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City of Caffeination -- The Coffeehouse: The Greenhouse

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By Brian Addison

 | Sunday, 12 February 2012 05:10

11:30am | The place is, to say the least, made to be a coffeehouse of some sort.

Perched on the corner of Linden and Broadway, its large windows, upstairs balcony, and gorgeous façade easily remind someone of a joint in San Francisco or New York (albeit an enormous cavern for those two meccas). Not quite a restaurant feel, perhaps more of a library-gone-empty, maybe a strange poet's lounge; it exuded caffeination.

Of course, façades are just that -- façades -- and we all know the issues that lay under this particular front. Strained by a stained history, many were wondering if The Greenhouse would become Sipology 2.0. And if one were to taste their espresso, the immediate answer is an astounding no.

The space is much different aesthetically than its predecessor: more open, light organic colors that clash rather nicely with the large black chandelier hanging center, it seems that Greenhouse aims for a cleaner, lurid feel that is antithetical to the staple bohemian/hodgepodge style amongst many Long Beach coffee joints. And in the spirit of my previous article, what makes Greenhouse -- like True Beans -- so enjoyable is that it is Long Beach doing business with Long Beach. Opened by locals, ran by locals, they even procure their beans from Rose Park Roasters here in Long Beach.

The interior of The Greenhouse, located at Linden and Broadway. 
 
If there is one thing that works in this city, it is just that: Long Beach doing Long Beach.

Sterling Houghton, the head barista of Greenhouse, is definitely one of energy: emphatically into what he serves, he will overwhelm one with his excessive expressions and description of coffee -- to the point where he will make sure you understand (or at least think you understand) what you're drinking. Orange peel. Sweet citrus. Followed through with a deep, chocolate aftertaste. You're drinking specialty coffee, a miniscule 5% of the coffee market -- but perhaps that is where its specialness lies. He wants you to be part of something special, something you can't just get everywhere.

And he wants to bring the passion without the pretentiousness, avoiding at all costs to downsize his customer. "All the questions that people have wanted to ask, all the questions people who don't know coffee have in their head, and ignoring them... With the way that most places in Long Beach have gone, all you're doing is keeping your customer in the same bubble. Educate people and let them understand things -- and with that comes a better respect for what you give. We're offering cuisine. We're offering you Thanksgiving-in-a-cup and they're giving you a microwave dinner, telling you, 'That's okay, you'll like the microwave dinner -- you just won't understand the real thing.' It's just sad." 

My second helping of espresso; Rose Park's Ethiopian Goji is worth the second serving. 

Within my hands after such a descriptive endeavor on behalf of Sterling was an Ethiopian Goji espresso, a beautiful roast made by Andrew Owen. Mr. Owen, who for the most part sat kicked back while we chatted with his legs comfortably crossed and his arms nudged across this chest, holds a demeanor that is quite the opposite of Sterling with a calm and lack of gesture that emphasizes his philosophy to roasting: to just reveal what is already there. And in this espresso, a palatable brightness was followed with a heavy body of chocolate. In other words: quite decadent in all the ways we wish to fall.

And while some things can still be worked on -- outside of the espresso, the service and coffee need some work -- it is refreshing to see a business trying to keep it local and keep it special. 

The Greenhouse is located at 149 Linden Avenue.