#altacoffee

Where: Newport Beach

Price: $5-15

Alta Coffee & Restaurant, or just Alta for short, is the token town coffee house in Newport Beach. This former bookstore turned cafe is tucked away in a quite area off 32nd street. Unfortunately this place has a reputation for going through staff seemingly quickly and probably because they have a reputation for hiring grumpy people but every other customer will come back for the quality drinks!

My personal favorite drinks to order are the Toffee Latte (seen in the photo above) or their Chia Latte (which is heaven sent). On occasion I will have their nachos or quesadillas for lunch and I enjoy them quite a bit. I've also had their breakfast burrito once and it's the size of my forearm. You could cut it in threes and have it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Their menu is worth exploring but I feel what they do best is drinks.

I love that they have an open mic night, the occasional jazz band, and other neat musical options each month. They also have the art or photos of local artists hanging on their walls which I respect a great deal. The culture, and candles on the tables, make it the perfect casual yet subtly romantic place to bring your OKCupid date. 

Be warned though, if you don't specify whether or not you want a small drink or a large drink, or the half size portion or the full, they will never ask which you want, assume you want the biggest, and charge you for all of it. I've noticed this with several different waitresses so I'm assuming this is a sketchy sales tactic which disappoints me. This place most definitely isn't known for their kind or honest customer service. There is only one man I see there working their often who seems like he doesn't hate his life.