Sometimes a cafe’s identity is so strong that its name, logo, and even its slogan, can help shape the personality of a whole neighborhood. Alfred Coffee & Kitchen, founded in 2013 by real estate developer Joshua Zad, is one of those cafes. It’s a great place to sip your morning (or afternoon) brew and watch the parade of beautiful people as they stroll and shop the city’s most fashionable shops, from Isabel Marant to Marc Jacobs and APC.
As a longtime area resident, Zad was frustrated that there wasn't a place to grab outstanding coffee and baked good within walking distance of West Hollywood’s fashionable Melrose Place shopping district. So he decided to open one himself and found a perfect site in a charming yellow-hued building situated on the eastern end of the tree-lined road that was originally a ballroom-dance facility built in 1925. The entrepreneur had once lived on Alfred Street, just off Melrose Place, and named his new eatery in honor of his former address.
This trendy shop and kitchen boasts two storeys of exposed brick, bright white mantle tiling and a working fireplace, rustic floorboards and floral wallpaper. An equally comfortable outdoor patio features metal tables and chairs.