We opened Recreational Coffee in downtown Long Beach in October 2015 with a simple goal: to build a space centered on quality, community, and exceptional coffee. Our name reflects co-founder Bobby Hernandez’s background in recreational therapy and the idea that coffee is a positive daily ritual. When we began, we were Long Beach’s first third-wave specialty café, serving standout coffees from respected roasters. As our passion deepened, we chose to take full ownership of quality and began roasting our own beans within our early years, becoming one of the city’s first local coffee roasters.

Roasting is now at the core of everything we do. We focus on specialty-grade, sustainably sourced coffees and roast in small batches to highlight what makes each origin unique. Our style emphasizes balance and clarity rather than overly dark roasts, allowing natural sweetness, acidity, and complexity to come through. We see roasting as a relationship with the coffee — learning how each bean responds to heat and time so the final cup honors the work of the farmers and delivers consistent quality to our customers.

Because we roast in-house, freshness is built into every part of our business. The coffee you enjoy in our café is the same coffee we roast and bag for home brewing. We sell our beans in-store and online, offer a Roaster’s Choice subscription for regular delivery of freshly roasted coffee, and supply our beans wholesale to cafés and businesses around Long Beach. We also collaborate locally and host public cuppings to share what we do and how we do it. For us, roasting isn’t just production; it’s how we connect our craft to the community we serve.