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    Cala La Jolla Cafe

    4.4 (68 reviews)
    Closed • 7:00 am - 6:00 pm
    Updated 2 months ago

    Cala La Jolla Cafe Photos

    Business Info

    CALA LA JOLLA CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Dogs allowed
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - Cala La Jolla Cafe

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    Heather C.

    THEY HAVE CAFE BOMBON!! What a cool surprise - I came in for a flat white or honey cinnamon latte, which are of their top ratings but once I saw the café bonbon, I had to get it and I was so happy it was raised as well and a perfect balance of coffee and sweet This place in general is so cute. The walls are painted a sea blue with a mural on the side and lots of decoration. It's in a really nice area where you can walk and look for shops. Highly recommend you so happy that I found it.

    Breakfast panini
    Natalia O.

    Coffee and matcha were mid but still drinkable, however the food tasted like it was frozen and reheated (and not properly reheated as it was cold). Pretty disappointed. I didn't even finish all of it. Service was good, though, and the girl behind the counter was kind in offering suggestions.

    Carmen V.

    First experience there and I think I was more excited about the ambiance than about the expensive cappuccino ($6.5) what was not hot enough for my taste. Pastries looked not fresh and also not very yummy for this type of posh coffee shop. I appreciate the ceramic cup, even ceramic for the water and all the mini ceramic vases with flowers and plants. Super cute. The best...the huge mural depicting la Jolla shores that seems to have been painted over newspaper glued to the wall. Amazing. As an artist myself I got so inspired by it and came home to paint some palms after that. On another note, it is very nice cleaning after customers left the big table but the bleach smell interferes with he aroma of the coffee and it is unpleasant. I would say make sure there is nothing dirty but no need for deep cleaning. Reminded me a bit when I got to MacDonald and they pass the wet mop in front of me and the burger tastes like pinesol. I will go again when in La Jolla and try food items.

    Matcha and herbal tea
    Olesya P.

    Came here to grab some matcha. The place has amazing ambience, with lots of seating available and there was live music outside. Service wasn't great. The barista wasn't nice at all. Matcha was pretty decent, you can choose to add puréed fruit inside. Overall a pretty nice place.

    Caffe shakerato
    Lauren V.

    Great service, great vibes! Stopped in after snorkeling for a cold drink and was stoked to find they serve caffe shakeratos! It was super tasty and service was fast. This is a cute little coffee shop with a good vibe, lots of seating, and a cool mural on the wall. The location is great for stopping while you're cruising around town.

    Matcha latte
    Mirei K.

    A cute little cafe in downtown La Jolla! They also have complimentary water and a bathroom which was nice. They drinks came out fast but I was not too much of a fan of their matcha latte, it might move been because of the hazelnut syrup I ordered so I finely want to try again.

    Chicken Pesto Panini
    Joseph Z.

    Short walk from La Jolla Cove this coffee shop is very inviting with an upbeat feel. Very good WiFi so if you want to do a little bit of work, they have indoor and outdoor seating. The staff was friendly and gave me some suggestions (obviously I got the chicken pesto panini!). The food tasted fresh and flavorful, and the coffee is very customizable so if you want to change something ask, there might be a small fee to it so just be mindful of that, but love the place and how close to the cove makes it perfect for a quick snack after seeing the sea life ( or before)!

    Chicken Pesto Panini
    Ashley M.

    I was super excited to learn that a new, locally owned, women-owned small business was taking over the old Peet's Coffee spot in La Jolla. My experience lived up to my expectations! I've been to Cala a few times, both during the soft opening period and post-grand opening, and I've enjoyed it each time. The standout is of course the coffee, which is nuanced in flavor without the burnt taste you get at commercial coffee spots. My go-to is typically a drip coffee or an Americano. I've had the drip coffee, latte, and cold brew, and each was delicious; the latte was not overly sweet. On the food menu, I've tried the Breakfast Panini and the Chicken Pesto Panini. Both had excellent flavor and were not too heavy on the stomach, making for a perfect meal before taking a stroll along the cove. The staff is super friendly, and the owner came out and personally checked on us. Highly recommend!

    Suite front
    Emmett T.

    Cala La Jolla Cafe occupies a corner suite along an Arcade corridor in downtown La Jolla. It's a prime spot along the strip of businesses on Girard Ave with free diagonal parking spaces up and down the block if you are lucky to find one vacated. The interior decor featured a large mural of La Jolla Cove on the right wall when you entered. About the same number of seats was available inside the cafe as there was outside in front and along the side of the building. Several menu boards were posted behind the service counter. There were more food choices than I had expected across the categories of bites & snacks, salads, paninis, flatbreads, pastries, and desserts. Displays containing items from the last two categories were at the counter. Drinks were limited to black coffee, white coffee, teas, and blended (mocha or smoothies). I picked a Chicken Avocado Wrap from the list of eight bites & snacks. White chicken meat, avocado, mixed greens, tomatoes, red onion, and creamy chipotle were the ingredients inside a flour tortilla. The wrap was cut in half and placed inside a small cardboard takeout box. What I noticed immediately was the amount of avocado included as the guacamole was nearly spilling out of the tortilla which was densely packed. The chipotle sauce added moisture and flavor to the chicken. It was near the end of the day so the amount and variety of baked goods were on the low end. I skipped purchasing any sweets and will save that for a future visit to Cala La Jolla Cafe which I awarded with a four star rating.

    Kelsey R.

    Very cute little stop in the middle of La Jolla! I ordered some unsweet tea and it was exactly what I needed in this warm weather. The place itself was just a perfect vibe for the area. I loved the teal blue chairs and merchandise inside. Would recommend to stop by here for a break and drink!

    Logo  Cala La Jolla
    Henri V.

    Cala Cafe is on Girard Ave and has taken the space formerly held by Peets Coffee. Limited street parking only. Indoor and outdoor seating with umbrellas. The layout is the same as Peet's but the interior had a mini makeover with a vibrantly painted wall mural of the La Jolla Cove and seaside. The menu offered baked goods, breakfast lunch foods and cafe drinks. Am still lamenting over the loss of Peet's since Ai love their strong coffee drinks but want to support this new business so I ordered: Iced Matcha Latte and the Avocado flatbread. The May gray dissipated as the sun was fashionably late but made an appearance. Sat outside beneath an umbrella with my furbaby and waited for what seemed like forever for the avocado flatbread so I walked inside to find my order was boxed placed on the counter. Not one person from the staffers present had any sense of following up with this order, No courtesy to bring it to me. I had to personally get my food and later hear one of the staffers say, they don't bring food the customers table...wth?! My response is their competitor a few doors away Parfait Paris does bring the food to the customers table, and that's the difference: better service!! The staffers offered to change my order from the box and placed it on a wooden board and did bring it to my table. Avocado flatbread looked better than it tasted. The smashed avocado, sprinkled feta, cherry tomatoes and microgreens was good while the flatbread tasted stale, it wasn't even toasted and lacked melted cheese so it was tasteless and inedible. I only eat the topping and not the flatbread. Will never order flatbread this from here. The iced matcha latte was just ok, it wasn't sweetened at all. I added 4 Stevia in the raw to sweeten it. I should have been informed by the counter staffer. Appreciate that effort was done but sadly it was done only because due to my dissatisfaction. This cafe is freshman new and is green to the scene of the La Jolla locals like myself and need to acclimate to reading the room but offering to bring the food the customers table and be proactive/follow up with service. And of course, quality control desperately needs improvement. My dining experience wasn't as nice as expected a return visit is NOT soon so NOT hasta la vista for Cala.

    How pretty is the interior of this coffee shop?!
    Cheryl G.

    This is my favorite type of coffee shop to visit. It's a small business, female owned, they serve coffee from a local roaster and have a tasty selection of food, not just pastries. The owner chose to go with the coffee roaster Torque, and their specialty is single origin coffees. I went with one of the pour over selections, a light roast with nuanced tropical flavors. YUM! My fiancé got the cinnamon and honey latte, which would've been my normal go to. I got to taste it and it was delicious. Perfectly balanced, none of the flavors, overwhelming the beans. It was hard to pass up some of those bomb looking pastries, but I needed a little bit something more to eat during our visit so I went for the chicken pesto sandwich. It was soooooo good. Generous portion of really tender chicken with pesto sauce, tomato, arugula, and some mozzarella cheese. I did ask them to leave the red onion off because it's just not my thing. I really loved the rosemary bread that it came on too. My man had the breakfast Panini, which was a lighter option with a tasty chipotle sauce. The interior of the shop is so pretty. The color scheme is really calming and beautiful. They did a great job using plants to accent throughout. There's a huge mural on the wall over a bunch of local newspapers that was painted by the owner! How cool! I would absolutely return to this cozy cafe, which by the way has a lot of seating outdoors as well as indoors.

    Jack M.

    Cala La Jolla Cafe has recently opened in the historic Arcade building. They offer a variety of espresso based beverages, matchas, pastries, baked goods, and breakfast and lunch items (paninis and salads). It's a very nice space with plenty of inside and outside seating, including a large communal table for gatherings. On this visit, I ordered my signature cortado with whole milk and a ham and Swiss croissant. The cortado was $4.75 and the savory croissant $6.00. The cortado was well made. It was smooth and rich. They use a high grade Arabica roast and it shows. The young lady who made did a great job. The savory croissant comes from a local baker. It was quite good. It came with a very good amount of Swiss cheese and a good amount of ham. It did need about a minute more in the warmed to get that cheese inside to melt a bit. It was very flavorful. The hospitality was welcoming and the service efficient. The young ladies working the counter, including the barista, were in good spirits. When in La Jolla, do visit!

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    27 days ago

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    19 days ago

    Aesthetically pleasing, employees bring good vibes, and the honey cinnamon latte was really good.

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    26 days ago

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    3 months ago

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    Cala L.

    We're happy you found us at the Café Bombon too!

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    2 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    2 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    2 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    18 days ago

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    24 days ago

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    27 days ago

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    3 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    3 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    4 months ago

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    Cala L.

    Thank you Kelsey, glad you enjoyed our tea, vibe and merchandise!

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    4 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    5 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    5 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    3 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    3 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    3 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    1 month ago

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    Cala L.

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    5 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    6 days ago

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    3 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    4 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    4 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    12 hours ago

    great little shop. friendly service and seal theme ! so cute! coffee was good as well

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    2 months ago

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    Cala L.

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    5 months ago

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    Cala L.

    We can't wait to have you visit again Lizette!

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    4 months ago

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    Cala L.

    We're happy you stumbled upon our café too!

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    4 months ago

    Great ambiance and vibe! Super cute new spot in La Jolla. Love it! The almond croissant was so yummy.

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    Cala L.

    Happy to vibe with you and that you enjoyed our almond croissant!

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    4 months ago

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    29 days ago

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - Cala La Jolla Cafe

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    They who love unicorn maximalist breakfast spots, for you this place was made…read more A rec by a friend's ex, Sugar and Scribe did not disappoint for breakfast number one of a girlfriend get-away in La Jolla. After being sat on the patio and before ordering, we checked out all the merch inside, an explosion of color and sparkle. The indoor seating is a room of inviting, plush, forest green chairs and the walls dripping in white and blush pink flowers. The quote "Cooking is my soul's desire, eating is my heart's calling" catches your eye on the north wall. One of my friend's and I decided to order 2 entrees and split them - the Spicy Shakshuka Sunrise Skillet (2 eggs poached with fire-roasted tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, fresno pepper, cilantro, yellow onion, feta, harissa, cumin, chili flakes, and sourdough bread) and the Windansea Breakfast Bagel (with scrambled egg whites, Irish cheddar, sauteed garlic spinach, and avocado on a Big City everything bagel). That was a smart call because both were amazing and re-orderable. The shakshuka was flavorful but not intolerable spicy hot. The bagel made the sammich. All was washed down with a Cafe Viennese (coffee with honey, cinnamon, and vanilla, a great sub for my usual Cinnamon Dolce Latte from Starbies). The service was great and engaging and not a hustle for us to churn and burn our meal. Would love to return and indulge in some of the retail in addition to some pancake or waffles. I only had 1 bite of the single fluffy pancake that my other girlfriend ordered...quite the tease.

    Sugar & Scribe located in La Jolla, they do have a small parking lot as well as street parking…read more Customer service was AMAZING from our waiter Chris! I can't speak on the ambiance as inside dining was closed and only available on weekends. We sat outside the restaurant under a tented area, that had a nice decor. We only had a slight issue dealing with flies at our table having only outdoor seating available. Next time I would come on a weekend to be able to enjoy inside dining! It was our first visit and our waiter Chris was very knowledgeable of the menu items and gave us great recommendations being 1st timers! Customer service all around was great! As soon as we walked up, we were greeted immediately and sat down shortly thereafter. One upside to dining outside under the tent is we had no problem getting the attention of our waiter or any workers for that matter because it was such close quarters. It appeared they also had some tables set up outside the actually restaurants walls along their porch area. We ordered: The Big Bad Biscuit & Bird - Biscuit was thick and perfectly baked all the way through. Gravy lacked a bit of flavor for my liking, nothing that salt, pepper, and some of their hot honey sauce (that comes with the entree) couldn't fix! Chicken strips were thin but surprisingly not dry for its size, along with scrambled eggs. I enjoyed they did not skimp on the gravy as a good amount gravy is needed for their thick biscuits! Blueberry Love Pancakes - Lemon curd in the pancake itself was a treat but, the real star of the dish is the blueberry compote on top! Bread Pudding French toast - Perfect texture, not too soggy or wet but just enough moistness. DELICIOUS and MUST ORDER Strawberry Lemonade - strawberry flavor stood out and lemonade was not too sour. Nice balance of both flavors! Mango Lemonade - I was NOT A FAN! Unlike the strawberry lemonade, I was not able to taste ANY mango flavor at all! I definitely would be back to try more dishes but, on a WEEKEND, to be able to enjoy inside dining! This location is also a bakery although we were too full after our entrees to entertain baked goods. Definitely a location to consider if you need a good brunch location!

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