Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea Serves Espresso, Dessert | Los Angeles, CA

You already know Intelligentsia doesn't skimp on quality with its coffee, but there are reasons to check out the new Venice outpost: Delicious desserts and pastries from some of L.A.'s best bakers.

Much like the Silver Lake branch, this Intelligentsia boasts a daily rotation of seasonal, single-origin coffees like Honduran La Tortuga or Kenyan Thunguri served from perfectly calibrated espresso machines or slow-brew contraptions like the siphon (vacuum) coffeemaker. But you won't find an assembly line; instead, baristas work at individual stations to give you a more personal, one-on-one experience with your latte.

Also only available at the Abbot Kinney location: Cake Monkey's chocolate "cakewiches" ($4.25)–mini layer cakes covered in chocolate ganache–and rich, flourless chocolate "crackle" cookies ($3.50) sandwiched with mocha buttercream (made with Intelli coffee, of course). The bakery's new breakfast goods, including luscious raspberry lemon muffins or chocolate almond brioche, can only be found here, too.

Other baked goods come from Comme Ça. Every morning fresh, flaky, warm croissants ($2) arrive around 8 a.m. and steam up the glass case. Good luck finding them past 9.

Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea, 1331 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice; 310-399-1233 or intelligentsiacoffee.com