NIGHT SHIFT : Java Jungle Serves a Cool Cupful

Finding somewhere to extend your night past the hour when bars and clubs close is nearly impossible in Orange County. Sure, there are standbys like Denny’s, but a Grand Slam at 2 a.m. doesn’t sound appetizing if you’re still in the mood for cool. The place to be--if you’re anywhere near downtown Huntington Beach--is Java Jungle, which will serve up gourmet coffees and herbal teas past the posted 3 a.m. closing if there’s a crowd.

Local boys Scott Cochran, Kevin Stonoff and Chip Rowland opened the Jungle in December, 1991, when the coffeehouse scene in the county was just beginning to percolate as a place where they and their buds could come and hang out. The parking lot doubles as a basketball court, and skate demos take place during the summer.

This is not your New Age coffeehouse, where people come to meditate to soothing tunes. A wall jukebox plays compact discs by a variety of bands: Stones, Sex Pistols, Smashing Pumpkins. Even after midnight, the speakers boom loud enough that it sometimes requires yelling over the music.

The coffeehouse has undergone a few changes since it first opened, says Rowland, who also owns the HB-based streetwear label Soul. The younger, rougher crowd the place initially attracted has been replaced by a more mellow bunch and some house rules. Among them: a one-drink minimum (strictly enforced--to keep the transients out, say the owners), no drugs or alcohol, no gambling and no loitering. (The last rule is amusing--and apparently not enforced--as most patrons reportedly linger idly for hours here.)

Another rule addresses those who like to walk on the wild side: “Drink coffee and play games at your own risk.” The “games” are a video casino that sits on the counter and a pool table and pinball machine that dominate two back rooms.

Patronage at Java Jungle is still predominantly young, but more Bohemian than bad-ass; employees and customers alike are a mix of high school and college scenesters, neo-beats and punks and beach bums--but few squares.

Young professionals and the surf crew begin converging before sunrise for a jolt (the place opens at 5 a.m.), as do other locals of all ages throughout the day. But as night falls, Java Jungle becomes the alternative to nightclubs and bars.

It has all the usual trappings of a groovy coffeehouse: amateur artwork; a cracked, concrete floor that shows faded signs of a mural worn by foot traffic; mixed dining sets of ‘50s Formica tables and ugly ‘70s seats.

Besides coffee ($1 a cup, 75 cents for refills), Java Jungle sells espresso ($1), mocha ($2.25), cappuccino and latte ($2), as well as its own caffeine concoctions such as a mocha with cherry syrup drink called a Black Forest ($2.75) and three shots of espresso topped with whipped cream called the Shaka-la-kandra ($2). Most coffee drinks come in double servings for 50 cents more.

If coffee isn’t your poison, try flavored steamers ($2), hot chocolate ($1.50), tea, sodas, Snapple or bottled water (all $1). If your belly growls, quell it with gourmet bagels, muffins, pastries, cereal or candy bars (from 75 cents to 1.50).

* JAVA JUNGLE

* 602 Pacific Coast Highway, Huntington Beach.

* (714) 969-9697.

* Open daily from 5 a.m.; closes at around 1:30 a.m. Sunday through Thursday, 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

* No cover.