farmer market

Thank You Coffee began serving its play on pumpkin spice in 2020, but the Chinatown and Anaheim coffee counters riff on Asian ingredients and flavor profiles with options such as the five-spice latte year-round. Around fall, however, the scent of gourd spice always makes its return: the seasonal, signature KSL — or kabocha spice latte — which swaps pumpkin for kabocha squash.

“We don’t really eat pumpkin, but we eat a lot of kabocha,” said co-owner Jonathan Yang. “My wife, Julia, and I love kabocha but not all people know it, and we realized this is a neat way to highlight that kabocha is pretty much like a Japanese pumpkin.”

Thank You Coffee’s KSL derives its chief flavors from a blend of toasted spices including cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom and ginger, which are turned into a syrup with a combination of white and dark brown sugars and ginger bitters; it all gets steeped and strained. Yang steams fresh kabocha squash, then purées it and incorporates it into the spice syrup, adding depth without detracting from the spices, he says. In both locations, a hint of condensed milk is added to the lattes, and they’re dusted with kinako, a roasted soybean flour, for added earthiness and a pie-crust effect. This year they’re adding another fall-inspired drink to the menu at both locations: a persimmon-and-apple latte that’s meant to evoke coziness and comfort throughout the season.

Nicey Nash-Betts has only ever lived in Los Angeles — and she’s proud of that.

“I’m an OG Angeleno,” says the Academy Award-winning actress who’s lived all over the county, from Compton to Palmdale. When I ask her why she’s stayed, she says, “The weather.” And also: “My family is here and I feel like as a whole, people who are from L.A. are a lot more down to earth. It’s the transplants who come here with some weird energy. But the people who are from L.A. are just lovely.”

Starting Tuesday, Nash-Betts will star in Ryan Murphy’s new Hulu show, “All’s Fair,” which follows a crew of female divorce attorneys as they leave their male-dominated firm to launch their own practice. It’s a role she almost didn’t take.

“I was just coming off of doing ‘Grotesquerie,’ so I was like, “Ooo. It sounds like it might be a lot work,” says Nash-Betts, whose credits include “Claws,” “The Rookie: Feds” and “When They See Us.” “So I waited a little bit and then I slipped in at the last minute and was like ‘OK, I’m in!’ “

She joins a star-studded glamorous cast of badass women including Sarah Paulson, Kim Kardashian, Glenn Close, Naomi Watts and Teyana Taylor. What was it like working with them?

“We don’t just genuinely like each other, but we have respect for each other,” Nash-Betts says. “And when you respect somebody’s time, their talent, their effort, you know that you’ll always have one of your sisters to lean on that day even if you’re going through something in your personal life.”

When Nash-Betts isn’t on set, she can be found bopping around the city with her “hersband” singer-actor Jessica Betts, whom she married in 2020, and spending time with her three adult kids. Her perfect Sunday in L.A. involves hitting up the farmers market, getting a couple’s massage and ending the night in the same way she did when she won her first Emmy in 2024.

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

7:30 a.m.: A slow morning

It depends on how early I want to get to the farmers market, so I may wake up around 7:30 a.m. and then just slow roll the day. Make my spouse a cup of coffee. We’re not big eaters in the morning. Occasionally I will get up and make an omelet with all the things and some smothered potatoes, and bring it upstairs on a cart with some juice. Now, I’m telling you the truth. “Baby, am I telling the truth?” [Looks back and screams out to Betts in another room].

9:30 a.m. Get my essentials at the farmers market

I’d grab a shower and say, “Let’s get dressed and go outside, and see what the world has for us today.” I love to go by the farmers market. It’s where we get all of our peppers and vegetables. We like the eggs, the fresh pressed juices and we get our dog snacks from there. I like to go to the farmers market on Saturdays at the Commons in Calabasas, but if I’m going on a Sunday, it’s the one in Westlake. I just think that it’s a one-stop shop for everything that we’re looking for and typically the vendors are really kind. I don’t know if that’s because they want you to buy their stuff or that’s just who they are, but either way, I’ll take it.

And every now and then, I might find a little bop, a little sundress, a little something to throw on, drop the things back off and then head down into the city.

Noon: Stroll around the Grove

If the weather is great, we’ll take something out of the garage that’s a convertible because there’s nothing like the L.A. sunshine. Then depending on what time we can get spa appointments, we might go to the Grove first and walk around. I like the shops that are there. Sometimes you might get a little sweet treat when you’re walking around, but you can always impromptu decide you want to go to the movies and push your plans a little later. It’s just centrally located and it has all of the good things that I like.

2 p.m. Couples massage and a cocktail

Next, we’d head to the Four Seasons for a couple’s massage and a cocktail. Sometimes we’ll go to the Four Seasons Westlake. Sometimes we’ll go to the Four Seasons on Doheny [Drive], but we like to get a spa room, which is in the back. It’s like a suite with a fireplace and a bed in there. You can relax. You have your own private plunge pool and we get our services in the suite. We both always get deep tissue.

5 p.m.: Thai food for dinner

Afterward, we’d drive down to Farmhouse Thai in West Adams because we love it there and we have come to love the owner. I always get the crab fried rice, the whole cripsy fish, the cup of ramen noodles with the short rib on top and spring rolls. That’s the standard order. But if I don’t go out to dinner, I will make crabs every weekend. So sometimes, my kids will come over and eat. If I get to lay my eyes on them during the weekend, that’s always a good time.

9 p.m.: Skinny dipping and champagne

When we get back, we are definitely getting in the pool. Skinny dipping and champagne is how we’re going to end the day. We do this often. Even when I won my Emmy for “Dahmer,” people asked, “How will you celebrate?” and I said, “Skinny dipping and champagne.” And it just so happened, we found a hotel downtown that had a full-sized swimming pool inside the room, so there’s pictures on my Instagram of us in that pool, skinny dipping and drinking champagne. I think that night, we were probably drinking Perignon.

11 p.m.: Hang in the pool until I get sleepy

If I have to get up early on Monday morning, then I might try to lay down around 11 p.m., but if I don’t have to get up and be anywhere, it’ll maybe be around 12:30 or 1 a.m.

On the corner of East 4th Street and South Evergreen Avenue on a recent Friday night in Boyle Heights, a large crowd gathered in front of Picaresca Barra de Café swaying to the syncopated beats of Los Chicos del Mambo. Near the band, Natalia Lara of Tortas Ahogadas El Águila filled birote salado rolls from Gusto Bread with carnitas. But the main event was underway inside the cafe: a latte art throwdown.

Throwdowns, special menus, omakases, pop-ups, speakeasies and out-of-the-box events are part of L.A.’s growing underground coffee scene. And they might be the best way to tap into what’s happening in the world of coffee. Cuppings, signature drink service and guest barista takeovers add to the diversity and creativity of these coffee experiences, which keep evolving.

“Each one is offering something special and has varying approaches with some very limited coffees or methods,” says Mikey Muench of Senses Café Projects, a pop-up that has made its way around Los Angeles from the Lasita window in Far East Plaza in Chinatown to restaurants, breweries and cafes such as Homage Brewing, Canary Test, Ondo, HIGTE and Woon.

Senses Café Projects allows Meunch to explore the coffees he enjoys drinking and to experiment with new tools and brew methods, he says. He focuses on pour-overs. “It’s my personal favorite way to enjoy coffee,” says Muench. “I am also experimenting with the nostalgic flavors of my childhood. I’m half Thai and half German. The majority of the beverage ideas and components are inspired by my Asian heritage.”

Yasuo Ishii, founder of leading-edge Tokyo roaster Leaves Coffee, was a guest brewer at Kumquat Coffee downtown last March. Other barista guest appearances at Kumquat have included brewers from Fritz Coffee in Seoul and Ditta Arigianale in Florence.

A few hard-to-get reservation-only coffee omakases also have popped up in L.A., such as Nobu Coffee at Courage Piano Lounge in Gardena, serving coffee hand-poured into a fabric Nel filter in a traditional Japanese kissaten style. Tangible Gratitude serves by reservation only a five-course sensory tasting experience in its Hermosa Beach design studio for $125 per person.

Strategic planning unlocks access. Follow coffee experts, specialty roasters and professional baristas from the high-profile competition circuit on social media; they often drop breadcrumbs to the next opportunity.

Keep up with the 2025 U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Champion Jerry Truong, for example. He recently guest-bartended special shifts at Hollywood cocktail bar Night on Earth and Johnny’s Bar in Highland Park to serve his competition-winning coffee cocktails. Other key players include Frank La of Be Bright; Kay Cheon of Dune Coffee Roasters in Santa Barbara; World Barista Champion Michael Phillips of Blue Bottle; and consultant Jaymie Lao.

In addition to cafes, restaurants and farmers markets, coffee events are spilling into culinary festivals, art galleries and retail stores around the city. Automaker Rivian recently invited Cheon to make coffee with his Slayer espresso machine on the back of an R1T truck in its Venice showroom garden. The cafe kiosk at fashion brand Goodfight’s Historic Filipinotown shop has become a favorite destination for the coffee community.

“Coffee pop-ups are happening all the time in Los Angeles where your favorite baristas can express their ideas, and coffee folks, professionals and enthusiasts can celebrate coffee in ways you just don’t see in cafes every day,” says Lao.

Here are nine places where you can check out previews of yet-to-open cafes, guest baristas serving rare coffees, special pop-up menus or multicourse tastings.

Chances are, you’ve seen (or heard) Judy Greer in one of her many roles over her prolific, multidecade career. She’s played Maggie Lang in “Ant-Man,” voiced Cheryl Tunt in the long-running animated adult sitcom “Archer,” and appeared as Jennifer Garner’s bestie in the 2004 rom-com classic “13 Going on 30” (the two are friends IRL too). She’s also joining the cast for the second season of Garner’s Apple TV series “The Last Thing He Told Me.”

Streaming now is Apple TV+’s heartfelt new golf comedy, “Stick,” in which Greer plays Amber-Linn — not a best friend, but the ex-wife of former professional golfer Pryce Cahill, played by Owen Wilson. You don’t have to be a fan of the sport to watch. “Honestly, I’m not a golfer and I love it,” she says.

As for her perfect Sunday, she’ll stick close to Larchmont, where she’s lived for 20 years. “I travel a lot for work, so I don’t always like to go far and wide on my weekends,” she says. “My dream Sunday is to not actually exit the threshold, but today I’m going to.” And she’ll get a lot done, from reading a’plenty to hitting up the farmers market and Dodger Stadium, taking in a movie and getting quality time with her husband, Dean Johnsen, her stepkids and her terrier mix, Mary Richards.

6:30 a.m.: A pot of coffee and reading in bed

I get up at 6, 6:30, and not on purpose. My husband likes to sleep, so if the sun’s out, I can read in bed. If not, sometimes I’ll come downstairs and read and have coffee, and then when he wakes up, I’ll go back up and we’ll have coffee in bed together. I love to start my day with a pot of coffee in bed.

The coffee maker, it’s like a basic bitch, a Cuisinart coffee maker. We get this brand called Punk Bunny. That’s our favorite kind of coffee. We did recently try the dark roast, but we both have decided it’s too much for us. We’re going back down to the medium dark roast. And I just put soy milk in it.

Whenever I’m traveling for work and staying in these Airbnbs and apartments and stuff, there’ll be a cappuccino maker, and we’ll always be like, should we get one of those? and then we never end up doing it. If I go out to a cafe, like Lamill or Go Get ‘Em Tiger on Larchmont, I’ll get a cappuccino, but I don’t need to be making cappuccinos in my house.

9 a.m.: Two loops around the Silver Lake Reservoir

Then I would drive to the Silver Lake Reservoir, and I would walk around it twice, which is probably just under five miles. I would take my sweet dog — she’s a really good walker, even though she’s tiny. After my walk, I would make a parfait for myself at home. I also like to go and get the protein pancakes at Cafe Gratitude. That would be a really big treat. I don’t love getting breakfast on Larchmont on Sundays because it’s so crowded.

11 a.m.: Hit up the Larchmont Village Farmers Market

My husband and I, we’re not cooks or chefs or anything. We have a couple go-tos at the farmers market: There’s the soup guy who has the frozen soup, and I like to get flowers and usually berries. We don’t really eat meat, but once in a while we’ll treat ourselves to salmon. My husband will make salmon on the grill, so he’ll get fish from the fishmonger and sometimes those Parmesan crisps he really likes (and then I eat them, even though he is like, they’re for me). If we’re thinking of making a big salad or something, we’ll get salad stuff. But again, we’re not those people, even though we really want to be those people.

Noon: Stop at Chevalier’s Books

Then I would walk down to Chevalier’s, our little local bookstore, and say hi to everyone who works there and wander around a bit. I have so many books and it’s a problem, but then there’s usually something there that just came out that I’m really excited about, and so I’ll get it. I’ve lately been buying hardcovers because it’s kind of fun to have a first edition of something that could potentially win the Nobel Prize or Pulitzer.

My husband was like, “The thing about you is you buy a lot of books, but you do read them.” So I’m not just randomly buying books. I’m reading a book by Barbara Kingsolver right now called “Unsheltered.” That one I think I probably swiped out of a little library on a dog walk because it’s definitely not brand new. I just finished “Martyr!” [by Kaveh Akbar] and I was so blown away that I almost didn’t even want to read another book for a while.

1 p.m.: A quick dip in the pool, some shopping and Dodger Stadium

Now, we’re coming home, and we’re going to rinse off in the pool, which is gross, but I don’t care. And then we’re decking ourselves out in our Dodger gear and we’re going to go to Dodger Stadium and we’re going to watch the Dodgers win at Dodger Stadium. We would meet my stepkids there and the four of us would watch the Dodger game and they would have some beers and probably some nachos. I’d sit with my peanuts and Diet Coke, and we would watch the Dodgers. I love Sundays at the ballpark because it’s fun, it’s chill, it’s tons of families.

Dodger Stadium has really become one of my favorite places in Los Angeles. It’s just a really beautiful place. Sometimes I’ll walk around the whole loop of the stadium, just get my steps in, wander around and see everybody, and see all the food.

4 p.m.: An afternoon movie and the best popcorn

Mann Chinese [TCL Chinese Theatres] is where my husband and I mostly go to the movies because it’s weirdly closer to our house, but kind of a pain in the ass because it’s really touristy. But now we know where to park and how to get in and out really quickly. So we’ve got it down.

I’m probably going to get myself into a lot of trouble now, but we pop our own popcorn. This is husband territory; he makes it on the stovetop with kernels and coconut oil. We’re an Orville Redenbacher family. I’m not ashamed to say we have tried all the fancy popcorn kernels, but honestly, I feel like Orville gives you the best pop, so that’s what we buy.

Oh, I’ll show you something dorky. Hold on. [Greer disappears and returns with a large Ziploc bag.] I usually sneak it in my tote bag. I love having popcorn in the movies, but the movie popcorn is usually not super good for us. Sometimes I will also sneak in some dried mangoes, and usually I’ll still buy a Diet Coke. I feel guilty not buying anything.

I love that big theater. It’s just so beautiful. There are such great movie theaters in L.A., such old theaters, and that one is so historical. I’ve been to a bunch of movie premieres there too. But probably I prefer it when I’m just like a citizen watching a movie.

7 p.m.: Pasta for dinner

I would finish my day by going to dinner at Osteria Mamma and getting — I don’t want to get in trouble for this, because they took it off the menu — their pasta pomodoro. Sometimes I’m just like, “Can you just make me the pasta pomodoro?” It’s just so good. My husband gets the cacio pepe, which they make tableside in this huge cheese wheel, which is bananas, and I like their tricolore salad. We usually split that. Yeah, we’d have a nice little cozy dinner and not have to cook on a Sunday night. We didn’t really buy much at the farmers market anyway, let’s be honest.

8 p.m.: Watch a little TV or read in bed

Sometimes we’re watching a show and we’ll watch an episode, or we’ll just go to bed and read in bed. I like to ascend around 9. This week, I’ve been really tired, so I’ve been going up at 8:30. I’m like, the sun is still out. But by the time I’m done with all my ablutions and the flossing and all the things, it’s definitely almost dark. I get cuddly with my dog and read for a little while, and then, yeah, lights out by 10, but that’s even sometimes a little bit late. On a Sunday, I want to get a really good night’s sleep before Monday morning.