I'm sitting at Thomas Hammer coffee shop waiting for some of my students (I teach through the University of Phoenix) and thinking about coffee shops. The fabled city of black beans is of course Seattle and I don't know how many coffee shops are there but right here in Boise, I count five within five blocks of my present location.
And no, I'm not counting Starbucks as I have issues with them....
I think coffee shops are a window into a city's soul - see Ray Oldenburg's "The Great Good Place". Boise has an eclectic mix. Thomas Hammer is kind of the hip urban coffee shop - it's empty right now so what does that tell you? Across the street Dawson's Downtown is doing a steady if not brisk business this drizzly Saturday morn. It's more Boise style - local, a little quirky, friendly. Flying M coffee shop caters to the alternative crowd in Boise, all three of them. I think they take their "otherness" too seriously, pretentiously even. Java City is my personal favorite. It has the right atmosphere: small tables and comfortable leather club chairs, original art, and staffed by what appears to be a collection of ex-Tower Records employees. Try the "bowl of soul" if you find yourself in Boise some morning with nothing to do in a hurry.
What does your town's soul look like?
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