The Village Grind

What a superb little nook of breakfast treats! I have been watching this place flourish with life for the past couple of weeks, I knew I had to stop by to try!
They have a HuGe selection of coffees as well as breakfast options. There is outside seating available and I might be slightly bias but breakfast outside in the East village of Long Beach is my absolute favorite thing to do so I have nothing but good things to say about it.

This is a new breakfast joint so let's give them some hype! They are already smashing the breakfast game with their kick butt selections I can't wait to see what they are cooking up upon my next visit. Miss with the dyed short hair you were a peach thank you for having us.

East Village Cafe... 5 stars for you guys.

We ordered the Vegan Wrap ($8.50), Pork Belly Burrito ($8.50), Iced Matcha Latte, and a cold brew for dining in. Drinks were great and came out quickly. The food is handmade in the back. There are daily specials written on the wall.

Vegan wrap was fresh but somewhat on the dry side for my liking. The veggies were crunchy and tasty on the wrap. Burrito was average; there was not much Pork Belly and the Pork Belly that was in there was chewy. The cheese in the burrito was not melted hence the burrito was not hot when served. Burrito came with a side of mild salsa. Both items were large; could have easily been split.

No restrooms.

Free WiFi- ask for password

Dog friendly

We would come back for the same drinks but not the food.

What a wonderful find! Thank you, Yelpers.

I'm often in Long Beach for a work, and being the paranoid person I am, always arrive REALLY early to the area. Coming from south Orange County, you never know what traffic will be like.

I was looking for a place that:
1) had loose leaf tea
2) looked like they could do a tea latte
3) wasn't a chain.

The Village Grind is my now go-to. They do the best English breakfast tea lattes, made with loose leaf tea.

The inside of the place is artistic and quaint -- fits perfectly into its neighborhood.

There are a couple tables outside and maybe a half a dozen, or a few more, inside. There are also local papers and such if you'd like to read whilst you wait.

Every time I've been here, the staff has been super friendly.

Highly recommend!


2017: 55/100

I had to give this place a 2nd chance and still a disappointment. My first visit, I just ordered a Matcha Green Tea Blended and I had no idea you could mess up that drink. I ordered it the same way I would anywhere else. The girl who took my order, rolled her eyes when I asked for a slight modification. I guess that should have been my indication that something wouldn't be right.

I felt they deserved another chance since after all the place in kinda cute inside, albeit a little small. This time I ordered coffee and smoked salmon on wheat bread. Coffee was fine, but the Salmon came out on a bagel. I kindly asked them to remake it to what I ordered. A minute or two later they came out with what looked to be the same bagel with messed up smoked Salmon on it. Seriously, no one could get this right. Since it was a to go order and I had already asked them once to redo it, I decided to just fix it to my liking when I got home.

Not only was the container the bagel was served to me in a mess, but the meal looked like they were covering up what they messed up. Absolutely the worst food presentation in a long time. Not to mention, the amount of smoked Salmon was so minimal.

Not worth my time or money to go back here. Much much better places in the area on all levels,

This is our first time at The Village Grind.

They have amazing drinks at good prices, and the food is bomb! I got the chicken pesto sandwich and it was probably the most delicious sandmitch I've had in a long time. The pesto made it super moist and the bread were on point!! I got the large iced coffee, perfect for a hot day. My gf got the sunrise bagel and a green tea lemonade, both were really good. The bagel is big and worth it, and everything tastes fresh.

The ambience and decor is homey, clean and creative. Lots of art and fun things to look at.

The staff is friendly and fast. They try their hardest to get everything out fast and delicious and it is much appreciated.

COMING BACK FOR SURE!!!

I was looking for an alternative to hotel and convention coffee and wandered into this place.
The decor is awesome and has a great hippie vibe.
I was greeted as soon as I entered and offered help in ordering. I chose the Latin Spice Latte. It was mild and smooth and the spices were spot on!!!
I visited with a group of older gentlemen who informed me that I was obviously not a local but I was ok to stay
I returned the next day for the same coffee. Was sooo good.
If I had stayed longer I certainly would have tried one of their smoothies.
They also have bottled water, sodas, juices and snacks which is handy if you are staying in the area and don't want to pay hotel prices.

Cozy coffee shop that is apparently the 'oldest coffee shop in the East Village'. Shabby chic interior serving reasonably priced espresso drinks, sandwiches and wraps, and various fresh baked goods. This would be a great place to sit and read or work for a while. I was pleased to see that they had both a vegan bagel and sandwich option, both priced under $8. They also had vegan chocolate oat cookies.

My iced Americano was excellent-very strong and flavorful. They have both soy and almond for non-dairy milk options. The vegan cookie was so good. It tasted fresh out of the oven and had a soft gooey inside and rich caramelized brown sugar flavors. Probably the tastiest cookie I've eaten in a long time. The blonde barista working was very cool and friendly. All credit cards accepted.

Short walk down Elm and I got me my breakfast sandwich fix!

Came in with the boy for a quick breakfast and coffee before starting the day. With your yelp check in, you can get a size upgrade for your drink! Definitely had to get that for my coffee. :)

I ordered an iced coffee with milk and a bacon croissant sandwich. The boy had a regular iced coffee and the best damn bagel. No, I'm not saying it's the best damn bagel - it's just named that. :P

My iced coffee had a little too much milk; maybe a little more than I'd like. It definitely masked that coffee taste I like. Probably should have just added cream on my own. My bacon croissant sandwich came with an egg, bacon (duh), and cheese. For something so simple, it was pretty great. Only downside for me was that the croissant was a little burnt. Boo.

I also had a bite of that best damn bagel and they should probably change the name to best damn garlic aioli. I am a sucker for garlic aioli and that aioli definitely won it for me. It was packed with ham, bacon, egg, and cheese so pretty hearty and super filling.

Super cute place and AWESOME service!

The Village Grind is a great little spot located in the East Village Arts District of Long Beach. I love coming to the Village Grind because it's a nice alternative to the big box coffee houses sprinkled all over town. There's definitely something for everyone here with a large selection of coffee drinks, teas, kombucha drinks, smoothies and smoothie bowls. I'm a fan of the Acai Berry Bowl...kind of a generic choice, but nice nonetheless. The food menu is also quite nice and features some very nice bagel and croissant sandwiches. They also serve up quesadillas and burritos in some very "interesting" and clever concoctions. Personally, I'm a fan of the BLT Sandwich and the Green Goddess, but I'm never disappointed by the Avocado Toast. The staff is usually nice, but can depend on the day... Wait times can be long, but still a nice little place to try.

Village Grind is a strong 3, but I give them an extra star for being a nice locally owned small business that I highly recommend.

Came here twice. First time the guy behind counter was a sweetheart and fixed my coffee.

Came here again next day and we waited for her to hand us pastry's after 10 minutes. We got a strawberry jam muffin and it was old and steal. It was as hard as a rock too. She wouldn't give us something else free of charge. I recommend asking when was the last time they made the pastry or muffin.