Healthy Cafes

Nicholas ZarchenStaff WriterThe simple chai tea latte from Starbucks and the "ice-blended" from Coffee Bean are no longer sufficient.In the search to find the best cafes in town, I toured the hot spots of Samo student hangouts: the Promenade, Main Street and the the streets around the school.Located at 306 Pico Boulevard is one of the more well-known cafes to Samo students, The Flying Saucer. Upon entering the establishment, you are greeted by friendly personnel and a delicious-looking assortment of muffins and bagels. The Flying Saucer provides more of a variety of delicious snacks and meals than its competitors, including toasted bagels with hummus spread and delectable muffins. As for drinks, the shop's tea and coffee are good, but the blended drinks are a specialty. Catering especially to Samo kids, they offer the "Samo Sweet Tooth": a choice of vanilla mocha, tiger chai, mango, wild berry, strawberry or espresso, infused with your pick of sweets. A nice treat on a hot day.Kafe K, located at 2209 Main St., is a modern cafe with leather booths and outdoor seating. The shop offers a small menu, but everything on it is great. Kafe K also has a wide variety of exotic coffees and fruit smoothies including very berry, banana-kiwi and mango-peach-pineapple-banana-strawberry — my personal favorite. The ocean air and quaint atmosphere makes Kafe K a great place for an after school snack.At the end of the bustling Third Street Promenade sits Infuzion Cafe. Walking in, you spot many people sipping on iced coffees and working on their laptops, much like any old cafe — but this one is far from ordinary. Infuzion offers a selection of 10 iced coffees, 16 tea lattes and 16 flavored teas ranging from honey to watermelon, with a choice to add boba. Infuzion also solicits great hot drinks, including caramel apple cider and sweet peppermint hot chocolate.Urth Caffé, at 2327 Main St., has become one of the biggest cafes in and around Los Angeles, bringing in tons of celebrities. The establishment is widely known for its fine teas and organic coffees. Along with great drinks, the quasi-restaurant offers sandwiches, salads, soups and some decadent desserts, including a rather famous pumpkin pie. Some of my favorite dishes include a mouth-watering grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of creamy mac and cheese. It may be hard to get a seat, but it's definitely worth the wait.nzarchen@thesamohi.com