Local Krave isn’t just about buttered coffee

I’m not a butter in your coffee kind of guy, but if I were, I’d probably wind up grabbing mine from Local Krave. Instead, what drew me to the Point Loma coffee shop was its unconventional approach to making a breakfast sandwich.

But first, I really did want some (butter-free) caffeine, and there I found more than I expected. Local Krave offers a full complement of espresso drinks, of course, in addition to a full menu of its “world famous” kraveman coffee, wherein each serving receives a dose of grass-fed butter, coconut oil, honey, and cream ($7). Variations include all of that plus flavored syrup ($8), chocolate sauce ($8), banana pulp ($8), or banana pulp and protein powder ($10). You can also try it with your choice of tea, chai, or matcha ($8).

Usually, I will try anything in the name of food (or drink) journalism, but apparently I draw the line at my morning joe. I did note, however, that there’s an option to have your kraveman made with a choice of dark, medium, or light roast coffee.

A coffee counter just off Midway Drive in Point Loma's Sports Arena district

That option to try different beans or roasts is certainly not unheard of in specialty coffee shops. But it is unusual to find the same choice available in my personal favorite coffee order: nitro cold brew. If you’re not already acquainted with nitro cold brew, the gist is that cold brew coffee is poured from a tap that infuses it with nitrogen (NO2) bubbles. Nitro bubbles are way smaller than the CO2 bubbles behind carbonated beverages, so rather than fizzy, they give the brew a smooth, creamy texture. And that’s pretty sweet for someone who never adds cream (nor any dairy product) to their coffee.

Cold brew itself has become a more common feature of local coffee shops over the past ten years, but nitro cold brew is still pretty rare. I was stunned to discover that this Local Krave location (and another in Pacific Beach) had FOUR nitro taps featuring cold brew from local roasters. There was a light roast brew from the fellow buttered coffee aficionados at Trident Coffee, a medium roast option by The WestBean, and both medium and dark options by Café Moto. The lineup may change, but being allowed to sample a choice of nitro coffee is the dream — I hope anyone else is as excited by this as I am!

I should probably hope the same about Local Krave’s lineup of breakfast sandwiches. We’re all accustomed to bacon or sausage, eggs, and melted cheese being served on a croissant, biscuit, or kaiser roll. Local Krave goes another direction. On a breakfast sandwich dubbed The San Diegan ($12), it starts with a chorizo omelet, then adds cream cheese and smashed avocado. But rather than a croissant, this sandwich is made on slices of a baked-in-house product called “croissant loaf.”

As the name implies, this takes the laminated dough (more butter) that makes croissants so flaky, but rather than bake it in a crescent shape, they go for an entire loaf. Thick sliced of this provide a rich and stable base for the eggs, etc., without croissant flakes getting all over your hands and shirt (it can’t just be me, right?). Other breakfast sandwiches feature fried egg, sausage, and country gravy; or roasted red pepper, artichoke, and aioli. Meanwhile, the croissant loaf is also applied to variations of “fancy toast” and grilled cheese.

Liege-style waffle, dressed simply with powdered sugar

Scouring photos on Yelp, it looks like Local Krave used to offer breakfast sandwiches made on Liege-style waffles. Currently they do still offer the waffles, dressed simply with powdered sugar ($5), the likes of fruit and nutella ($10), or with the aforementioned sausage and gravy ($10).

All of this feels like overachieving for a counter shop that can hardly be more than 600 square feet. Takeout may be easier from Local Krave’s freeway adjacent, Pacific Beach location (3033 Bunker Hill Street), but this one, tucked away on a side street in the Sports Arena area, offers a leafy, shaded patio out front, where a person can sit, chew, sip… and contemplate butter.