SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – San Francisco’s Mission District is known as an epicenter of the coffee world.
Alongside the District’s stunning murals and ubiquitous taco joints, the Mission has tons of coffee shops and bespoke roasters–Sightglass, Sextant, Rise & Grind, and many more.
But the Mission District is also building a reputation for something else: Japanese matcha tea.
I stopped by Stonemill Matcha to try their matcha latte. Stonemill is the Mission District’s best matcha place, with lines often extending down the block at busy times.
Stonemill Matcha is located at 561 Valencia street. It has a lovely, understated dark blue and gold exterior with a few tables by the sidewalk. You might miss it if you were walking back and weren’t specifically looking for it.
Inside, Stonemill Matcha has a small dining room with Japanese minimalist decor. It’s light wood with a Zen garden feel.
There’s a counter where you can order your matcha latte. Their menu features several different variants on the traditional matcha latte, as well as sweets and small plates.
I ordered an iced rose matcha latte.
Japanese matcha is an intensely flavorful and concentrated green tea. It has a brilliant (and totally natural) green color, and needs to be labor-intensely whisked into milk to make a matcha latte.
Stonemill offers a variety of milk and milk alternative options. I went with whole milk, because whole milk is delicious!
My matcha latte was awesome, with a subtle rose flavor, a deep emerald green color, and light sweetness. I like very sweet tea, so I found I needed to add a bit of simple syrup to bump up the taste a bit.
Stonemill’s matcha also avoids hitting you over the head with flavor or bitterness. It’s light and not at all overpowering.
I drank my matcha latte while walking around the Mission District. Matcha is caffeinated, but doesn’t have as much caffeine as a cup of coffee. I also find that it doesn’t make me as jittery as coffee can. There’s a calmness to sipping matcha that’s nice.
It made the perfect drink for my Mission District walk. I definitely recommend checking out Stonemill Matcha the next time you’re in the city.
