M Street Coffee and Gallery
13251 Moorpark St 
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
(818) 907-1400
www.mstreetcoffee.com

This hipster-esque Studio City coffee house is as refreshingly uplifting as the tree squirrel that unabashedly greeted me outside its door. Now I don't generally rate my cafés by their resident wildlife, but if there were ever a symbol for the ambient friendliness here that seems to elude most non-chain coffee joints, this was it.  

Just a few blocks off the well-trodden Ventura Boulevard, M Street offers better customer service in a more pleasant atmosphere than your average café/gallery establishment. You can go anywhere to sip an Americano and listen to Modest Mouse, but when was the last time your barista at such a place was not pissed off at the world? M Street, with its friendly staff, free wifi, and community of kindly regulars, maintains an ambiance that sets it apart from the rest. 

"On any given day you'll see customers sharing tables when we get crowded or lending a hand to someone in need," says owner Andrea McClain. "M Street has become a true neighborhood coffee shop." 

Even the décor, which features artwork from a different local artist each month, celebrates the neighborly spirit found at M Street. And its clean, spacious interior, a welcome departure from the dark corners where I used to get my coffee, emanates a certain air of optimism.

The drink menu includes organic coffee and teas, unique fruit smoothies, and tempting blended coffee drinks. With diet-accommodating menu options such as almond milk and soy protein powder, it doesn't take long for customers to discover "their" drink (and, subsequently, for head barista Kate Schroeder to memorize it).  

"We really love getting to know our customers and making them their favorite drink each day," says McClain.  

For those of us not hip enough to take caffeine without food, us common folk for whom coffee and cigarettes are simply not sustenance, M Street has a decadent array of pastries including vegan and gluten-free choices and freshly baked bagels. (Extra props to supplier Western Bagel for not putting caraway seeds on the Everything ones. How can anyone actually like those little God-forsaken footballs of gaggery?)

Anyway, today I was delighted by M Street's Peach Pear Apricot smoothie, with 6 grams of soy protein for an extra 50 cents. It was well blended, not icy at all, and the sweet-tangy apricot flavor was strong enough that the smoothie was untainted by the protein supplement. Tomorrow I suppose I'll try out the organic teas, with a chocolate muffin to balance out the calories. 

There's truly something here for everyone: the eco-conscious vegan with a sweet tooth, the lactose-intolerant, high-strung caffeine addict, and I daresay that tree squirrel outside - as McClain's eco-conscience clearly plays a role in her business decisions.  

"Opening M Street as an eco-friendly establishment was imperative to me," says McClain. "I try to be conscious of every choice we make." Using local ingredients whenever possible and opting for "green" options in everything from the cups to the furniture to the paint on the walls, M Street offers all the environmentalism of the hippest of hipster coffee houses, without the side of cynicism.   

My partiality for bushy-tailed friends aside, this place is worth checking out for its refreshing ambiance, delicious menu, and sound business ethics.