I work out of coffee shops. There is something wonderful about the simultaneous human proximity and loose coupling with my surroundings. I’m alone with my laptop without being alone. That is the sweet spot for my productivity. I hangout for hours, so as you might imagine I drink more than my share of coffee. I always buy coffee and I always tip. I’m not here to abuse the otherwise free space and wifi. I get a ton of value from these shops so being a good patron is the least I can do. After spending most of the last 4 years working out of coffee shops all over the US and Europe I wanted to take a minute to jot down my notes on what I look for in a coffee shop work space and how I manage to get things done.

The Coffee and Price

First, I’m not a coffee snob but I want coffee quality that meets the price points. You might find me drinking coffee at a Starbucks, a hotel lobby, or having traveled miles out of my way to find a local thirdwave gem. There are a few things that I look for to level my price to quality expectations.

The strongest signal for product quality (before actually buying anything) is a glance at the menu. I have very low quality expectations for any shop that offers multiple sizes of cappuccino.

That isn’t to say I avoid such establishments. But rather I use that information to level my expectations and avoid over paying for more difficult espresso pulls. Instead I’d order something like a cold brew. Prefer other drinks that are easier to produce with consistency. If they don’t serve cold brew then I might go for something with added sweetness like a mocha.

The next thing I look for is the size of the cappuccino cups (even if I’m not going to drink a cappuccino). If I see cups smaller than 8oz then I’d expect the espresso pulls to be great. If I see larger cups or if I happen to see “french” style cappuccinos coming off the counter then I’ll level my expectations for lower quality and lower price.

You might be wondering, “WTF is a french style cappuccino?” This style will usually be larger and milkier with larger bubbles in the foam. Sometimes the barista will heap the foam high and decorate with extra chocolate dusting or drizzle. French style capps are great, but they present a large margin for varying coffee quality. I prefer thirdwave coffee.

Nomad Coffee in Barcelona: Maybe the best coffee in the world. But you don’t sit and work there.

Thirdwave coffee shops will have their game dialed in. They’ll be able to talk competently about their beans, methods, and pour-volume. Not that you have to care about any of that. You’ll notice that the espresso machines and workstations in thirdwave coffee shops are very clean. The cups are warmed before the drinks are poured. The coffee is ground immediately before brewing. They’ll remake sloppy cups without asking. I like these places, because I feel like they take as much pride in their work as I try to put into mine. This is not a mass-produced product that uses volume to hide quality variance. I will pay today’s prices for that kind of attention.

Last, I love finding Australians. For whatever reason every coffee shop that I’ve come across that is owned or operated by an Australian is bar-raising thirdwave.

Space and Facilities

I’m not very picky when it comes to space. I prefer standard table heights to bar stools, but that is a very personal preference. I like to lean into my laptop so tables (rather than bars) usually provide enough room to rest my forearms. I’ll make exceptions and sit at a bar if it is in front of a large window.

Available seating is a bigger deal when I’m considering the shops that are further from where I’m staying. I’ve got to weigh the probability that I’m going to be able to get a place to sit against the effort it takes to get there. The further from home, the more available seating I need. I do sort of group shops together when I make that assessment. If there are 3 or 4 smaller shops close together then I’ll consider the probability of being able to get a seat in at least one of them.

The people working there should be in charge of the music. This is Courier Coffee in Portland, OR.

If the shop has a “garage door” that opens the space up to the outside then I’ll be there on sunny days. If the building is two story with a loft then I hope the loft area is cooled because espresso machines literally just boil water all day. For example Case Study on Alberta in Portland has great coffee but most of their seating is in the loft and I find the temperature intolerable. So hot.

Access to power is a big deal. These days I pack a great external battery with me, but before that access to power was basically mandatory. I’ll typically sit for a full 8 hour day and in my work I’ll run a hundred Chrome tabs at a time. I’m really happy with my laptop battery life, but I can be a demanding user.

Lastly, access to cleanish restrooms is a big deal. But it isn’t just about the restroom. I need to feel comfortable leaving some of my belongings at my spot while I’m in the restroom, and comfortable bringing some with me. A continuous parade of people through the shop and in close proximity to the sitting area is a hard sell for me.

It is great when there is a clean counter or shelf in the restroom where I can place my laptop. It is even better if I’m with someone or know the people around me well enough to feel comfortable leaving all of that at my table. If I have to pack up my gear to use the facilities or if there are no facilities available I probably won’t come back.

Roasting

I like the passive sensory experience of most coffee shops. I understand that this stuff isn’t for everyone, but background chatter or movement around me actually helps me focus. Maybe I’m used to it, but the smell of roasting beans is one of my favorite things to work around.

The stripes mean I’m going to be happy.

Location

It takes a really special place to be able to pull off great coffee and great food. If I’m working out of a shop all day I’m going to need to be able to get there, leave for food at some point, and then get back. This means I’m looking for shops with available street parking, or in walkable neighborhoods with reasonable food options. This isn’t ever a problem in San Fransisco. You have to walk everywhere there and there is a ton of restaurant diversity downtown. But in towns like Phoenix, Seattle, and Portland there are more tradeoffs to consider. Even my time in New York involved some strategic tradeoffs. I need to know that getting something good to eat won’t kill my productivity for the day.

Free parking lots with time limits suck. I’d rather just pay to park. You’ll find these in close proximity to universities and often in complexes with mixed commercial and retail space.

Wifi and Security

Wifi used to be a bigger deal than it is now. Wifi in shops that make you agree to some Terms of Service or other crap get a hard pass from me. If the shop has totally open wifi, I probably won’t use it for a few reasons. I’ll use wifi when the password is posted publicly, but depending on how many people are there I won’t hold my breath for speed. When the wifi does inevitably hiccup, I’ll tether to my iPhone. I pay for that. It is worth it when you work outside of an office.

I think the most surprising experience I had was being an Xfinity customer. When I was in coffee shops in cities like San Francisco, Portland, or Seattle the availability of the Xfinity hotspots was killer. Nothing was worth the cost of dealing with Comcast, but that feature came close.

I use a VPN every day. I have two VPN solutions. I’ve been a happy Private Internet Access customer since 2014. I also run my own VPN server out of DigitalOcean. The DigitalOcean server is cheap, private, fast, and it gets me a static IP. That static IP address comes in handy when I’m working with enterprise customers that use IP whitelisting to protect their networks (its a whole “defense-in-depth” thing). These days running your own VPN server is trivial. Get a DigitalOcean account and a package like Algo or Streisand. If you’re already into AWS (or prefer complicated billing) then I’d suggest getting a Lightsail instance instead of EC2.

Working in an uncontrolled environment like a coffee shop is a great way to practice your operational security.

Don’t leave your things laying around. Don’t use unsecured connections. Don’t use HTTP without the S. Turn off sharing services on your laptop. Keep an eye on your USB ports. Maybe invest in a privacy filter for your screen. Prefer key-based authentication to passwords. Use a password manager. Use exceptionally long pass phrases to protect your laptop (I’ve had people laugh at me when I’m unlocking my laptop). The more reasons you have to do these things the more comfortable you’ll be with them when what you’re doing matters.

Closing Thoughts

I’m not about telling people what to do. Instead I try to share what I do. I don’t shit on people’s coffee preferences. I try my best to be courteous and considerate of the people around me. I look out for the people around me and keep an eye on their belongings when they walk away. I try to treat the staff better than they’d expect, even if I’m not sure they deserve it. If I’m sitting then I always tip. I only blame myself when the wifi drops. I try not to hate the kid sitting next to me playing network intense games. I try not to eavesdrop on your conversation, but that might be easier said than done if you’re talking tech. I use headphones nearly 100% of the time I’m sitting though I might not be listening to anything. I’m going to ask you about your laptop stickers as respectfully as possible.

They’re not for everyone, but I love coffee shops. Working from them is a great way to make a home in your city. Become a regular somewhere you feel right. Walk to them when you can and get to know all the little sights and smells along the way.