Cuppa Cuppa Coffee Lab and Lemon Grove Coffee

I recently had to take my vehicle in to get an estimate for some repairs. I ended up leaving my vehicle after the estimate. During that time I had two coffee stops, here they are.

Cuppa Cuppa Coffee Lab:

I initially set an appointment for an estimate and after handing over the keys decided to find a place for a cold brew and maybe a bite to eat. On a previous visit I had noticed that Cuppa Cuppa, which had a drive thru booth on Mission Gorge Road had a new shop in the Vora Apartment complex on Twain, so I decided to walk on over.

The shop is pretty small, a couple of outdoor tables, a few indoors, and some bar seating.

The Barista working was very friendly, she explained that they roast their own coffee beans and actually showed me the roaster which was in the corner.

It was pretty darn hot, so I went with a cold brew and inquired about something savory. The young lady recommended the ham croissant and said that it was much better heated, which sounded good to me.

The cold brew was nice and strong, which perhaps might be a bit much for some, but it provided a nice "kick in the pants" for me on this morning.

The croissant was quite light, it had attained a dark color during the toasting process.

    Which meant that when I bit into it, flakey croissant shrapnel flew everywhere! Also, the ham had attained almost a bacon like texture during the heating process. The ham gave the croissant a good bit of saltness; though I would have enjoyed a straonger butter flavor. The interior was light and not overly doughy. This was not bad.

I liked the service and the strong cold brew. I'll probably return for my caffeine fix when I take my car in for servicing.

Cuppa Cuppa Coffee Lab
4440 Twain Ave. Suite 102
San Diego, CA 92120
Current Hours:
Mon – Fri 7am – 2pm
Sat – Sun 8am – 1pm

Upon returning to the shop, I was told the scope of work, parts would be in fairly quickly, the work would span a couple of days. I decided to go ahead a leave my car and just get the work done. Which meant that I still had a full day ahead of me and no car. Then, I came up with an idea. I'd catch the trolley to Lemon Grove. Why, you say? Well, read on my friend.

Lemon Grove Coffee:

A few months back, Emily, one of my favorite folks who works at Clairemont Coffee told me that Hannah, the co-owner, along with her sister in-law Casey were opening up a coffee shop in Lemon Grove, appropriately named Lemon Grove Coffee. A couple of weeks back, I saw Hannah working at CC, and she told me that I should go and check the place out if I'm in the area. So, having a good amount of time on my hands, I went ahead and caught the Green Line, to the Blue Line, to the Orange Line, and ended up at the Lemon Grove Trolley stop. 

I must say, Lemon Grove Coffee has a nice spot, right across from the trolley stop.

So, I headed on over. This shop is quite spacious, like twice the size…or more of the Clairemont shop.

There's an area with what almost looks like bleacher seating. After I took this photo, a couple of folks came in and sat in the "stands", busting out their laptops. Remote workers I guess.

It's a nice place for a break from the scorching weather outside.

I didn't know any of the gals working, but they were all very friendly. And my cold brew here is a buck cheaper ($3.25) than what I get at the Clairemont Drive shop.

The cold brew was fine; in line with what I get at CC.

Service was friendly, the prices were quite inexpensive, seem like a nice addition to the neighborhood which seemed to have more than few closed businesses, and I'm really happy for Hannah!

Lemon Grove Coffee
7801 Broadway
Lemon Grove, CA 91945
Current Hours:
Daily 6am – 3pm

I took a good amount of time with my cold brew. I wasn't looking forward to the trolley trip and walk back home. By the time I looked at my phone, it was just about lunch time. There was one place that had been recommended to me several years ago. And how often am I in Lemon Grove? I decided to find that restaurant and get some lunch.

Stay tuned!