There's been a sudden surge in coffee shop openings in Downtown recently—GiorgiPorgi, Fabrique, a brand new Blue Bottle, all keeping the suits and FIDM students wired and caffeinated. Now there's another newcomer in the area. It's called Tilt, and unless you know where to look, it can be a little hard to find.
Located on Main Street within the Medallion Apartments, the first indication of Tilt is a sign propped near a Simply Salad, directing coffee seekers down a hall that opens up into a spacious courtyard. There you'll see a glass kiosk below a hanging lotus blossom sculpture, where owners Kyu Ho Choi and Suk Hong pour inside Tilt: a sleek, airy coffee shop serving coffee from Heart Coffee Roasters and pastries from Bread Lounge.
Choi worked in coffee shops around L.A., including Document Coffee Bar in Koreatown, before partnering with Hong to open Tilt on New Year's Eve. On the menu, you'll find a standard list of coffee drinks—espresso, cappuccino, cortado, matcha latte, macchiatto—but two signature items stand out: a Cloud Mocha and a Cloud Latte.
Choi's cloud creations were born after a R&D trip to Canada, Japan and Korea. In Korea, he popped into a coffee shop and ordered a mocha, before the barista asked him if he wanted to try something a little different. Choi took one sip of the drink and knew he had to make his own version. "I didn't ask for the recipe," he says, "I just experimented until it was perfect." The Cloud Mocha is made with espresso, milk, chocolate and a cold cream that Choi whips up every day, pouring it into the middle of the glass so that each sip results in a terrific contrast between hot and cold elements. "You have to take each sip with the cream," he explains, in order to get the desired flavor profile. His Cloud Latte is an iced version, and incorporates maple syrup instead of chocolate. And both, in all honesty, are truly some of L.A.'s most incredible cups of coffee.
Tilt is surrounded by lush grass, a few tables and a wooden platform that's perfect for soaking up sun while sipping on a latte. It's an enviable space in the middle of Downtown L.A., and a great way to decompress. You know, before the caffeine kicks in.
Visit Tilt at 334 S Main St, kiosk #1. Hours are Mon-Sat 7am-7pm and Sun 7am-4pm.
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