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Photos by Brian Addison.

Long Beach’s coffee scene is becoming so phenomenal that it is genuinely hard to keep up writing about.

We had a long feature piece focusing on the roasting masters of our city—Rose Park, Recreational, and Lord Windsor–that make some of the best roasted beans in the region. (Hell, Recreational’s Ethiopian Koke, Rose Park’s Kenyan Karatina AA, and Lord Windsor’s Salvadorian Chalatenango are some of the best beans this side of the Mississippi, let alone the region.)

And last week, we got to brag about a Long Beach caffeine pop-up that finally made it home to a brick-and-mortar spot near Retro Row. Welcome to the ‘hood, Wide Eyes Open Palms.

Now, our caffeine addiction is about to be further exacerbated as Commodity Coffee invades the Zaferia District with a pop-up that founder Alan Gomez—one of the founding baristas at Lord Windsor and a dude you’ll see randomly appear at practically every decent coffee joint on the West Coast—hopes to make a permanent addition.

Sitting as the northern neighbor to Working Class Kitchen on Coronado Ave. just north of Anaheim, Commodity took over a space that was, well, blocked.

“I had passed by and noticed that Working Class Kitchen had blocked off what is now our front entry way,” Gomez said. “So I contacted the owner, told him what I want to do, and moved in.”

The operation is super straight-forward: running on Sparklett jugs, a few electrical outlets, and a small-but-might La Marzocco espresso machine, Gomez is churning out fantastic espresso along with vinegar sodas—taking Pok Pok Som drinking vinegar with flavors like tamarind and mixing it with Topo Chico mineral water. The result? Deliciousness.

Eventually, Gomez is hoping to make Commodity an essential part of the Zaferia scene—one that he deeply admires.

“The community here is just welcoming,” Gomez said. “Urban Americana [the vintage market across the street] encourages Working Class and Commodity customers to hang out on their patio since we don’t have a parklet yet. It makes me want to invest in the area even more.”

Should timing and money prove aligned with his hopes in the near future, Commodity expects to do just that: invest itself as a permanent fixture.

Until then, pop in on this pop-up.

Commodity Coffee is located at 1322 Coronado Ave.