Local Coffee Shops in the San Bernardino Mountains, CA

The Inland Empire of San Bernardino County CA has a special a jewel. The mountains surrounding the Empire are a delight to visitors year round with snow in the winter and shopping in the summer there is plenty to do in the communities that make up the mountain jewel. But one aspect that is especially important is the local coffee shops in the area. In the winter they provide bracingly hot brews for visitors and locals and in the summer they provide frosty beverages to quench thirst on a warm day. A top destination in the mountain community is Lake Arrowhead Village for shopping name brand discount stores. One of the local hang out coffee shops in the Village is the Cheeky Monkey.

The Cheeky Monkey is located at 28200 Hwy 189, Lake Arrowhead, CA 92352 but to make things easier it is located on the main level of shopping in the Village near the historic Presidio building. The Cheeky Monkey is in a prime location at the Village it overlooks the lake of Lake Arrowhead with seating right next to the big bay windows. The coffee shop has very friendly staff offering information and suggestions about various drinks like their locally famous Caramel Macchiato or one of their blended drinks known as the Chocolate Banana Monkey Chico which combines the richness of smooth chocolate and fresh bananas. In addition to their delicious beverages they also offer sandwiches like a steak sandwich with caramelized onions and peppers and an Italian Sub with pepperoni, mortadella, salami, provolone, and pepperoncini. The Cheeky monkey has great salads like their Cheeky Salad with pepperoni and artichokes along with the usual salads like Cobb and Spinach salads. If pastries are more your thing, the Cheeky Monkey also operates a full bakery on premise and offers a tempting array of daily pastries a full menu is available at the link at the end of this article and here the Cheeky Monkey is third on the list and next to the name is a link saying click here to view the menu.

While Lake Arrowhead is a great final destination for shopping and sightseeing an equally beautiful town for a side trip is Crestline. This quaint little town offers two coffee shops right next door to each other and both are worth looking into on your way to Lake Arrowhead. The first is Paradise Mountain Coffee located at 23822 Lake Dr Crestline, CA 92325 right up the street from the Post Office. The coffee shop can be spotted by its charming mural of a hula girl in paradise right out front. The inside is just as charming as the outside with model trains decorating the walls and hand painted signs all around. There are a few places to sit inside if the weather is brisk, but outside is the best for seating with picturesque views of the surrounding forest land. The menu itself is limited with the usual fair of hot drinks, though their menu of cold drinks is substantially larger with fanciful creations as chocolate raspberry swirl and mint chip, but you will have to take my word for it since they do not provide menus only a chalk board with drink names on it is the guide. They also offer muffins, bagels, and sandwiches which all make for a great breakfast or lunch. The reason for visiting this establishment over its neighbor is that Paradise Mountain is substantially quieter and will provide a more relaxed atmosphere.

For the best coffee shop experience on the mountain visit Lake Gregory Coffee Company also located in Crestline at 23776 Lake Dr Crestline, CA 92325. They serve the standard coffee fair like mochas and lattes all for very reasonable price but the real treat of this place is the food and the atmosphere. The coffee shop is in an old gas station, which was decommissioned ages ago so it does not still have the odor of gas in the air. The shop itself is very warm and inviting but the best place to sit, again if the weather is fine, is outside on the big patio area. If the weather is a little sour not to worry if you are adventurous enough, the patio has heaters to warm you while you sip your coffee and read the paper or have lunch. Which brings us to the food, the lunch special is half a sandwich and potato or macaroni salad for only $4.95. Get the potato salad it is light on the mayo and is peppery, the potatoes still have a bit of life in them and offer a slight crunch. All of their bread is baked fresh and the sandwiches are in the "build your own" style letting you get a piece of paper already provided and checking boxes for the ingredients you want on your sandwich. The veggies are super fresh and the hot sandwiches are fantastic. For lunch try the meatball on squaw bread and with the lunch special price it will be easy on your wallet. For latter in the afternoon their selection of beer is unbeatable at rock bottom price. At happy hour 4-6 they offer several microbrews including Stone IPA and Sierra Nevada at the astounding price of only $2.75 the grocery store is not even that cheap. Regularly the microbrews go for $3.75 but even that is still a deal. For coffee and lunch on the mountain, Lake Gregory Coffee House is hard to beat in the summer they even have vintage car shows in the parking lot. The shows are not very frequent but they always take place on Fridays and you might be able to catch one if you are lucky.

If you are ever in the mood for a little trip up the mountains visit these local landmarks and see for yourself that these local gems are great finds and will beat out any chain coffee houses with their unique charm.

Oddity
Paradise Mountain Coffee
SanBernardinoSun.com

Freedomcom
Lake Gregory Coffee Company
SanBernardinoSun.com

Greg amd Michelle Steffens
Lake Arrowhead Area Restaurants
gregsteffens.com