Recreational Coffee

Whenever I’m in DTLB and need coffee this is my go to place!
First, there’s just something about the setup that makes you want to chill. Like, just relax and maybe get some work done or just listen to random coffee shop sounds.
Second, the staff here is great. They’re always super helpful and pretty chill. Plus, they have a rewards program so, duh, you can and should go a lot.
Lastly, their coffee is really good. Normally, I just get a pour over of something and I always like what I get. Their coffee is so good you can drink it black or with a little sweetener but definitely not with syrups and all that. Yes, it’s pour over so if you just want a quick cup of drip this is probably not your place. It’s ok, there are other places for that but I don’t know if this place is for you.
Anyhoo. I love it and I wish I lived closer.

Ordered the almond milk chai latte and a blueberry donut. My friend ordered the iced almond milk mocha and chocolate pretzel donut. The drinks were bland (not sweet or flavorful), but the blueberry donut was delicious!

Good stuff. Jaime was very helpful and sweet. The staff, in general, are nice.
The pour over coffee is good, though I preferred the lattes.
Small interior.
Big downside? Parking. If you can find it, it’s paid parking.

Their vegan donuts are delicious. We had the chocolate and pecan and praline and both were excellent.

Excellent customer service and coffee. Was welcomed with a smile and a good morning how was your day going. The macchiato I ordered was excellent. It is a must stop for people that are serious about coffee. Way to go!

This place is pretty awesome! Right around the corner from my hotel, I stopped in for a late and pastry.
While my late was good, I was disappointed they did not have soy. The only option was almond milk.
My almond croissant was amazing!
Definitely a great place!

Great and friendly coffee shop. Have been here multiple times and always the same great coffee and clean atmosphere. Quick and easy or set up computer and stay all day, they brew a great beverage.

Great coffee experience. They have affordable pour-​overs that, for some reason, are roasted all over the world. Snacks are limited and mostly donuts or donut-​like. I had the blueberry vegan donut. Typically vegan donut. Kinda heavy, sweet. One-​star off for limited and not the most healthy food options. The coffee saved them. WIFI is free and there are some plugs scattered about for computer people. The service was friendly. Pour over does take a bit more to make so you might not want to get that if you’re in a hurry. It seemed longer than most pour overs from other shops. Not sure if they have a quick drip coffee option.

I feel kind of weird reviewing this place solely for the vegan donuts but I don’t drink coffee and that’s what I went there for, the donuts.
The Churro Donut was so f-​ing good. It was kind of perfect, I kinda hate when donuts are super dense and insanely fried and all you taste is oil. Not these donuts, they were bready and light. So tasty.
Will be coming back for a donut treat. I’m so glad these donuts aren’t crazy fried, I’d call these more like a donut/​muffin hybrid but so delicious.

Lovely little coffee shop (but not that little, it’s cozy but spacious enough). Wonderful way to spend an afternoon on your laptop. REALLY good music, so no need to even bring your headphones.
I parked in a lot a block away that’s $ 5 flat rate (is that a lot?)
Gorgeous hipster industrial interior. Wifi password is written on the glass by the cashier. I ordered an almond chai latte this time since it was later in the afternoon and didn’t want to mess with caffeine. Kind of expensive ($ 5) but pretty good. It wasn’t intoxicatingly sweet like other places. Tasted creamy smooth and high quality.
Would definitely come back again to try their coffees.

I’ve had this place bookmarked for awhile. Finally had time to stop by and experience the greatness of their Sea Salt Affogato. My daughter tried the espresso shake and her own Affogato. It was delish! I had to try a pour over and it was surprisingly good.
Barista’s are super nice and it’s a chill vibe. Great little nook although parking can be an issue.
The prices are what you expect for a trendy spot and they work with some local places to bring in breakfast burritos and sandwiches.
If you are in the area check out this gem in Long Beach!

Great place for coffee, conversation, and cooping up with your books when you need to study. Its location in downtown Long Beach makes it a bit difficult to find free parking; however, there is a parking structure where you can get 2 hours free at the intersection of W 3^rd St and The Promenade N (Next to Harvey Milk Park). They serve breakfast burritos from Nick’s on weekends and salads and sandwiches from The Working Class Kitchen everyday. Their coffee is a little pricey, but you’re paying for the quality!

Stopped by for a coffee date with one of my girlfriends, and shared their sea salt affogato. We grabbed a seat towards the back as there were people studying and we didn’t want to disturb them. I loved the interior of the coffee shop with the exposed red brick walls. Our affogato came out with three scoops of vanilla ice cream. I liked the slight bitterness from the coffee, the sweetness from the ice cream and a hint of saltiness from the sea salt. Get this if you’re craving something sweet and salty!

I’ve had this bookmarked since they opened, and didn’t even realize it’s literally one block from my house until I accidentally wandered in with a friend this past Sunday.
Kind of an unsuspecting little place on LB Blvd. but it is right on the «up-​and-​coming» block and they didn’t seem to be short of customers, so something sure is working for them!
Very modern/​clean inside with plenty of seating. It doesn’t have the cozy/​warm coffee house feel that a lot of the hippie coffee places in Long Beach have, but it is business chic and comfortable none-​the-​less.
My friend and I each had an iced coffee with almond milk (they don’t have soy FYI) and it was around $ 8.00 for the smaller size, so kinda pricey in my opinion. The coffee options were limited, as they are at most places that pride themselves on their coffee, I reckon the coffee speaks for itself? It did… it spoke for itself and then kept speaking and kept speaking until 2 hours had passed and I was hyped up on caffeine and STILL talking my friends ear off. Haha poor guy.
Anyway the coffee is good and strong. Don’t expect lots of schmancy lattes and flavors here, but if you need a place to do some work and get a caffeine fix, I think this is a great option.
I didn’t notice a bakery case or a food menu, but I see pictures of food here on Unilocal so I’ll have to look for that next time.

Came here for a coffee date with a girlfriend. We shared the sea salt affogato which I wanted to try since it looked so good. It was a perfect combination of bitter, sweet and salty. The ambience was quiet and casual. I liked how bright it was inside and could easily see myself working there for a few hours. We got lucky and found parking right outside at a meter. I’ll come back next time to try their lattes!

The only thing that would make Long Beach happier than being served fresh-​roasted delicious coffee, in another hip setting, would be for a businesses that bends over backwards for their customers. It is all here at Recreational Coffee.
It has been open four months (November 2015) — and I find that they are the perfect neighbor (Bobby the Barista) and neighborhood gem. He and his co-​workers share a passion and appreciation for coffee — and are genuine in customer appreciation. I asked for a redo on my double espresso, another grind & tamp. It wasn’t as hot as I prefer (#TallHotBlonde purveyor), Bobby assured me it was heated to the ideal 200 °F. Nonetheless, they would not accept my payment, as I thought it necessary and they believed customer satisfaction, was more of a necessity.
Welcome to the neighborhood. Unilocal,and Long Beach support this stellar coffee establishment.
The coffee is that of Portola Coffee Lab, and Recreational may be a wholesale partner, they are more importantly a business we need and want in the LBC.
Weekends offer breakfast burritos while weekdays sweet rolls and breakfast pastries.

A small coffee shop right across from the Acres of Books building.
I got the espresso con panna, which was a shot of espresso with whipped cream on top. The sweet taste of the cream complemented the bitter espresso well. Of course, it came with a small glass of sparkling water.
Although I don’t live in LB, I’d love to come back again to sit, relax, and read a good book.

Saw that a new coffee place popped up in downtown on Unilocal and immeditately bookmarked it! We were quick to try it right away on one of our weekends off as my bf is really into coffee.
Parking was a breeze for us fortunately because we live around the area and simply walked here.
Loved the ambience upon walking in. I love the brick walls and the interior décor. Great lighting which serves for a great work environment.
Staff were really friendly and I loved that we were greeted right away when entering. Also eager to answer our questions although I looked to Unilocal for most of my answers… however I made one mistake and that was not to look at the pictures!!!
Definitely surprised at what an affagato was… however it was a good surprise. Had no idea that an affagato would be icecream with expresso shots. DELICIOUS and even better when you let the icecream melt a little and eat it that way with the expresso.
Definitely will be coming back!

Saw this place on instagram and my friend also talked about this place. So I looked on Unilocal and see if it was worth trying! It definitely was!
For parking, it can be hectic since it’s located on a busy street and you would have to pay for parking. So I suggest you park in the parking structure by Wingstop and walk from there. It’s free for two hours!
Anyways, the coffe place is very hip. Clean and nice. I like their interior look. Friendly service as well.
I ordered the sea salt affogato and it was super delicious. Omg it was a perfect taste of vanilla ice cream w/​expresso shots, grains of coffee bean taste, and a hint of sea salt. Mmmm… It was so good. My friend and I finished it. It costs us about $ 6 – 7 for our own affogato. We were relaxing and talking for quite some time.
There’s one unisex restroom. It was nice and clean. Thank goodness. Overall, I love this place! Will be back soon.

4.5 stars (if I could)
I really loved almost everything about this coffee place. From the cute décor, good/​sturdy tables (perfect for getting work done), numerous outlets and friendly baristas, I really love this place. As recommended by the barista, I ordered the sea salt affogato and it was delicious! I thought it was going to be too sweet, but the bitterness from the coffee balanced out with the ice cream perfectly!
A few things I was concerned about were the wifi and parking, which are generally the issues I come across when looking for a place to get some work done. The wifi was pretty weak and spotty when I was there and it wasn’t too crowded, so I would recommend not expecting too much from their internet if coming here. However, in terms of parking, especially since its so difficult to park in Long Beach in general, I would suggest parking in the parking structures, which are right next to coffee shop and you get 2 hours of free parking. An additional two hours after that is $ 2, which I think is totally reasonable for 4 hours of parking.
Other than the wifi, I will definitely be back here to study and enjoy some of their menu items!