8 DRINKS THAT DELIVER A JOLT OF BLACK PRIDE

ORDER A BREW HONORING HISTORY AND CULTURE.

V E N the coffee cups are black.

You step inside a coffee shop and are greeted not just with a sign that proudly declares “Black-owned” but also with an iconic R&B soundtrack that cycles through artists like Erykah Badu, Thundercat and Sade; local art that depicts the busiest avenues in Black L.A.; and a bustling scene of remote workers and neighborhood folks who, regardless of whether they showed up together, seem to quickly become acquaintances and spill into each other’s tables.

Seven years ago, there was only one place like this in L.A. Today, there are more than 20 Black-owned coffee shops, shifting the coffee culture at large by centering community and reclaiming coffee’s origins in Black, brown and Indigenous regions.

In the renaissance of Black-owned coffee shops, the responsibility to represent the communities they serve is evident, from the music selection to the decor to the baristas behind the counter. All these elements help create a welcoming space.

And in many cases, the drinks themselves give a nod (and a dap) to the community to let them know this space is for them.

Amanda-Jane Thomas and Shanita Nicholas founded Sip & Sonder in 2017 out of a desire and need for a safe space for Black coffee lovers in Inglewood.

Thomas highlights that the freedom to leave a string of cultural cues on the menu is one of the aspects that makes owning these spaces special.

“At every step that agency is so important, because the sum of all of that, it starts to move the needle,” Thomas said “In a vacuum, they seem just like, ‘OK, this is one menu item in a coffee shop in L.A. in the country,’ but it’s meaningful.”

Here are a few drinks that pay homage to Black culture in L.A. and worldwide.