THE HUNGRY HOURS
LA matcha guide, part 2 | Fall 2026: what's new in LA matcha?
LA's matcha map grows every month. This adds the places that opened in summer and fall 2026 that I'm still getting to know: Pantry inside Madhappy, Blank Street in Studio City, Cafe Luce in K-Town, Dorala on Sawtelle, and out to Chafinity in the OC.
Translated from Jasmine’s original Chinese. The illustrated slides are on the interactive reader.
Key points
- Blank Street · Studio City: The Cortado Cloud is exclusive here, and matcha people can order it in matcha.
- Dorala · Sawtelle: Closed Mondays, so check before you go.
- J's little observation · LA matcha is heading to Kyushu: Just a little observation from J.
Full text
What's new in 2026 | Three new openings
Blank Street opened its first West Coast store in Studio City in August; Cafe Luce opened in K-town on 8/28; Dorala opened on Sawtelle in summer 2026.
What's new in 2026 | Familiar faces, new stores
rōk opened in Little Tokyo on 9/28, its fifth in LA; nana's green tea opened its first company-run North American flagship in Old Pasadena on 5/9.
Pantry · WeHo
Tucked inside the Madhappy WeHo flagship, using Nekohama matcha from Kyushu; the signature is the sweet cloud, and for breakfast you can pair it with a Courage Bagels bagel.
Blank Street · Studio City
The brand's first on the West Coast, with Beverly Hills, WeHo and Malibu in the works. The Cortado Cloud is exclusive here, and matcha people can order it in matcha.
Cafe Luce · K-town
A café from the Korean catering brand Banchan à la Carte. Formerly secret-menu: the Raspberry Peach Matcha, $8; the Marbled Matcha, $6.
Dorala · Sawtelle
Built around Yame first-flush tea from Fukuoka, paired with dorayaki filled to order. Closed Mondays, so check before you go.
Chafinity · the OC bonus
A tea house inside The CAMP in Costa Mesa, between East Borough and Seed People's Market. Closed Tuesdays.
J's little observation | LA matcha is heading to Kyushu
Pantry uses Nekohama from Kyushu, Community Goods' collab comes from Yame, Kettl has an office in Fukuoka, and now Dorala is all about Yame first-flush too. Just a little observation from J.
Last word
LA's matcha map grows every month, and I'll keep adding to this list.
Places in this story
In this series
- Matcha 101, LA Edition
- My LA Matcha Repeat List / LA Matcha Girls
- La La Land Kind Cafe — Reserve
- The LA Matcha Guide, Fall 2026
- The LA matcha map | Where should you actually drink matcha in LA?
- The LA hojicha map | After matcha, what are Angelenos drinking?
An original JSLALALAND field guide by Jasmine Chang (@jslalaland).