Why Should I Go Out?

So it's about 930 on a Sunday morning. I'm sitting here, relaxing, letting my water boil next to a french press with coffee grounds staged inside. I've already lesuirely gone over my e-mail, fantasy baseball team, and wrapped up work on the news blog.

Excuse me...it's time to go pour the water.

So now I'm enjoying this nice little cup of coffee. I'm all relaxed. I'm sitting in my (somewhat) comfy chair. I'm sipping (sorta) nice coffee. And getting some work done, and some play, and some socializing. All while listening to some cool tunes.

So...why give this up and go to a coffee shop? I mean, I've got a lot going for me right here. Including not having to put on real clothes or shoes or anything. It also doesn't take any out-of-pocket expenses to sit here and drink my coffee and do my stuff. It's already bought and paid for, from within the budget.

Now THAT, my friends, is what a coffee shop is up against. Why go out when it's cheaper and more comfy to sit at home?

Miscellaneous Stops Deuce

Here's the 2nd part of my wrap-up of coffee shops and chains I've been to over the years.

While in Duluth, Minnesota on a romantic liason, I was introduced to Caribou Coffee. I...fell in love, basically, with the coffee shop (and the girl...but THAT is another story for another blog). A wood-cabin theme, dark and light roasts ready to serve, and unique espresso beverages (with candies in them!) all add up to make this a pleasant place. They offer free wifi (with purchase), and have a nice mix of comfy seats and workable tables. While still a big corporation (they ARE in fifteen states) they aren't completely corporate, and each store has it's own feel to it.

Another of my Colorado stops has been Coyote's Coffee Den. There are a number of these locations scattered across the Southwest of Colorado, from Canon City to Penrose to Pueblo. I've only ever hit the Penrose location, since that's a) where my sister works and b) it's on the way to everything civilized (read: Colorado Springs and Denver). They've got really nice coffee. Like, best mocha I've ever had. The Western motif is pretty neat too. Not the most comfortable place I've ever seen, but this place is set up more for commuter traffic than idlers like myself. They also have a kitchen where they do light breakfast and lunch far.

My latest discovery was a place called Coffee 'n' Cream, a coffee shop/soft serve place in Marriemont, on the East Side of Cincy. A tiny shop, run by a guy named Joe (not hanging-out-all-night-Joe) who gets really excited about his products. I've burned a bit of time listening to him tell me the difference between how he brews his iced coffee and his hot coffee. The coffee...really is good. I mean, fabulous. Pretty good pricing too. Not the most comfy, but with free wifi and s nice radio system, you're good for a 20 minute break or so from the day. And besides...you can get icecream there. Coffee and icecream together...the man needs an international prize of some sort.

So that's it. When I think coffee shops, I think of these places listed in the last two posts. I like them all, for different reasons. Ideally, I'd walk into a coffee shop that could encompass all of these traits...and since I don't think that's gonna happen, I may just have to open my own.

Miscellaneous Stops

There were other coffee shops I've been too, with Joe and on my own. Scattered across the country even. Coffee shops for the sake of coffee shops is what the game is all about, and whenever I see a new one I'm drawn to it.

One of my more favorite spots in Cincinnati is Lookout Joe's. It's a local business, for one thing. Roasts their own coffee (if you get there at the right time, you can watch them roasting...and THAT is cool). It's a neat space, very...I don't know the word. But it's a cross between a warehouse space and a loft apartment. The main issue there is parking, because Lookout Square is...well, cramped. It's a cute, scenic, older part of town and that means paying for or not even finding parking. The service tends to be a lil slow in the afternoon and evenings...only one person on duty with too much to do. I once waited 45 minutes for the poor girl to refill the coffee carafe

Another neat space is Coffee Emporium. I'd link you, but...their website seems to be pretty broken. It's an old house on Erie Ave in Hyde Park, and the first floor is all knick-knacky like a garage sale, and also where you find the bar. The second floor is all tables and chairs, reminiscent of a 1 room school house. The coffee was pretty good, and if you like older buildings this is a neat place to be. Again, parking is a bit of an issue...but usually you can find something on street.

One of the flat out coolest coffee shops I've ever been to is Java Moon in Denver, Colorado. It's closed now, but it was a store front with garage door windows, a cool center bar, and a kitchen with a really nice breakfast and lunch menu. There were plenty of booths, tables, and living room areas...and it was pretty yummy coffee. Joe and I once spent four or five hours chatting and catching up there...they had to kick us out. It's still in my mind as a template for the store I want to open.

I've got another post about cool coffee spots coming...I wrote it out in one huge thing, and realized...I don't want to put up a post this long. So till then, add some cream.

Moving, Part 2

While shopping for some shelf liners (some of our new closet shelves look pretty ugly) today, we went into a Target that had a Starbucks location inside. I love that cofee shop smell...it made me want to go spend money I didn't have more than the body pillow display did.

It's just dawned on me I don't have any handy coffee shops, unless you count the Starbucks inside our Kroger across the street. At the old place, I had an actualy Starbucks location (rarely visited, but still there) just down the road. Here, nothing.

You would think a guy like me would pay closer attention to that.

Of course, I did pay attention to the fact that a five minute drive will bring me to my favorite Columbus Dunkin Donuts location, so give me some credit ;-)

Moving, Part 1

I'm in the middle of a move, and few things are further from my mind than hanging out in coffee shops. Nevermind opening one.

I am glad to have my french press and kettle though...easy to transport, easy to set up. It was really good this morning!

Late Nights

A key element in Joe and I's coffee habits over the years was the hours we kept. You could call us night owls, I suppose...it wasn't unusual for us to meet up around 10pm one night and stay out till just before dawn.

There aren't many places open that late, friends and neighbors. Fewer that were good for 8 hours of hanging out.

So while we may not have been as comfortable as we would have liked, Dunkin Donuts and White Castle (both 24/7) became our primary haunts. We would shake things up by picking out different locations, and by visiting Starbucks when we did hang out during normal business hours.

Waffle House (24/7) became another favorite during this stretch, since you could get good food pretty cheap in a semi comfy environment. Their coffee is also quite good...an extremely smooth blend, a solid flavor without being overpowering. And it was a valuable extra stop in our rotation.
There was an aborted attempt to work Perkins (24/7) into the lineup...but after two or three tries (one night we waited nearly 20 minutes to simply get seated) we gave up. IHOP (24/7) eventually made it to Cincinnati, and this was a welcome change of pace...but very expensive. And their coffee sucks, to be totally honest.

We would frequently get frustrated at the lack of places to just...hang out with a cup of coffee. We didn't want to buy a meal all the time. Didn't wanna sit in our cars. Didn't wanna sit on a plastic chair while some guy waiting to mop glared at us. We just wanted a coffee shop that was open in the middle of the night.

Apparantly, that's just too much to ask.

Starbucks

Regardless of how you feel about Starbucks, it's pretty hard to avoid. And for someone just taking their first steps in the world of coffee shops in Midwestern Ohio, you can do much worse than them.

Starbucks has done a lot of good for the industry, I believe. They made the whole cafe culture cool, hip, and mainstream. They brought coffee shops to places that normally would never had heard of them...and while they've done some bad stuff by virture of being big and corporate, I think you can't discount the benefits either.

It was at a Starbucks in that I first got the feeling of community from a coffee shop. Joe and I knew a son of a friend there, and from that aquaintance came introductions to the rest of the staff. We became "regulars," with all the bantering and discounts that entails. It was a good time, since the set up and furniture was all conducive to sitting down for a spell.

[We found out later the only reason the discounts and zany antics (one of the barristas once poured a shot of espresso for Joe for almost three minutes; we expected the machine to shut down in protest) was because of a certain lack in management at this location. Once the new manager came in, things became less interesting more professional and more expensive regular priced.]

I also discovered I didn't really like Starbucks coffee. It's either far too dark, or far too burnt--depending on your take. Their espresso beverages are yummy as all get out...I still love a Starbucks white mocha, and who can resist a coffee frappacino?? But they're pricey, and loaded with calories that you really can't consume all night long.

The take away? Starbucks has done some good things for the coffee industry. I like the community you can get (at least, could get...and in some locations, it IS coming back like their plan states) and the coffee house atmosphere, including comfy furniture. However, I'm not that crazy about the near-cookie cutter feel, the prices, or even the coffee.

Enter the Coffee Shop

One of the clearest and fondest memories I have of my high school days revolves around Dunkin Donuts. I had a car of my own, money in my pocket, and now had the chance to stop at yummy food places when I went out.

One of the first stops I made was Dunkin Donuts. I had tried their coffee before, on trips to Massachusetts to visit family. I had vague memories that it was good stuff, but to be honest it'd been a while. I'd become accustomed to...lesser brews, shall we say.

I became hooked after my first stop, and I had a bad habit of showing up late to my weekly volunteer gig because I couldn't help but go out of my way to the nearest Dunkin Donuts. It was magical. I craved it. The smoothest, sweetest blend ever.

About this time Joe arrived on the scene. We met and stuck up a friendship based primarily on two things: Mutual like for Billy Joel and love for coffee. It was with Joe I discovered the pleasure of just "getting a cup of coffee," as well as White Castle coffee (Darker than DD, but just as smooth and with a touch of mocha to it).

Dunkin Donuts is a nice place to sit, eat something sweet, and drink some fine java. But it's not very comfy, the chairs are NOT for lounging, and the whole atmosphere is geared (quite correctly) towards commuter breakfast people: get in, get out, get to work. White Castle? It's a fast food burger joint. Again, fabulous coffee...but not some place you can sit and relax. And neither of these places is really conducive to creating a rapport with the staff (food service turnover being what it is).

Of course, one really can't explore the joys of coffee in American society without at least TRYING Starbucks...

Java at Home

However you first took to your first cup ("This jet fuel is the best thing ever!" or "I need a cow and a sugar cane plantation, stat!"), you prolly didn't lose interest. Life became about finding more. Always more.

I was both fortunate and unfortunate in this respect. Unfortunate in the sense my parents didn't drink coffee in the home, but fortunate in that they bought a french press for tea around the same time I discovered coffee. A grinder for spices was also a recent purchase, and both press and grinder were commandeered to create caffeinated goodness.

And so what could have died as puppy love, a forgotten fling with an occaisonal cup, was cementing into a truly dedicated relationship. I became facinated with the brewing and drinking of coffee. Wondering how to make each cup tastier than the last. I experimented with different amounts and fineness of grinds. Different flavors. Different water temperatures. I even convinced myself at one point the size of mug affected the enjoyment of my coffee (to this day, I don't really own "standard" coffee mugs).

Then, one day, one of us dropped the french press while cleaning it. Not working yet, I had no funds to replace it or find another method of brewing (my mother was already concerned about the effects of caffeine on her children and was rather coy about buying a replacement press). My coffee sources dried up to the "interesting" brew at the museum I volunteered at, and occaisonally at a restaurant.

It wasn't until my first job at a summer camp that my passion for coffee would be rekindled...and soon on the heels of that would come regular employment, a driver's license, and companionship...all three would change the face of coffee for me forever.