Now Available: Coco Café

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Coco Café is as Santa Monica as you can get. The drink itself was created by two health-conscious, active Santa Monica dudes. In their first interview ever, I had the pleasure of catching up with co-creators Brian “BJ” McCaslin and Elan Eifer. Upon hearing their exciting story, and sipping their drink… bam! soon I, too, came down with a major case of “Coco Fever.” It’s contagious. It’s fantastic.

See, the drink itself is created not only by Santa Monicans, but by and large for Santa Monicans. It’s the healthy and delicious combination of what people on the coast crave… coffee and coconut water.

It all started when Elan, an unabashed athlete/yogi and general “get-up-and-go” guy, needed something yummy, caffeinated, but healthy after his workouts. He saw the copious amounts of coconut water cases being toted around, and so, he, too, jumped on the bandwagon. Soon, he was waxing “coffee chemist” in the kitchen mixing coconut water in with coffee, and the earliest form of Coco Café was born. His long-time friend Brian was soon sold on the drink, and the two realized that this was something that everyone would enjoy, especially folks with healthy, active lifestyles.

Bottling it just seemed like the next, natural step to share Coco Café with the world. But it was a process. Most people just send off their product ideas to be made, and wait to see/try the finished product. Not Brian and Elan. They wanted to be wholly apart of the development to make sure their recipe and ratios were respected.

“I said, ‘Let’s get in that lab’” Brian recounts, “We wanted to see the chemistry, and make sure they didn’t put anything else in there.” The tetrapak packaging that they decided on allowed them to keep the drink preservative-free and the ingredients few and pure. Being fair-trade was also very important to them, as was finding the finest quality espresso, milk, and coconut water. In the end, they were delighted with the results and pleased with the fruit of their labors: a pure, natural drink that matched what they made at home.

Coco Café is quite the wonder drink… It has less sugar than fruit juices, and way less than other bottled coffee drinks. So instead of grabbing a drink named after a monster or a bull, grabbing a natural Coco Café provides you not only with a boost, but real sustainable energy.

When asked when Coco Café is best enjoyed, Brian and Elan say anytime. “In the morning, it’s our go-to…” says Brian, but it’s also their afternoon pick-me-up, and “recovery drink” after a workout.

Coco Café will be on display at Santa Monica High School on Saturday, September 24th during TEDxYouth@SantaMonica. More info here.

Coco Café is available at these Santa Monica stores

• Bay Market | 3201 Santa Monica Blvd. | (310) 260-9550

• Bob’s Market | 1650 Ocean Park Blvd. | (310) 452-2493

• Bru’s Wiffles | 2408 Wilshire Blvd. | (310) 453-2787

• Kafe K | 2209 Main St #B | (310) 256-2124

• L and K Market | 2127 Main St | (310) 396-0784

• Marine Market | 672 Marine St

• Santa Monica Farms | 2015 Main Street | (310) 396-4069

• Star Liquor | 1929 Main Street | (310) 399-0149

• Tada Cafe | 1814 Berkeley Street | (310) 586-7419

About the Author, Annie
Annie is a recording artist/writer who delights in personal alchemy, whimsy, & quantum physics. She can often be found drinking tea, eating cake, or changing the world. She blogs about the delicacies of daily life in the city of angels at www.cityofannie.com