was ready quickly.

I frequented stereoscope a lot during the pandemic. There was never a line which was nice. I visited again a whole year later and, boy oh boy, the line was basically out the door! It is worth the wait for the sweet caffeinated goodness though! Drinks are great, bags of coffee to brew at home are just as great!

First, the pros: coffee was very yummy and the passion fruit pastry I had was one of the best I’ve ever had. The passion fruit custard filling? Phenomenal. The burnt sugar crust on the bottom? Exquisite. The pastry is responsible for all 3 stars this restaurant earned.
Cons: very pricey! 2 coffees (small) and 2 pastries (medium sized) cost $30. Menu was confusing, and when I asked the cashier what a “ganache milk” was, he got really annoyed at me (spoiler alert: it’s hot chocolate). Service was, honestly, terrible. I had trouble hearing the barista over the music, which wasn’t too loud but was played directly over the cash register, and the guy who took my order criticized my drink choice and generally seemed irritated that I was there.
Would definitely recommend the food, but be prepared to spend a lot and lower your expectations for service!

We love coffee and tea, this place has the best of both! Best coffee shop around, very cool atmosphere and best taste. We like to order the Madagascar Vanilla Latte and the Spanish Latte. Overall always experience a good cup of coffee here.