Hola FTC’ers,
I have found myself volunteering to pick up a friend from LAX, but they arrive at the most “perfect” hour of 5:00 p.m. on a weekday. (shudder) 
My plan is to try and beat traffic getting to the LAX area earlier, and hang out somewhere for an hour or so and then pick them up.
Thanks!
Ouch.
I’m really trying to think of a better answer than Starbucks (Sepulveda & La Tijera) which has a clover (some of the single origins aren’t awful). Protip the Westchester handwash right there is does a fantastic car wash even though it might take them the whole hour to wash your car. Original Brooklyn water bagel is right in that area as well as is Panera
Edited to add that Superba Food & Bread is near by and reasonably close to LAX. It’s more chow-worthy but I’ve never been to that location so I don’t know how easy/hard it is to get work done there but I’ve always liked the coffee at the original location.
Two Guns has a lunch location in Downtown El Segundo they` close by 5 tho’. David’s Tea has a location in the Fox Hills Mall and there a nice tucked away seating area above the target. Blue Bottle is in Playa Vista, but the parking situation there is the pits. But if you go after hours, it might not be so bad. Finally one of my favorite choice is El Limon in inglewood, excellent agua frescas and cool vibe…
–Dommy!
Wow, that’s a tough one. I usually head elsewhere for coffee when I’m staying in Westchester (Culver City, Playa del Rey, El Segundo, or Venice). Most coffee shops and cafes in Westchester close mid-afternoon (and I wouldn’t necessarily rate them as “decent” anyways). If there is a spot, I’d like to know about it too!
Was going to rec Two Guns. Parking for Playa Vista Blue Bottle isn’t bad. The street parking turnover is frequent. BB will also validate for one hour in the parking structure. You’ll see a fair amount of dogs too. Along with Two Guns, BB probably has the best coffee/espresso (and a couple of nice teas) in the general area between PV and El Segundo. Have your friend wait upstairs on the departure level - a lot easier.
If all else fails, DIY with your home primo luxxe coffee (something from Sergio perhaps) in a to-go-sippy-cup and work from your car until said pickup time.
Thanks @aaqjr @Dommy @bulavinaka @chinchi @Sgee @ipsedixit for the great suggestions! 
Interesting idea to get a car wash done to kill the time.
For Two Guns, how’s the parking?
@ipsedixit what do you recommend at Cafe Cuba (not a full meal though, since I’ll be heading to dinner straight after).
Thanks.
A Pastelitos de Guayaba and a café con leche
Have you tried Equelecuá Cuban Cafe in Inglewood? (Near LAX for OP) I’ve been curious about this vegan Cuban eatery given the positive Yelp reviews, but I usually opt for pork when I eat Cuban food that I haven’t yet tried it 
Their cafes and hot drinks are made with coconut, rice, soy or almond milk.
No, I haven’t.
I’m usually not a fan of eating vegan, unless I’m drinking water.
I have. The peccadillo and arroz con pollo are good, so are all the basic sides (beans, tostones, rice). Everything I’ve tried was well seasoned and flavorful, and the balance of textures is well done. My omnivore son and his vegan friend both liked it too.
I wasn’t impressed with the baked goods from this place. Grabbed a lot of stuff on a Saturday morning. I didn’t feel any of the items I picked up were worth returning for.
I know you were asking Ipse, but:
Not a problem. There is a parking lot in the back or in the structure on the corner. Street parking as well.
–Dommy!
Most places are better than Portos. The crust on Portos is minimal now as they want the line to move fast.
–Dommy!
Agreed. We just got some potato balls and ham croquettes over the weekend from the Burbank location, and the crust on the potato balls was so thin that they were basically falling apart when I heated them up in my air fryer. I’ve never had that issue before. And the ham croquettes were not as browned as they normally are, so I ended up air frying them a couple minutes extra to get a darker crust to them too.
Like others mentioned, Two Guns in El Segundo was the first place that popped into my mind. But everyone has a big but. And in this case, that big but is that there is no wifi. Not a problem if you have a hot spot, but just a consideration if you’re going to be working.
Thank you! I’ll give it a try the next time I’m in town.
I don’t doubt that, but I haven’t tried that many Cuban spots so I just used Porto’s as an example.