As a barista at a major coffee chain, I know the business of beans and the bottom rung of the corporate ladder.  Which is why visiting indie coffee bars/joints like The Bourgeois Pig, with its rebel vibe and anti-polished atmosphere, a thrilling vacation from fast food coffee and cookie cutter art.

The B. Pig clientele has a sense of humor and laid back attitude rather than self-effacing smiles and barely restrained rage. It isn't a zone for "gotta be somewhere like five minutes ago" mentality or even for writing that looming term paper.

The slamming techno beats and rounded bar make drinking coffee a much more social affair. Its cerulean walls are covered with eclectic art work made up of modern shapes and cartoonish hybrids. There's even a well-worn pool table in back and a "forest room" that features a space completely overrun by realistic trees and puffy sultan chairs.

Frankly the B. Pig has a "cool kids only" aura where hipsters and actors/waiters lounge around and drink expensive caffinated drinks. The wait time is formidable as only one barrista mans the ship at a time but the nighttime flurry of activity is hopping even on a random Wednesday night. As a first timer you could  feel a little overwhelmed by its dimly lit recesses, "B" health rating, and psychedelic warehouse-esque restroom, but these things really just add to its singular charm.

Mixed in with a crowd of cool venues like the Upright Citizens Brigade theater and The Daily Prophet magazine shop, the B. Pig is well worth the hassle it takes to find street parking in the socially hopping Franklin Village area.

The only thing missing from its cozy mix of art house funk and "damn the man" street cred is a beer in hand and live band. So enjoy their Turbo, a blend of coke and coffee that's much more tasty than its sounds, and mellow out with your homies. At the very least you can heckle some hipsters and hang with the creepy creeps.

THE DETAILS: Bourgeois Pig
5931 Franklin Ave
Los Angeles, CA  90028
323 464 2008

Story by Autumn Schuster.