The Java Shack Coffeehouse

The best coffee in Washington DC is also available in Arlington! It's great to have top-tier specialty coffee in Northern Virginia, finally. The coffee, usually a light roast, is delicious. And the food -- biscuits and cinnamon rolls especially -- is just as good. Baristas are super friendly and knowledgeable, and it's a great place to hang out and talk or get work done while the music plays lightly in the background. Make sure to stop in for a cup!

Born in Washington, D.C., this location is Sweet Science Coffee's second location. (The first is in NoMa and previously Adams Morgan via a pop-up.) Within walking distance from the Courthouse Metro Station, it's along Wilson Blvd aka "Coffee Corridor." Within blocks of each other is a series of coffee shops- Kino Coffee, For Five, Rako and Sweet Science Coffee. Here's why you should visit Sweet Science Coffee: 1) Coffee (+ Technique): Brewing D.C.'s Small Planes Roastery beans, they are hyper local. To get the most out of the beans' flavor, they brew using seven different techniques. It's like watching a science experiment that turns out well every time. My latte was well balanced. 2) Space: It's a small space, but they make good use of it. It's well designed with a few tables and comfy chairs inside. There's a single bathroom inside and a medium-sized outside patio. There's an old mural on the side. 3) Amenities: They have free wifi and free dog biscuits!

This place rocks! This is one of my favorite shops period because they focus a lot on the techniques behind brewing, rather than just throwing good beans (but they do use good beans here). The espresso based drinks here are excellent--sometimes shops in this area tend to make something that has stronger milk flavors than coffee. The real highlight though is the pour overs here. They're experimental with their techniques and I promise you'll have a hard time finding this sort of stuff outside of a youtube video. The people running the shop are really friendly and love talking about coffee. The space itself is also quite cute.

Hurts me to say but I’ve got mixed feelings on my experience with Sweet Science. I visited due to the name more than anything else, but the products displayed for purchase pushed the desire further as it seemed as though they knew what they were doing. My espresso beverage was subpar for my expectations. I won’t say it was bad because it was ok, but for the price paid I wasn’t impressed.

A little hidden, low key, but very good. The only place I know of that will sell you a growler of matcha latte, so I knew they were confident in their drink, and I'm glad to report their confidence was not unfounded. Good clean flavor, not powdery, not too sweet, and at the end there wasn't even any powder at the bottom. All in all, best matcha latte I'I've had in Nova so far. Will be coming back.