Having missed my morning coffee before going on an audition, I asked Siri to find a local coffee shop. The closest one, with good reviews, that popped up was Funnel Mill on Broadway Avenue near 10th Street in Santa Monica.
Not knowing what to expect, I found a welcoming, warm entrance. Off to the right from the entrance is a sitting area, with low, wide leather chairs with armrests, mixed in among wooden tables and chairs. The sitting area is separated somewhat from the rest of the shop by curtains.
The main part of the shop is long and narrow, with the coffee prep station on the left, with a dark brown wood bar where patrons can sit and watch their lattes and cappuccinos being prepared. More tables and chair filled the right. And decorating the back wall is a coffee syphon station, with long glass tubes that slowly drips custom coffee for a pricey cup.
Confused by the menu at first (a woman standing next to me was not sure about the menu offerings as well) I ordered a cafe latte ($5.75), sat at the wood counter and watched while the espresso for my latte was carefully pressed, the milk steamed and frothed, and an artful mounding of the foam took place. Watching it being made was perhaps more pleasurable than the drink itself, which was very fine by coffee standards. My standards, anyway.
The Funnel Mill sells and brews what they state on their website as “rare single estates of coffee beans and tea.”
My spinach croissant, was basic. But as I noted, watching the activity and care of those making these coffee delicacies, was more interesting than my fare.
Whether $9 (for single-estate biodynamic syphon brewed coffee) is worth a cup of Joe, is up to the palate of the coffee drinker.
Funnel Mill Address: 930 Broadway, Ste A, Santa Monica, CA 90401
