Verve Coffee‘s hotly anticipated L.A. arrival finally took place to start 2015. Colby Barr and Ryan O’Donovan, whose last coffeehouse opened in Downtown Santa Cruz in 2011, finally accumulated the coffee talent and financing to expand beyond the land of Banana Slugs.

Studio MAI, who designed Gjelina, Pedalers Fork and Hinoki & The Bird, keeps an office behind glass. Since Verve is named for a piece of music history, they delivered a floor pattern inspired by vintage vox amplifiers. An inviting patio touts a pair of living walls and the interior features banquettes with denim backing and seat covers, a multi-piece myrtle wood bar, and a large Juice Served Here presence. Coffee, roasted in Santa Cruz until an Arts District facility ramps up, is the marquee beverage, and they’ve even installed a sleek four-group Kees van der Westen espresso machine. Still, other drinks share the stage, including Dr. Kefir.

The probiotic, cultured drink, which costs $4 per glass, pours from three taps. Dr. Kefir is made in Santa Cruz with a base of water, kefir crystals, Mission figs and sugar cane. According to resident coffee expert Devin Chapman, kefir is similar to kombucha, but makes for softer sipping because of the present malic and lactic acids. Kefir also has five times kombucha’s probiotic value, and won’t make your lips pucker, which should appeal to an even wider demographic, unless you prefer that sour punch. Verve Coffee kegs three flavors of Dr. Kefir: elderberry passion fruit, tangerine and rooibos, which soften the blow even more.