G&B Shake at the Grand Central Market

A glance at the chalkboard menu indicates little of how nuanced the G&B shake at the new G&B Coffee shop inside Grand Central Market turns out to be. There's no description of the milkshake, not even an extra word or two for context — not that it would help much. There's been too few good coffee milkshakes that could serve as precedence.

There are just three ingredients in a G&B shake: vanilla bean ice cream from Straus Family Creamery, two double shots of espresso and whole milk. There's confidence behind G&B's simple recipe of premium ingredients and that should indicate just how good the resulting combination is.

It's a thinner milkshake than most, arriving at the point at which many of us prefer our milkshakes anyway — ice cream slightly melted and yet still creamy. It's pleasurably easy to drink. No spoons necessary; this is no custard. Your mind will register each flavor with each sip: vanilla bean, espresso and milk, discrete and together. It's probably one of the most sophisticated shake you'll come across.

G&B Coffee opened at the Grand Central Market, near its Hill Street entrance earlier this month. It's one in the string of additions slated for the Downtown institution.

At $7.25, the price for a milkshake would be steep anywhere — but the cost hasn't seemed to dampen demands. On a second stop-by, the shake was sold out.

According to co-founder Charles Babinski (who is the 'B' in 'G&B'; Kyle Glanville supplies the 'G'), it was more popular than expected. Happily, they're now working on mocha and matcha shakes too.

See also:

– 10 Best Milkshakes in Los Angeles

– Now Open: The Sqirl Cafe With G&B Coffee

– 10 Places to Get a Damn Good Cup of Coffee

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.