Dolce Vita Bakery Cafe

Simple and homey, this small space in Culver City has great egg dishes and baked goodies. Service was excellent and the coffee was delicious.

Sadly, this place is CLOSED!
We stopped by today (11÷8÷10) to finally try this place. We found it totally vacant with a sign that read:
«Closed on 10÷31÷10»
due to the passing of her husband. :(

Hey, I have NEVER dined here… FYI– they CLOSED DOWN…
don’t know if they have moved, the interior is completely
empty & bare… UPDATE: banner out front–
this place will become the 3^nd. ABBOTT’S Pizza… shroom’
PIZZA…yum.

After passing this place for several years, I finally decided to give it a try today for lunch as I was debating whether to hit up a starbucks and do work or just go to in n out and have a gluttonous lunch. Well, doce vita lucked out because the Starbucks on Jeff and Centinela was packed and waiting in a long ass in n out line didn’t seem enticing.
There isn’t much that I have to say that is good or bad about this joint — it is just ok. I had the special — chicken wrap and creamed spinach soup with lemonade. The soup was very good but the bits of basil (i think) were not. The wrap was all right — I liked the garlic pesto flavor but the chicken was kind of bland. The lemonade was pretty nice but too sweet for my taste.
The price — about $ 10, not bad. The service was great. The atmosphere is fine, but a little cramped. I ate outside, which is more relaxing.
I might come back for a pastry soon, but won’t be surprised if I don’t hit this place up for another 5 years.

I am often in Culver City and notice Dolce Vita because it is near the studio. This is a great place for a quick lunch and espresso. They bake a fantastic baguette and the tuna salad is excellent.

I only came here to order a variety of pastries. I got some berry scones, chocolate chip cookies, palmier cookies, a cinnamon twist thing, blueberry muffins, and croissants. I wasn’t really wowed by the quality or the taste of most of the items. The scones and muffins were especially bland. There was no joy in eating them and I am a sucker for pastries, especially scones. So they were pretty bad.
What they did right were the cookies. Both the chocolate chip and palmier were good cookies without many hang-​ups. But I probably wouldn’t come all the way here just for a cookie.

My friend and I went to Dolce Vita Café around 9am on a Sunday morning. I spotted that place a couple days before, while driving on Sepulveda, and decided that I should try a new place that weekend.
Anyways, I ordered Ham and Swiss Croissant and a hot chocolate; my friend ordered Almond Croissant and coffee.
We wanted to sit outside since it was a beautiful day but two tables were occupied and the other two weren’t clean. After I got my food, they sent someone to clean the tables.
Finally seated, I tried my hot chocolate with whipped cream on it and loved it. My croissant was buttery, fresh and delicious.
My friend really liked the almond croissant but said that the coffee was ok. Nothing special about it.
I will definitely go back there.

Love the croissants here! There is nothing like a fresh, light, buttery, croissant to get you excited about your day!
I also had the swiss museli. it was meh. There was too much honey and I loath shredded apples. But hey, that’s just my opinion.

I was actually looking for the The Spot but couldn’t find it. Then decided to go to Tanner’s Coffee Co but on the way spotted Dolce Vita and it looked enticing so I went in.
I got there at about 4 p.m. so the pastries were very well picked over. I settled on a cream cheese croissant, which was more like a thinly filled donut as opposed to layer upon layer of flaky delight. The cream cheese filling was almost non-​existent so I paid $ 2.25 for airy dough.
For coffee I tried the sweet caramel. The espresso was a bit burnt tasting but it paired well with the sweet caramel and vanilla flavor. They even add a fancy design in the foam, how neat. I echo many people who mentioned that the employees are not very friendly. I asked for a suggestion and he made it seem like it was a bother. Maybe they were just tired, especially if they’d been there since 6 a.m.
Since this was a spur of the moment thing I didn’t realize they had free wifi but there seemed to be a few outlets and lots of good light.
I’d go back, maybe earlier in the day when the pastries are more fresh. I’m also intrigued by the gelato. Love that! But being there later meant I had the place virtually to myself and the coffee came out really fast.

Great muffins, good egg and cheese croissant breakfast sandwich and friendly service. I also tried a triple berry scone, but I have to give it lower marks. While it was good, it just didn’t have the texture and flavor a true scone should have.

Dolce Vita is a delightful place to relax, read, check your email, and have some coffee. The free wifi and aroma of fresh pastries drew me in. The inside is small, about 7 small tables and the outdoor patio has about 4 tables, but I prefer sitting inside since the traffic on Sepulveda can get loud.
Besides the pastries, they have breakfast items like omelets and oatmeal. For lunch, you’ll find sandwiches which all come with a soup or salad. They make fruit smoothies too if coffee’s not your thing. The gelato bar is intriguing — $ 2 first scoop, $ 1.50 additional scoops. They also sell freshly baked baguettes.
I love that it’s quiet, not crowded, and of course, the free wifi. Plus the guys here are really nice. Min $ 5 for credit card purchases.

I stopped by here with my three year old son after a doctors appointment. I was in the mood for an espresso and my son likes to drink steamed soy milk from time to time, so I figured what the heck. I didn’t want to go to Starbucks in favor of a non– major chain coffee house. I would have had to go out of my way to get to The Conservatory, so I spotted Dolce Vita and decided to give it a try.
First off, the place is cute. They have a nice seating area and WIFI if you need it. The bread and pastries looked appetizing, but I didn’t try them, so I don’t know how they taste… but they did look good.
Now to the not so good part, The people behind the counter didn’t seem very organized. One person took my order (A large Dolce Vita Latte and a small steamed soy milk) and they had to repeat it 3 – 4 times before they understood the order. The «barista» asked me if the milk was for my son (duh), and I said yes, but that he needed SOY milk. Then the guy said that he wouldn’t make it that hot — I thought that was nice at first, but it should have set off alarm bells. As the «barista» was about to hand me my latte, he committed the worst faux pas among faux pas. He saw me in standing there in my pea coat and somehow thought I was pregnant. WONDERFUL. I’m not a skinny-​minny by any means, but I’m far from looking pregnant. Perplexed by what just happened, I told him I wasn’t pregnant. The Barista *then* decided to hand me my latte, saying that I would have needed a decaf *if* I was pregnant… he’s looking out for my well-​being I guess! After that pleasantry, we scuttled out of there (before tasting our drinks), and I’m laughing to myself over what just happened… then tasted my latte and wondered what the H this guy was worried about, the latte was 90% milk and sugar with barely a hint of espresso! My son took one sip of his soy milk and handed it back to me. It was barely lukewarm. I wasn’t really offended by the faux-​pas, but I was offended now. ;)
Needless to say, this place did not make a good first impression. Don’t know when or if I will be returning. Also, all the gelato at the counter looks like it’s been sitting there for weeks — big thumbs down.

Great place to study, read, chat w/​friends & have breakfast. There’s FREE WIFI.
It’s not very large, but not too many people know about this place so it seems to stay pretty quiet.
Food Items: Sandwiches, Salads, Omelettes, Waffles, Pastries,
They also have Gelato — which I wouldn’t recommend since it doesn’t look that fresh.
Edward, the guy working here was friendly and super helpful in introducing me what the favorite dishes are. I came w/​a full stomach so I ended up just getting a coffee ($ 1.55) and triple berry scone ($ 2.50) — which he heated up.
Coffee was ooook, but the scone was GREAT.
Service is awesome — Edward was really proactive in making sure everybody got their refills and were happy.
Credit card accepted over $ 5. open 6am-​6pm

I must admit the name «Dolce Vita» also lured me in. I’m so glad I stopped by this cozy neighborhood café. I enjoy their simple yet delicious breakfasts served with baguette slices and a side of fruit. Their caramel flavored coffee is so addicting! And the strawberry and cream cheese pastry is scrumptious!
I’m giving them three stars because I have not tried anything else.

I was on my way back from LAX and I was passing by on my way to Surfas. It looked cute from the outside, so I decided to stop in. Yes, I just said «cute». Plus the name «Dolce Vita» (Italian for «Sweet Life») is enticing. The décor is nice, clean, and welcoming. The chocolate, canary yellow, and sea foam green color scheme reminds me of Panera, but we won’t tell them that.
The gelato and pastry cases invite you in, almost making you forget they serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. Opening at 6 AM on the weekdays and as early as 5 AM on the weekends would make this a potentially good alternative to Starbucks, which is over a mile away for those who live in the surrounding residential areas.
I take a gander at their menu and they only had a handful of breakfast items, including a couple of breakfast sandwiches, plates, and even eggs benedict. I would’ve gotten the eggs benedict, but this didn’t look like the kind of place that would make a good eggs benedict, so I opted for the ham and egg breakfast sandwich and an orange juice.
I sat down and within a few minutes, my sandwich came. It was served on a warm croissant… SCORE!!! Of course, that’s about where the excitement fizzled. The egg was just kind of ok, and there was just 2 skimpy pieces of black forest ham. With some cheese, it was just kind of ok. At least it wasn’t horrible and I was able to finish it. It came with a weak showing of hash browns. I personally think IHOP puts out better hash browns than these suckers…
I will have to echo a lot of the other reviewers and say that the employees here could crack a smile once in awhile. They definitely did have a «I don’t want to be here» vibe and attitude. Not that that equated to rude service or anything, they just seemed to be down. They also need to fix their A/​C because while they had ONE fan going, it got a little stuffy in there.
I would come back if the employees could be a little more upbeat and the food did more to impress me.
The free WIFI is what kept this review from dropping to 2 or 2.5 stars.

Since I moved to Culver City last year, I’ve gone to the Dolce Vita almost 3 – 4 times a week.
— Coffee’s are great
— Fresh Pastries… (My Fav. Spinach & Feta Crossant)
— Sandwiches — HUGE!
— Gelato … Delish!
— Breakfasts!!! YUM! (My Fav. French Toast made with Crossants)
I’ve had my ups and downs with this café. Regardless of my issues, I still beleive that this place is a great place to go and if you go you will see Culver City PD, Fire Department & locals supporting and enjoying what they have to offer.
Parking isn’t bad either. Very clean, Everyone is very nice and talkative… Its just a wonderful place to eat and unwind.

After spending an hour struggling on ice at the Culver City Ice Skating place like a cockroach stuck in water… we were FAMISHED and ravenous!
So on the way home we decided to stop at… more like screech around cars, cutting them off in order to get over to Dolce Vita. Especially when we saw the keys words that are reminiscent of all things holy and good: BAKERY… COFFEE. Oh hell yeah.
So we parked in a diagonal space near the shop and sauntered on it… the atmosphere could’ve been a tad cooler on such a warm day but the pastries looked quite delish. Since we are training for a half marathon we opted to NOT partake of all the goodies and instead, go with regular sized, blended Caramels. MMMM. No added sugary powder, had a nutty type of taste, and wasn’t overly sweet. PERFECT. Was just enough to squash any desire to devour the croissant bread pudding I was eying in the case… sigh.
Overall…the prepared food looked as if it may have been sitting for awhile but the pastry items appeared pretty good… and I’d definitely stop in again for the caramel drink alone. Friendly service too… always a plus.

I was happy to find a place close by for a laid back, cheap, and fairly tasty breakfast. I had a greek omelet which came with fruit and two small rounds of baguette. I’d guess it was made with two eggs, which is about right. I don’t like being given enormous portions of egg.
It felt relatively healthy compared to most breakfast options out there. You order at the counter and take your number to your little table.
I liked my huge cuppa joe so much that I went without cream or sugar, which I usually only do when I really like it.
There were a lot of pastries that I had to pretend I didn’t see. And gelato!
Near by Mateo’s, which should be your next stop!

Not bad at all! The coffee was decent (way better than Starf*cks’ java). And cheap — breakfast for two was $ 18. You could order the exact same thing at Urth Caffe and pay $ 35.
It’s on my list for places to revisit for basic food without outrageous lines on weekend mornings.

Totally agree with Michael T.‘s review — «Staff appear unhappy to be working there, which definitely comes across.» If I just paid $ 10 for a lousy sandwich, you can fake a f***** smile. The cashier that took my order was cool, but the girl that handed me my sandwich could’ve used an attitude adjustment. Say something like, «Thank you and have a nice day.» My $ 10 is going towards your effing salary.
The only thing that saved my club sandwich was the fresh sourdough bread. But, hello, it’s an effing bakery, the bread BETTER BE FRESH.
(Another +, seeing the cutest 2 year old happa baby having lunch with his mama.)