On Sept. 28, popular coffee and matcha shop rōk officially opened its doors in Little Tokyo, marking its fifth location in Los Angeles. Considered the best matcha spot in the city by the food rating app Beli, rōk’s new location drew residents from around the Little Tokyo district.
First-time customer Abigail Jimenez noted the Little Tokyo location allows for easier access to the shop.
“I feel like the Koreatown rōk would always be packed,” Jimenez said. “This one is closer to us, so it’s a little more convenient.”
rōk began 2026 with a single shop located on Olympic Boulevard in Koreatown. But through their massive popularity and intrigue about their drinks, rōk has since expanded all throughout the city, with locations in Studio City, Silver Lake and now Little Tokyo.
The Little Tokyo opening in particular gives rōk a presence in Downtown Los Angeles, especially with its building being next to the Little Tokyo / Arts District Metro Station.
Customer Tricha Kurup said that the Little Tokyo location provides accessibility in a way the original location in Koreatown couldn’t, adding that before the Little Tokyo opening she had never visited.
“It’s nice that they put a proper matcha spot on this side of town,” Kurup said. “Koreatown has a lot of really good matcha spots, but it’s less accessible to a lot of different parts of LA.”
rōk primarily offers coffee and matcha, with its most popular drink being its Matcha Duo. The Matcha Duo is a traditional matcha latte with matcha cream on top. What makes rōk especially popular among matcha fans is its wide variety of Matcha Duo flavors.
On top of its original Matcha Duo, rōk offers additional flavors such as strawberry and mango, with the fruit at the bottom of the drink for a unique matcha experience.
“[rōk] has different flavors that other matcha places don’t have,” said customer So Herrera, who was pulled into the location for its variety of flavors.
The opening of rōk provides yet another location for matcha fanatics to enjoy in Little Tokyo, contributing to a long lineup of preexisting matcha spots in the district such as Matsu Matcha and Cafe Dulce.
Herrera and Jimenez say that even with competing matcha chains, they were still motivated to visit the newly opened rōk, citing that the variety of flavors makes them want to keep visiting the location.
“It’s always good to have a new spot because we like to try new matcha places to see which one we like.”