Ernest Coffee

Stumptown espresso in the Upper Design District

The espresso runs on Stumptown coffee, and the drink list is long enough to cover most habits: americano, latte, mocha, cortado, dirty chai, iced hazelnut latte, iced vanilla latte, oat milk versions and a vanilla matcha latte. The dirty chai is the one most attached to the café's name.

Ernest Coffee opened in June 2014 as a café and market in the Upper Design District of Palm Springs, and it shares its site with Bootlegger Tiki, the bar that works the same building after dark. The building carries more history than most: it held one of Don the Beachcomber's original locations, opened there in 1953, and the rooftop tiki torches are left over from that era.

Concrete, reclaimed wood and a shaded patio

Inside, the room is industrial rather than overtly tiki: concrete, reclaimed wood, bright red and silver metal chairs, a raised gray banquette along the right wall and faux bookshelves. It is built for staying, whether that means a laptop, a book, studying or a game with friends.

Outside, a shaded patio runs along West Via Lola toward Bootlegger Tiki and can bring the mountains into view. The Upper Design District setting puts design shops and neighborhood retail within a short walk.

Order the dirty chai, then the pastry case

Start with the dirty chai, or stay classic with a Stumptown latte, mocha, americano or cortado. The pastry case has more range than most cafés: almond croissants, muffins, danishes, date scones, chocolate escargot, bagels and oatmeal, with vegan donuts and daily bakes added more recently.

Later in the day, cheese and charcuterie platters are the closest thing to a meal. There is no hot kitchen, so the food stays in pastry and snack territory, built to sit beside the espresso drinks rather than to replace them.