How to Build a Coffee and Matcha Bar in a Hollywood Apartment

When it comes to setting up a coffee and matcha bar in your apartment at The Ovelo Hollywood, a good spot and a few pieces are all you need. The cabinets can hold everything a good setup needs, from a grinder to your matcha bags. Choosing the right tools and setup can turn a rushed morning to the cafe into a relaxing home ritual.

Start at a Local Roaster

The best first step is buying whole beans from a roaster near you. Go Get Em Tiger roasts their own coffee beans and serves them across eight cafes in Los Angeles. Of those, the Larchmont Village and Los Feliz locations are the closest ones to your apartment. Their bean selection also changes with the season, so you can ask the baristas what came in that week.

Another local roaster worth a visit is Maru Coffee in Los Feliz. The team roasts their coffee beans in small batches and keeps the menu small. Because of that, you can taste a coffee there before committing to a full bag of beans. Whole beans are still the better buy whenever possible, since ground coffee starts losing flavor within a day or two.

For matcha, Chado Tea Room carries ceremonial-grade powder alongside more than 200 loose leaf teas. While there, remember to pick up a whisk and a bowl to save yourself the trouble of getting one later.

Once you have your beans, buying a good grinder is up next. Blade grinders chop unevenly, which leaves some grounds over-extracted and others weak. A burr grinder crushes every bean to a consistent ground so that every cup tastes even rather than bitter.

Next, choose one brewing method to build around. A pour-over cone is inexpensive and is simple for people to learn how to use properly. A French press takes even less skill and produces a heavier cup of coffee since grounds can steep longer. However, an espresso machine is the only option that lets you make a real latte. Keep in mind that it also takes up the most counter space of the three.

A gooseneck kettle is the last addition to round out a basic coffee or matcha bar setup. You can easily control where the water lands because of the narrow spout. Additionally, an electric kettle with adjustable settings can hit the right temperatures for both drinks.

Working Matcha Into the Same Corner

Matcha is stone-ground green tea powder that you whisk into water rather than steep like tea leaves. Because the leaf ends up in your cup instead of the trash, the grade you buy shows up in the flavor right away. Ceremonial grade is what you want for drinking, while culinary grade belongs in baking.

The tools you need for a delicious matcha drink are simple. Start with a small sifter, since running the powder through it first keeps the texture smooth. From there, a bamboo whisk breaks apart the clumps that a spoon would just push around. A wide bowl also gives your wrist room to work without splashing.



Many people find water temperature the hardest part to get right. Boiling water scorches matcha and leaves it bitter, so let the kettle settle to around 175°F first. Once you’ve got the temperature down, a handheld frother turns that same drink into a latte in under a minute.

Storing your beans well matters as much as buying good ones. Coffee goes stale faster in warm, bright conditions, so the cabinet away from your oven works best. An airtight container also keeps beans fresher than the bag they came in since far less air reaches them.

Matcha needs even more care because the powder loses both color and flavor once air reaches it. Keeping the tin sealed in the fridge after opening slows that down, though you will want to let it warm to room temperature before whisking. Buying smaller amounts more often is the easier route since matcha tastes best within a couple of months of opening.

Setting Up Your Corner

Once you’ve completed your shopping, the next part is choosing where the bar lives. Look for an outlet within reach and room for your kettle and grinder to sit side by side. You will also want enough clearance so that you are not shuffling appliances every time you cook.

Setting the bar on a tray pulls the pieces together and makes cleanup easier. anisters for your beans and matcha also helps keep things organized. Always keep the tools you reach for daily out in the open, and store the rest in a cabinet so your bar area isn’t too busy.

A coffee and matcha bar at home means your first cup happens on your schedule instead of after a wait in line. Weekends get better too, since you can carry a fresh pour-over up to the rooftop terrace at The Ovelo Hollywood and enjoy the view across the city. The counters in our apartments give you room to build the setup you want. Schedule a tour today and get an idea of where your bar would go!