Rooted Kava Bar

Great Kava and outstanding customer service. 10 out of 10 would do again. Joshua the bartender is extremely knowledgeable and the other consumers were also very friendly. Super cool place.

Came here a week or two ago with my partner. Our first experience with Kava, which was cool, and the kavatender was really nice and informative. Gave us the low down and all things kava and away we went! Slammed down a few bowl, (we went in on buy one get one Sunday’s). They had a few different flavors, and you drink it out of bowls, which I thought was cool. I’d definitely go back, cool little atmosphere, lots of locals and regulars.

I live around the corner, been there three times after work and attempted to order coffee, each time barista tells me ‘our coffee machine is down’. Why is the coffee menu displayed if you are unable to make coffee? Am I being discriminated against for some reason?

After spending $ 55 I felt a very slight just-​took-​half-​a-​Vicodin feeling. From everything I read about kava beforehand I guess it has a «reverse tolerance» thing going on so I knew my first time drinking it was going to be expensive. I would go back again and work on that tolerance if it weren’t for the fact that the place absolutely reeked of cigarettes. I quit smoking them recently (2 years ago but hey addiction is tough) and being there was anything but relaxing for me. I left with a headache. Also when we got there they were blasting Green Day so if that paired with second hand smoke is your idea of a chill vibe then cool– you might love this place.

Initially looking for a place to enjoy a cup of tea to recenter for a bit. Came in and was greeted by staff like family. Fresh and relaxing enviorment. Was introduced to kava for the first time. Definitely ¹⁰⁄₁₀ will return and invite a friend! Adjacent room adores excellent artwork from various local artists.

Honesty if you have been in search for the best acai bowl in the world. look no further. John is the master acai maker and bestows his magical powers every time we come in into making these majestic bowls of heaven. With coconut shavings, fresh to death bananas, strawberries with sweet honey from the Himalayas (ok maybe not from the Himalayas) it’s a treat that will have you hooked. The owner is always there and is also a really down to earth chill guy. Definitely worth going out of your way to get this. I want an acai bowl now…

I stopped by here on my way to a different coffee shop. I had seen this place in passing a few times and it seems to always have people hanging out there. So I figured maybe I try a new place today.
I got the maca acai bowl, $ 9, and the tumeric elixir. At $ 9 it is on the pricier side of acai bowls but the ingredients did seem better but at 40% more than other places don’t think I’ll be getting it from here again. The tumeric elixir was premade and was just heated up when I ordered it. I never had anything like this before but if you like yellow curry you will like this drink. That’s how I would describe the taste.
I may have made a mistake and not gotten the kava, which is what this place is known for. So I may go back for that in the future. And the big plus of this place is the layout. It has a good amount of tables and a bar and the outside patio is pretty awesome. I can see this as a great place to get a group together and just hang out with a healthy drink.

This is my hangout, my community, my Cheers. When I want to study during the day, hear local experimental acts Thursday nights or just hang out and enjoy the warm energy of good friends, I go to Rooted. BULA!

Staff incredibly friendly and informative! A great place to totally relax, unwind and chill especially if your shoulders have been touching your ears: this place is for you!

Top of the line service and AWSOME people. When I come to this place I feel at home… Kava is great and when j show up I know at least half of the people… Always putting on events and always taking care of the customers. better yet there is a big screen and all major sports event are being broadcast. Highly recommended and with spread the word about how rooted is #1 kava bar in SD. DILLON IS A TOP OF THE LINE BUSINESS OWNER AND HIM AND GLENN ARE A DYNAMITE DUO AND TAG TEAM PARTNERS IN MAKING A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS

Great staff, very helpful! Cacao acai bowl was delicious! Swamp kava was good. Quiet inside during the afternoon. –1 star for the price tag and all the awful smoke on the back patio, despite the «no smoking» signs.

This is one of my favorite spots in Hillcrest. The owners run a wonderful business and the employees are all so friendly and helpful. The establishment is always clean and is a pleasure to walk into. Good Vibes! They have amazing events here and an open mic night on Thursday evenings. Super fun.
My favorite drink there is the Swamp Kava. It’s a green juice mixed in with the kava. It’s absolutely delicious.
Another great drink is the Tumeric elixir which is Tumeric mixed with soy milk topped with cinnamon and pepper.
Great place!!! I love it!!! One of my favorite spots. I’ll keep coming back!

This is probably the most under-​appreciated establishment in North Park. Kava itself is wonderful at the end of a day, put you right to sleep. They serve pineapple or guava juice to wash it down.
But the biggest draw of the place is the ambience. They have a tree built throughout the place, cushions, oversized chairs, incense burning and live music occasionally. It’s about to be quite the popular place, I think :) and as it should.

I like to go to the kava bars on the opposite coast, so while visiting The west side of the country I stumbled upon this place.
I went during the day. The front of the room had a bit of a medicinal/​clinical feel to it. sitting at the bar was a little more homey.
The servers were friendly and helpful in deciphering the menu and introducing kava to he newbies. They allowed us to try the flavors before committing to anything and gave us some really good recommendations.
I got a double of the peach mango coconut kava.
I’ve never had a flavored kava before so it was a pleasant experience, dulled the bitter earthy flavor nicely.
I also wanted to try the acai bowl which people seemed to be raving about. After having it I would definitely recommend. It’s served with your choice of topping. I got a mix of granola and hemp.
I would definitely want to try this place again although I would want to come back at night to see more of the crowd. It was pretty empty during the day.
But I was told there is live music at night and that’s when all the locals come out to play.

Me and my boyfriend came here as our first kava bar experience. We drink kava on a regular basis (we make it ourself).
The experience there is beyond amazing! We came during happy hour, so got our drinks for a lot cheaper; $ 12 for two double flavored drinks and ordered many of them! The ambiance is mellow earlier in the evening, and more vibrant and happy later on.
The kava makes you feel very relaxed and euphoric, we love it! I definitely recommend Rooted to anyone that wants to relax and be social, and get a really amazing buzz, without the sloppy, messed up feeling like at a bar with alcohol, as well as without the dui and other risks that come from alcohol

Background: I had my introduction to kava early 2015 at a kava bar in Berkeley (
, which I highly recommend if you’re ever in Berkeley). A wide-​eyed man with flowing hair and beard stepped out of the counter and guided me through the kava drinking experience. Because of that particular experience I became a fan of kava, preferring it to alcohol as my drink of choice for a winding down drink. I also use his spiel when explaining kava to others who never tried it before.
CONCEPT: So what is kava? Instead of rewriting the spiel, it’s easier to rehash it from my Berkeley kava bar review.
«Kava (Piper methysticum) is an asexual pepper plant grown and cultivated throughout the South Pacific. It also refers to a drink made from the ground-​up stump (rhizome) and lateral roots from the plant diluted in water. It is weaved into the cultural fabric of the islands as either a sacred substance only consumed in special ceremonies or used more recreationally as an alternative to alcohol without all the negative side effects.
The pharmacology of kava is derived from various combinations of six different types of kavalactones extracted from the lateral root, which are responsible for kava’s euphoric, anxiolytic (anti-​anxiety) and sedative effects without reducing mental clarity, commonly associated with ethanol (hence my preference). The half-​life of kava is around 9 – 10 hours and for chronic users, reverse tolerance makes the consumer needing less to achieve the full effect. Different islands have different combinations in various concentrations of the main six kavalactone compounds… Unfortunately the lateral root does not have a pleasant taste and the purpose of the rhizome is to smooth out the taste of the final product.
The best way to experience kava is in the pure form, which by itself is supposed to taste like… dilute dirt. Within the first minute you’ll experience a numbing sensation, but this is normal. What happens at least fifteen minutes later is one of the two main reasons why I became a (fan of kava): its euphoric, anxiolytic and sedative effects. The equivalent feeling is like me getting out of well-​done full body massage and dozing off 30 minutes later.»
VENUE: Rooted is one of two kava bars in San Diego on the Hillcrest side of University. Like many Hillcrest businesses parking is limited. A downside about the location is that it is somewhat distant from the main hubbub of the Hillcrest businesses between Fourth and Sixth Ave, which means a longer walk than usual if traversing from that area.
The interior has a tranquil vibe, a cross between a New Age shop and a yoga studio. There’s a tree that grows inside, giving additional life and shade to the shop. There are several chairs and a couch towards the entrance and the bar is towards the back.
SERVICE: To compare this to MeloMelo would be quite unfair to Rooted, as the guy who first served me kava in Berkeley was the other main reason why I kept on going back weekly — he was quite the charmer and was one of the very few bartenders that I talked to regularly. Though I don’t have as much of a relationship with the staff at Rooted, they still can serve me a decent cup the right way down to the «Bula!» toast. When I took the No1DP here he also appreciated the service he got and gave her a good tip.
If one knows their kava the owners are knowledgable and passionate about the varietals they use but the owners didn’t seem as enthusiastic about the different varietals as the MeloMelo owners.
KAVA: Rooted’s kava varietal is a 70 – 30 lateral root/​rhizome combination from the Solomon Islands. This results in a more subdued initial «hit» and an easier progression to being mellow than the Vanuatu strains. I’m not too sure of the kavalactone combination of Solomon Islands kava that leads to this effect.
Rooted’s kava servings come in single and double half-​shells. Flavors consist of pure and two flavors of the day, with one flavor always coconut. They also have «boosts» containing 30% kavalactone concentrate for those that can’t feel the effect, which is added into the drink.
I’m used to the Vanuatu varietal as the effects are stronger — think of it as the strength difference of medium and bold coffee. Rooted serves a decent cup but compared to the Vanuatu varietal it is more watery and the euphoric aftereffects are less pronounced on me. If combined with another flavor I end up tasting the other flavor more, such as strawberry lemonade or coconut. My recommendation for first-​timers is kava with coconut water as it takes away some of the earthiness of the kava.
I highly recommend people to try kava as it achieves alcohol’s sedation effects without the apparent risk of DUI. If Rooted wasn’t such a far drive I would visit here more often to get my weekly kava fix to help me destress.

This review is based off of only one visit, but I stayed there for quite a long time as I was grading summer school papers. When I arrived, the ambiance was very relaxing and laid back. The place smelled pleasant of very, very subtle incense (I didn’t even think I liked incense) and the place was relatively quiet with some relaxing jazz playing in the background. The gentleman working the counter was extremely attentive and polite and put off a very relaxing vibe that matched the overall atmosphere. He prepared the best açai bowl (the Cacao Crunch priced at $ 9) I have had in my life. I was going to try the kava, but after seeing that they serve one of my favorite kombucha (Health Aide’s Cayenne Cleanse, priced at $ 6 CRV included), I opted for that. My stay during his shift was flawless and had my experience ended there, this would be a 5-​star review.
However, past a certain time of day, things become a bit louder and smellier. With the shift change came a total shift in atmosphere that destroyed the relaxed vibe I had enjoyed earlier. This alone wasn’t enough to warrant the subtraction of two stars. The thing that really unnerved me was all the smoke from the smoking that is allowed directly in front of the building. I get it; it’s another way people unwind and not a whole lot of places allow it any more, but I think there’s a good reason for that. It’s gross and it ruined an otherwise relaxing experience. That’s why now I’m mixed on this place.

This place is the Spa of Coffee Shops.
Kava definitely is an acquired taste, but you only live once! I have ordered Double Flavored (Coconut) High Tide twice now, with an Acai Bowl and Grilled Cheese (I’m a hungry guy!) and they’ve been amazing both times! Definitely planning to bring friends down to enjoy this atmosphere. Staff are so personable!

I’ve tried Kava here for the first time. I’ve lived in Hawaii before and it’s a shame that I’ve never drank kava when I was there (it’s referred to as «awa» over there). It’s because I wasn’t a foodie back then
What’s kava? It’s a drink that’s widely consumed in the South Pacific from countries such as Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, and more.
The people of those countries have great respect for kava. When I first heard about kava and how important it is to the people in the South Pacific, that’s when I wanted to try it. The drink is also said to ease the mind and help with social anxiety.
So, I’ve invited my friend with me to try kava here for the first time.
Here’s what I ordered
A regular kava, a coconut flavored kava, and a grilled PB & J sandwich.
The regular kava was extremely bitter. It’s true, I’ve read that it tastes like mud and it really does. It also tastes like something from the ground like dirt or grass. Still, I finished it like a champ. I’ll be honest, I didn’t notice any sedating effects. Kava is well known for that and the kava here didn’t hit me.
The coconut flavored kava is still bitter. You taste a VERY tiny amount of coconut in it but in general, it’s still extremely bitter like a regular kava. I still didn’t feel any sedating effects from it…
The grilled PB & J is pretty good but a little pricey for me. I consider Subway a better deal than it.
All in all, I like this bar and the fact that they serve kava, which is a drink not too common here in the mainland.

Amazing kava joint! Very casual vibe with good jams and great atmosphere.
In case you’re wondering what kava is, it’s a root from the South Pacific islands that possesses analgesic properties and is good for anxiety and depression as well as muscle pain. Every few days, they get new kava flavors such as lemonade, mango, coconut and berry. They’re delicious and easy to shoot back in order to get the best of the healing properties! The girls behind the bar are always smiling and have great high spirits!
Recently they’ve expanded their menu and added amazing paninis and wraps as well as acai bowls and pastries. I love coming here for a healthy snack and some kava on a week night when the place is relatively empty. Check out their bookshelf by the giant tree for some great occult reads and tarot cards!