Coffee Culture
 

Having moved to London some 8 months ago, I've been exposed to "coffee culture" for the first time in my life and quite frankly I just don't know what I make of it all. Won't lie, this thread's a bit of a strange one - just some excerpts from my daily ponderings, nothing profound.

Perhaps one of the first things that baffled me was the pricing - I know I'm in a Capital City, but £3 (what, roughly $5?) for a single drink seems baffling...I still pay it, and this is perhaps the strangest thing - how quickly we've all accepted this.

Onwards we move to cliché city - the writers. Those solitary figures who sit for sometimes hours at a time writing on their laptops and periodically ordering a drink. We've all heard the jokes and teasing aimed at these chaps. Whilst I now think it's a self perpetuating phenomenon (they go because it's well known that that's where they go), where did it start? What advantage does an overpriced busy public space have over ones own home for the creative process?

Then the oversaturation of the market. Starbucks may be the most famous, but quite frankly (in England at least), the streets are just as full of Prets, Costas, Lavazzas and Caffé Neros. Besides subtle differences in price and one or two menu differences, these places all seem pretty identical in both product and aesthetic. Whilst I understand that there are a lot of people to feed, but just...well, just how do all these competing shops stay afloat?


Again, these are nothing more than my idle walking-to-class ruminations but I need answer, goddammit!

Well, they "stay afloat" (thrive, actually) by fulfilling a public demand. Simple economics. Over here we've gone well past the old joke of Starbucks right across the street from each other; now there are office buildings with 2 or 3 Starbucks. At the mall I used to work in when someone asked me where the Starbucks was, I had to ask, "Which one?" Hell, our LIBRARIES have Starbucks in them.

I speak as an outsider of this phenomena, myself. I never picked up the habit, but it's a basic component of modern working life- if you need stimulants to make it through the day, coffee is a satisfying, socially acceptable way to get them, as opposed to, say, snorting coke. I don't draw the parallel lightly- they're both dangerous, highly addictive drugs.

A coffee shop is also a convenient, socially acceptable place to meet and socialize without having to imbibe alcohol. They're also a lot easier to carry on a conversation in, as opposed to bars, which can often be noisy.

Aside from the high blood pressure, heart problems and other medical conditions over-consumption of coffee can cause, "coffee culture" seems relatively harmless.

Somewhere in England, in 1653, the first coffee klatsch opens. Until then, the water being too nasty to drink, alcohol was the dominant form of liquid consumption. Liquor, as you know, is a depressant.

With this new establishment serving coffee, a stimulant, you now have a setting where alert people are sitting, talking, & exchanging information. Within 50 years, you have The Enlightenment.

Coffee FTW! ::smile::

Love coffee, hate the coffee shop.

I've never been a big coffee drinker, at most 3 cups a day. Usually just 2. After being diagnosed with high blood pressure last year, my doctor has cut me down to 1 cup of regular a day. I can have as much decaf as I want. It wasn't a struggle for me. I have friends who drink coffee all day long. I couldn't do that. I would end up with a headache, stomachache, and the jitters. As for the coffee shops, I make my own at home and put it in a travel mug. Unless I'm at the mall and feel the needs for a cup, I'll stop at Dunkin Donuts.

If I go out to the book store or want something to drink while out at Target or the mall I'll always hit up Starbucks. I don't mind paying extra for the convenience of being able to get a peppermint mocha with an extra shot to sip on while out and about.

That's an interesting and apt parallel to make, I think. People joke about caffeine addiction but it's true; I get headaches and feel slightly sick if I don't have my big cup of coffee in the morning. In fact I'm drinking iced coffee that I brewed at home right now...

I don't typically drink coffee throughout the day (maybe a diet soda or green tea in the afternoon if I need a pick-me-up); if I have too much I get anxious, sick, and jittery.

As for the culture around going to a coffee shop and paying the $5+ for a cup of coffee, I don't necessarily participate in that (unless I want a fancy frozen coffee beverage that I can't brew at home)... But my lack of participation is more about me saving money and personal preference - I love Peet's coffee but there aren't any stores near me so I buy it and brew it at home.

What I do like about coffee shops are that they're a convenient place for a meetup/stopover... Have a few minutes before dinner? Grab a coffee - Have a few minutes after dinner? Grab a coffee - It's easy and comforting to dip into especially during the winter.

To answer your questions, and not that I have expertise in all of them...

Paying that price for coffee I also find bizarre. But like a bar, it's about the environment more than the product. It's a place for people to meet and talk - there's no booming music, it's cheaper than a buying food at a restaurant, and nobody has to clean their house for multiple guests.

I don't frequent them by choice. But if I'm meeting there, I like getting a tasty mint chocolate latte. I certainly don't have those at home, although I could make an inferior one for 1/10th the price, but it's not that important to me.

Yes, I'd never want the distractions of writing in a Starbucks over writing at home. But I suppose some folks have worse distractions at home (kids, etc). And some find inspiration with a change of environment, and seeing and listening to conversations. I can't imagine any writer goes to a coffee shop to sit alone as some sort of status symbol or customary requirement.

They stay afloat by making a profit on high priced coffee.

Thanks for referencing the negative health effects of coffee. As an avid NPR listener, through the years I had never heard any research that found conclusive negative health effects. I'm beginning to think that's not the case, and we should also be looking at short term effects as opposed to narrow long term effects.

I found this article online just googling. I'm not vouch for any medical conclusions of this article, but it's makes an important case:

7 Negative Effects of Coffee
http://www.healthambition.com/negati...cts-of-coffee/