Coffee shops seem to be flooding Southie recently. Open Google Maps, and you’ll find at least five locations within a fifteen-minute walk. Seeking to sort through these options, I recently visited Southie’s newest spot, the Koko Cafe, which opened this past January at 87 L Street. Though the tiny hole in the wall is easy to miss on a stroll through the neighborhood, I found it offers solid coffee and a varied food selection for prices cheaper than expected. It’s worth the extra walk from Starbucks or Dunkin’.
Koko has all the expected types of coffee, both hot and iced—lattes, americanos, cappuccinos, macchiatos, espressos, and even cortados—along with cold brew and doubleshot iced coffees. When we visited, it was a dreadfully humid summer day, so we tried the iced latte and the nitro cold brew.
The iced latte came with steamed milk like a hot latte would, a nice touch not seen at any other cafe I’ve tried. Taste-wise, the espresso was strong enough to overcome the milk in the beverage, yet didn’t bring a bitter aftertaste. I’m usually a slow coffee drinker, but I finished this latte in just twenty minutes. The drink could’ve been a bit cooler, so maybe ask for extra ice, but it’s a great iced latte. My fellow taste-tester also enjoyed her beverage, finding it brought the same quality you’d expect from cold brew but for a cheaper price than most chains—$4.
As for food, Koko’s menu features both breakfast and lunch meals, setting it apart from Dunkin’ and Starbucks. For breakfast: bagels, organic oatmeal, and breakfast sandwiches; for lunch: grilled cheese, BALTs, club chicken, and chicken pita. There’s also an all-day bar of ready-to-eat pastries—not on-menu, so they likely cycle in and out. When I was there, the selection included giant blueberry and chocolate chip muffins plus butter and chocolate-almond croissants. I didn’t come for a meal, but I did pick up a chocolate-almond croissant. Though pre-made, it was a tasty pastry featuring a rich and nutty chocolate filling. It was similar in quality to what you’d find in Starbucks—only cheaper—and satisfied my craving for a snack to accompany my coffee.
Koko is an underrated, somewhat hidden addition to Southie, offering coffee above the level of chains, the same type of solid pastries, and full breakfast and lunch options, not just snacks or bites. It also has fair prices, not asking the increasingly common $7 for a latte. Next time you find yourself on L Street strolling to Dunkin’, try Koko instead—it’s worth it!
A third-generation Southie resident, Shane is a senior at Buckingham Browne & Nichols School who enjoys all kinds of writing. In his free time, he runs his school’s political magazine and enjoys reading, listening to music, and playing video games.
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