America’s First Cannabis Cafe Is Now Open in Los Angeles

Los Angeles is now home to the country’s first cannabis eatery, Lowell Farms: A Cannabis Café. It’s a natural extension of the Lowell Farms cannabis brand, and the first café of its kind to freely allow cannabis consumption in public in the United States.

The café is designed as a food and cannabis pairing experience that’s been curated by a “flower host,” essentially a sommelier for the green stuff. The flower hosts will offer tableside guidance on the flavors and effects of different strains, even rolling joints for guests. And it’s not all for experienced smokers: The café bills itself as friend for both pros and those who are “canna-curious,” and are looking for a gentle introduction to it. Bongs, pipes, and edibles are also options, and guests are also allowed to bring their own cannabis for a corkage-style fee.

The menu, which is not laced with cannabis, is from chef Andrea Drummer, who worked to pair each dish with a cannabis strain to highlight its particular terpene and flavor profile. Menu items range from snacks like vegan nachos and jerk lamb chops to a crispy chicken sandwich, kale salads, and grilled cheese. Desserts are on offer too, of course, with options like Fruity Pebbles cheesecake or milkshakes with a variety of mix-ins like candied pecan and caramel corn.

As for the space itself, it’s a plant-filled wonderland with skylights, trendy neon signs, and exposed brick walls, as one might expect in any brand new West Hollywood café.  This one just happens to allow cannabis consumption, both inside and on its expansive outdoor patio. 

Only those aged 21 and up may enter the café at any time. It’s open 10 a.m.- 10 p.m. daily at 1201 N. La Brea Ave. in West Hollywood. Reservations are recommended, though the café saves space for walk-ins as well.