Lost Sock Roasters
6833 4th St NW, Washington DC 20012
A musical womple (Avett Brothers @ Wolf Trap) to our nation’s capital had me frequent Lost Sock Coffee Roasters in the funky neighborhood of Takoma Park. It’s a really cool enclave with lots of diversity, a great vibe and the unrelenting competition of “keeping it weird” and the natural gentrification pull because it “keeps it weird”. One of my clients informed me that Lost Sock was a must make on the trail and it did not disappoint.
Coffee:
A truly fantastic red eye. A chocolaty heavy roast with a syrupy shot of espresso made me want to linger with my cup. It’s the first cup I have had (outside Star Lounge- Dark Matter in Chicago) in awhile that made me want to slow down and savor all the way through. Although the sizing of the cups are “tiny” and what I would call a medium, they did fill my travel mug with at least 16 oz. of coffee which was super nice.
Barista:
It was super busy and the baristas were equally friendly, but also really occupied with the onslaught of drink orders and the necessary execution. When the shop is as crowded as it was on a Sunday at 9:00, there is not really a great place to stand and wait for orders but people are cool about it and the baristas crank it out at a good pace. Part of the waiting issue is the ordering of the empanadas….They are awesome! Right amount of flakiness and flavor and a great savory option with the coffee. There were baked goods as well, but honestly the empanadas are the play!
Vibe:
Real neighborhood feel at this shop and if I had to use one word…..friendly. The outdoor seating is not huge, but nicely done and seemed comfortable. The indoor has tables (not many) and a large coffee bar/food prep area. It was super busy with an eclectic crowd of young families (replete with strollers), hipsters as well as the self described “older folks”. The friendliness from greeter/order taker/owner??? was an immediate smile as he engaged with each person in line telling jokes to kids and showing interest in all that came through the door.
Make You Better:
They have such a cool almost geeky logo that I think their merch department could be more robust. The hat was cool but I would have loved to have seen a more bountiful merch area with shirts, stickers and the like.
The trifecta is back. Great coffee, friendly baristas (and customers) and a great vibe in a cool neighborhood. Long live wompling……….Matt