Disclaimer: I visited Groundwork Coffee as part of the Media Preview Day for Whole Foods 365 Long Beach. I was not paid or even explicitly asked to write anything in exchange, though I did receive some free product samples. All opinions in this post are my own…and they are fabulous!

 

In writing my review of the new Whole Foods 365 location in Long Beach that opened this week, I realized that this southern outpost of the well-known LA coffee house deserved its own separate review.

 

As I mentioned in my Whole Foods post, the first thing you see (and smell) as you enter the main store is this “in-store shop.” Though it occupies just a small corner of this warehouse-sized grocery, Groundwork Coffee manages to establish the feeling of being a space completely unique and to its own.

If you’re not familiar with this coffeehouse mini-chain, this is their story in a nutshell: What started out as a quirky small-batch roaster within an old bookstore in Venice Beach, CA, has since branched out to several SoCal locations and even a few up in Portland, OR.

 

Here are some highlights of their commitment to being kind to the planet:

• Only serve organic tea and coffee (beans are also kosher and non-GMO because why not go the extra mile!).
• Their roasting technology is solar-powered and low-emissions.
• Leading provider of wholesale brewed organic coffee in SoCal.
• All coffee and tea products are fair trade, meaning their suppliers are paid more than a survival wage.
• Sustainable Santa Monica’s 2018 Excellence Award Winner for Stewardship of the Environment and Economic Development.
• Groundwork Coffee has been served at the Oscars, Emmys, GRAMMYS, and other award shows.

Pretty cool, huh?

 

The drinks

Though I don’t drink coffee (and generally avoid caffeine though I do drink jasmine tea which is slightly caffeinated), I can appreciate a good coffee house. This one had an impressive yet well-curated selection of bean options. The menu included Sumatran, Columbian, Ethiopian, and – intriguingly – Black Gold. They also offered an extensive variety of drink styles. All the ones you’re used to seeing in a coffeehouse like cappucino, americano etc. But also some that are a little more off the beaten path. Mexican mocha. Chai. Vietnamese iced coffee. And temptingly: The Espresso Milkshake.

My husband is a cold brew guy, and would’ve loved to see that they offer both Classic and Nitro cold brews. To the right of the register, they had a cold case filled with cold drinks, included cans of cold brew, and grab n go food items.

Also in the cold case were bottles of cold-pressed organic Clover Juice. This is also a small business based in LA, where the juices are pressed 7 days a week. I got to sample the Sunrise flavor (in the photo below), which has orange, carrot, coconut water, turmeric, lemon, and ginger. It tasted super fresh and slightly spicy thanks to the ginger.

I was given a sample of their vegan horchata, which is a traditional Mexican rice milk and cinnamon drink. I try to order this anytime I see it on a menu. And this version did not disappoint. It was the most delicious horchata I’ve ever had!

 

The food

 

 

As this was part of the Media Preview day presentation, there was a special table set up at the front which featured some of Groundwork’s food menu items. Right away, I noticed that they used minimal plastic in their display, and offered the samples up on compostable bamboo plates with unbleached napkins. Props to Groundwork Coffee for integrating their commitment to the environment down to the last detail.

 

 

I know avocado toast is jumping the shark a bit right now in terms of trendiness, but I firmly believe that is because it is just delicious. True, it’s not super hard to make a yummy avo toast. (3 ingredients: ripe avocado, crusty bread, sea salt. Boom.)

But this version really took it to the next level and was not what I was expecting at a grocery store coffee stand. In addition to that ubiquitous avocado, it had roasted corn, a soft boiled egg, and a sweet chili sauce drizzled over a perfectly crisp baguette. My mouth is watering right now just remembering how yummy this tasted.

Did I mention I had my 2 year old with me at this event? Such is the life of a mommy blogger! Though my daughter is a somewhat picky eater, she immediately reached for the vegan burrito and chowed down. There were a couple ingredients in there that I thought might turn her off (chipotle aioli and roasted tomato salsa, both of which I like). But she seemed to really enjoy it. I was happy to let her eat it all since it had organic seasoned tofu and spinach, among other delicious ingredients. Thankfully she let me have a bite at the end so I can say firsthand that it was quite tasty!

 

 

The only ingredients explicitly listed as organic are the tofu and eggs. However, as the fine print in the menu above states, Groundwork only uses antibiotic-free meats, pasture-raised products and non-GMO soy.

 

The Merch

 

 

I don’t believe this table of goodies is always here, but I just wanted to give a little shout out to their “Local and Organic” designs. They sell these shirts and bags (as well as the cups and hats on the right) at their stores. The bag is a nice larger-than-average size, perfect for carrying beach towels, or groceries, or I suppose like twenty bags of coffee beans.

 

 

By the way, if you can’t get over to this new Groundwork Coffee location in Long Beach or any of their other stores, you can always order their coffee beans here.

• fair-trade
• local
• Long-Beach
• non-GMO
• organic