Coffee is one of those things that when I graduated from college I made a concerted effort to enjoy just like other things adults are supposed to crave such as sushi and exercise. I was no longer relying heavily on the substances of dorm life aka beer and weed so I felt a hole in my life addiction wise plus I was a newly working actor who spent a lot of time running from audition to audition and often needed a place to hang out in between. The streets of New York are cold, coffee shops are warm and a plain cup of joe is usually the cheapest thing on the menu. At first it wasn’t easy. I needed a strong milk to coffee ratio to make it ease down my gullet but now like any good addiction I could probably take it straight up if that was my only option.
There are a ton of great coffee places within walking distance of my hollywood bump home ( I call it the bump because we are definitely on an incline, north of Franklin thank you very much but not exactly the hills) My new favorite is the Coffee Commissary at Siren Studios. It’s the perfect place to stroll with Sid, my Maltipoo, on a Sunday afternoon. There’s indoor and outdoor seating, free Wifi and they pump in great music like Morissey, The Violent Femmes and Major Tom by Peter Schilling (come to think of it it’s probably just the Sirius 80’s New Wave station but who cares) The decor is modern wooded perfection and it’s never too crowded.
Siren Studios is a fashion photography studio and the vibe there is a little too cool for school but after living in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Paris in my 20s it’s a vibe that I find oddly comforting. If I’m not worried that everyone around me is cooler than I am I just don’t feel right. The baristas here seem pretty confident that they are cooler than me and celebs like Nick Kroll are roaming about (Is Nick Kroll consider a celeb yet??) Anyway when I ask what the wifi network is the girl working seems to think that’s a stupid question and has to ask someone else but who doesn’t like a little degradation with their coffee?
At a place like this your look should say “don’t talk to me unless you’re Nick Kroll.”and it’s Sunday so I struck a casual cool balance in my favorite Current Elliot skinny jeans, Southern California inspired pink Equipment blouse with palm trees on it and my Oliver Peoples Jacey Sunnies. I also wore my black and gold Puma wedge sneakers, which are miraculously more comfortable than flats and my black Zara blazer.
Two pilot seasons ago I was auditioning for FBI agent Jennifer Mason in “The Following” and searched high and low for the perfect special agent blazer. After spying a beautiful but pricey version from Theory I found this great fitted one at Zara. Sadly, I didn’t get the job but I’ve gotten a ton of use out of the blazer! It helps every outfit feel put together, even if I’m just running out for coffee and hoping to bump into Nick Kroll.
