So I decided to see what else was around besides the Denny's and IHOP chains on Sunset, and settled on trying out the Groundwork Coffee Co. on Sunset/Cahuenga. I keep passing by it when I get off the #2, but it's usually at night as I'm getting home for work, and kind of in the opposite direction from the Metro or the office, so I don't... You know. Pass by it on my way. So I keep forgetting about it.
But today I had the time for a detour, and decided to give it a shot. I ended up ordering their horchata cold brew (...Come on. It's an horchata cold brew. I couldn't NOT) and a Daybreaker sandwich. And let me tell you, this coffee is AMAZING. It didn't pretend to be horchata, it stayed true to itself as a cold brew horchata-inspired latte, but with a good strong cinnamon flavor with the almond milk, balanced perfectly with the cold brew. And the coffee itself was smooth as hell, but with an energy to it that I could feel make my eyes brighten, without kicking you in the face with the bean. The sammy was a fun find, too -- grilled arugula, fried egg, gooey, melty gruyere, a bit of bacon and a slice of tomato hiding in among the greens, and a harissa hot sauce (think sriracha, but... you know. WAY better) on both sides of the sammy that I had apparently not noticed when I was reading the menu (I admit, egg sammy for $7 was what I was looking at) on an english muffin. The hot sauce is the thing that kicks you in the face, but it's not so much that it's overpowering or makes you cry, but just a good kind of heat that goes PERFECT with eggs. This might be one of those, 'That's what you get for ordering the cheapest thing on the menu, wanker' moments, though.
It's a fun bite, although the presentation leaves a little bit to be desired. I saw someone else ordering a fried egg sammich that looked much nicer (although, to be fair, I had to carry the thing a couple blocks before I could pull it out), and the menu carries much better options, like a goddess bowl (poached eggs, whole avocado, wild arugula, baby kale, roasted tomatoes, green goddess dressing, shaved parmesan, lemon vinaigrette -- direct from their menu) that looked amazing, plus staples like avocado toast, breakfast burrito, granola bowl, and even the legendary bagel and lox! I've still yet to try bagel and lox, so this might be the chance to do so, although part of me wants to hold out for a Jewish bakery on principle, but... That's neither here nor there.
My other mild complaint was that the food took FOREVER. I had the impression this was a staffing issue (there was one fellow who was clearly on his way out and had a big order of food he was taking with him), and I watched another face emerge from the back to assist afterwards, and a third employee show up and clock in as I was waiting. And I'm honestly wondering if the third person was running late, quite frankly, leaving the crew a bit short-handed. I want to hope that's the case, because the food took WAY too long. Which is a damned shame, because the coffee came out about as fast as it took me to order, pay for my tab, and get to the end of the counter -- it was already waiting for me. Maybe it's because I was getting a cold brew, but it seemed like everyone was getting a cold brew. And given how fucking amazing it is, I get it. But the easiest solution is to save this spot for a quick in-and-out liquid breakfast option (it was REALLY good coffee) and/or order ahead online so that the food will be ready by the time you get there.
And they clearly know their beans -- the coffee itself are organic, locally roasted blends with delightful names like Bitches Brew, Lucky Jack, Angel City, Venice... Plus the usual tour-the-world country blends boasting the best of each origin country's beans. As an added bonus, they have a lot of literature telling you if the blend is light/medium/dark, a flavor profile, and even suggested brewing methods! They had the usual branded mercy like to go cups and diner-style mugs, but they also carried some damned nice quality brewing equipment -- solo-cup V-60 drips, Chemex, that sort of thing -- and some sustainable cupwear, including a really nice glass to-go mug that I was veeeery tempted to grab. In a world where I have my own kitchen to properly brew a cuppa, I would have.
[PS - I'm sorry about the picture. I DEFINITELY took a picture before I started eating the thing, because I AM a professional, but once I went to post it, the damned thing was no where to be seen. So, this was what I had left.]