Nestled in the heart of Del Mar a few feet from the beloved Board & Brew, lies Little Joy coffee bar. Starting as Del Mar locals’ favorite coffee cart in 2019, the cart was formerly operated by Zumbar Coffee & Tea but the cart quickly grew popular and owner, Drew Jeglinski, seized the opportunity to open a location across the street.
Little Joy is the epitome of a friendly neighborhood coffee shop, serving some of the best coffee that can be found in San Diego. The cafe serves finely crafted espresso drinks, teas, coffees and delicious pastries.
Upon entering, Jeglinski greets each customer with a big smile and optimistic persona. Jeglinski grew up in Massachusetts and moved to San Diego 13 years ago.
“I actually kind of always wanted to [open a coffee shop],” Jeglinski said. “I went to Italy when I went to college, so I kind of fell in love with cafe culture, the idea of community and meeting places. And then when I was in graduate school, I started getting into coffee itself. It was a long arc [though], I was a teacher for about 25 years before.”
I ordered an Iced Latte ($5.50) and I can truly say it is the best latte in Del Mar. The coffee is simply high-quality and well made, coffee traits in which I find oddly difficult to find in our area.
Their menu is simplistic, serving cappuccinos, macchiatos and chai lattes, free of added flavors that would take away from the luscious coffee itself. They do make a house-made vanilla syrup that may be added upon request.
“We try to do the most high-end coffee that we can, but at the same time it’s more about the community, meeting people,” Jeglinski said. “All of our customers have become friends, it’s kind of cool to see everybody in the morning catching up with each other.”
In the 10 minutes that I was at the coffee shop, I witnessed Jeglinski and his coworker converse with locals on a first name basis, other customers meet up to chat and catch up and people build a true community.
“[Little Joy] is kind of like our creation, I consider it like a fun art project, as opposed to a business,” Jeglinski said.
