La La Land Kind Cafe Continues Do-Good Mission In Santa Monica

SANTA MONICA, CA — La La Land Kind Cafe, a one-of-a-kind restaurant on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica, is pushing forward, post-pandemic, with its message of kindness, "doing good over profits" and its mission of giving a chance to kids who have aged out of the foster care system.

In the heart of Santa Monica, at 1426 Montana Ave., the La La Land “kind” cafe serves up a variety of coffee, tea and matcha beverages, along with such menu items as hazelnut, avocado, truffle-avo, honey-strawberry toast, exotic puddings, chocolate chip cookies and more. (Menu here.)

“We’re so excited to finally open our doors in Santa Monica and assist the Los Angeles foster youth community find their path to happiness by helping them start their lives, whether it’s through job placement, therapy, housing or schooling." said CEO and founder Francois Reihani.

“We're in the business of kindness — not coffee, which is why our 'Don’t Be A Di**' slogan is purposefully bold. We want people to pay attention, and join us in normalizing kindness,” he added.

The eatery's "kind" model, originated in Dallas, where there are three locations, and now extends to the West Coast as the Santa Monica restaurant focuses on employing and mentoring foster youth.

"After learning about the staggering statistics of what happens to foster youth who age out of the system, we were left in shock," the company said. "Kids who have spent their lives alone were then left on the street at the age of 18. This led us into creating the We Are One project in 2017. We set out to provide everything youth needed to become self-sustaining, happy adults. This meant providing help with housing, job placement, mentorship, and therapy.

"As much as we tried, it wasn’t working. Our youth could not get or maintain jobs, and without a job everything else would crumble. Employers were not willing to hire youth with no experience, or did not have the patience to teach them. If no one was going to hire our youth, we set out to do it ourselves."

At La La Land, an eight-week internship is offered to participants, who are paired with a youth director for guidance on building a stable life inside and outside of work, according to cafe management. At the internships' end, La La Land provides the young adults with resources and connections to mentors.

Open daily 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., La La Land Kind Cafe is at 1426 Montana Ave. in Santa Monica.

Follow La La Land Kind Cafe here on its website or here on Facebook for more information.

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