DC’s Study Spaces

Washington, DC is filled with people in the workforce. Everyone in DC has a job, and so many jobs have work-from-home days. During my first 7 weeks in DC as a freshman at GWU, I tried to leave the Foggy Bottom Campus every day, but I also had to work throughout the week, so I found great places to work while in DC. This is my honest review of each location as a study space. 

Farragut Square’s Tatte – 1634 I St NW

Tatte is a DC staple, and with its beautifully tiled floors and walls, the modern aesthetic makes it a place with variety. You can take your parents there during a weekend visit; you can stop by on a day filled with adventures around the DC landmarks; or you can sit down and study at the cafe until your laptop dies. 

Tatte has a great selection of pastries, including authentic, flaky croissants and a great specialty hot chai. There is no shortage of space in the location near GW Campus; therefore, if you choose to work at Tatte, there is little chance that you would have to turn around and go back to Gelman after realizing that Tatte is just too popular. 

For as long as you are at Tatte, there will always be people coming in and out to discover all the options that the DMV classic has to offer, or they are trying to figure out which location Zendaya was visiting in The Drama, but no matter what, there will be other people getting work done and people enjoying the ambiance created by the white walls with patterned floors. My AirPods were able to drown out the low-volume music that filled the space for the observers, and my small table with a booth-side seat was perfectly comfortable for my long study session. 

A Foggy Bottom Blank Street – 2200 Pennsylvania Ave NW

The new location of the hit cafe maintains the great mint green accent couches and walls that made the franchise’s social media presence grow and allowed them to open the new locations. However, the Pennsylvania Avenue establishment allows for more diversity in the customers’ goals. This location opens the door to more than just the passersby who remember that they have seen this name on the bottom of an Instagram story post. The new location has more than one booth for people to sit, which has become the norm for the locations in Georgetown and other cities. 

There is a selection of multiple couches, low tables, and window seating options. Again, there is a wide range of customers enjoying the unique options that Blank Street has to offer: their new seasonal menu includes the cinnamon bun latte, which adds sweetness and the tang that comes from the cream cheese, which makes it one of the best coffees I’ve had in DC to date. The larger size of the indoor seating allows for the opportunity to work in this cute cafe, but when you are there, you have to be aware of the friend groups who will show up to take photos in the location for the entire time that they are enjoying their matchas and lattes. 

Yes, the environment and seating have been built to allow for studying, which is a great addition to the aura of Blank Street, and again, the environment of the coffee shop, with the workers pouring your drinks in front of you, does not distract from the lock-in session that so many patrons are enjoying in the beautiful and comfortable locations. 

Ebenezer’s Coffeehouse – 201 F St NE

Yes, I realize that this location is on the opposite side of Capitol Hill and therefore may be a trek for many Foggy Bottom residents, but the exposed brick and customer service were worth it for the trip on the Red Line. The perfectly sweet and flavorful iced chai was made even better with the speed and kindness that the barista was able to provide on their busy Sunday, working next to the SEC building. 

Everyone in the location was working, but there was limited seating on the day I visited due to a private event happening on their second level. Even so, I was able to sit at one of their hardwood tables by the window, and the woman who ended up sitting across from me, who after an hour left me with her business card before going to a meeting at a building nearby, I couldn’t bear to ask which one. I was able to complete a discussion board and my chai latte without getting distracted by the surprisingly low traffic that happens outside of the small community in the nation’s capital. 

Kogod Courtyard – 8th St NW, G St NW

Yes, this is the place that every DC-related influencer would like you to know is available and it is beautiful; however, seating is limited to only four metal tables, which are off to the side of the open space with the window ceilings and are regularly filled with people who are simply tired from a day of exploring DC. Another aspect that may influence people who want to focus on studying away from this tourist location is the fact that you must go through a security checkpoint, as with all other Smithsonian locations, but the security guards who go through your bag are very understanding of the people who want to study in the courtyard. 

This visit was the one location where I did not choose to enjoy a refreshment during my time studying. I had brought my water bottle and did not feel the need to wake myself up with caffeine, so I cannot comment on the quality of the cafe that resides between the American Museum of Art and the National Portrait Gallery. I was able to reward myself after the study session with a visit to the National Portrait Gallery, where I was able to admire the artistry that went into the unique 20th- and 21st-century presidential portraits. Yes, there was seating on this day to enjoy the space, with enough seating available to complete my work, but these conditions cannot be guaranteed on every visit. 

Capital One Cafe – 3150 M St NW

No… The Georgetown location was filled with people shopping in the area who just wanted that 50% discount that Capital One members have. There was limited seating due to the consumers in the establishment regularly taking a second chair with their shopping bags. These issues do not affect the ability for someone to enjoy the cafe’s options, but they did affect the productivity of the time I spent there. The seating options available upstairs were limited when trying not to take over an entire couch or table when I was there by myself, but the chai latte was not a disappointment, so the limited amount of work I got through was reasonable. I will say, during my second visit to Capital One Cafe, I tried to give it a second chance; I got a chocolate muffin and was not able to finish it. Once I knew I would not be finishing the muffin, I left the cafe. 

The corporate aura of every Capital One Cafe makes one think that it would be simple to produce good-quality work while in the establishment, but the location of the spot makes it more difficult for the focus to be on productivity in the building. They make an attempt to separate the working space from the community space by labeling the upper and lower levels accordingly, but the people do what they want, so this is not a location that makes it easy enough to work for me to recommend a trek to Georgetown in order to do homework. 

Flor Coffee + Books – 1220 31St NW

The most recent cafe that I explored has an upstairs space with a community table where no electronics are allowed, along with multiple couches and chairs that do allow you to use your devices as long as it’s not the weekend or a holiday. Along with having the upstairs workspace, there is a bookstore that has Spanish and English language books for sale on the top floor. With a balcony halfway up the stairs where you can go and work outside, Flor offers many options for the small-appearing cafe in the heart of Georgetown. 

The cafe options were wide, with many specialty and seasonal drink options, including a Dulce de latte. Also, there were immense food options that I was not up for trying on my first visit, but the options extended past the traditional cafe pastries, so if you’re hungry, this spot will not disappoint. 

Similar to Tatte, Flor had many different types of customers, but the separation between the customers who wanted to get work done and the ones there to reconvene with their groups during their day of shopping was done well, since there were areas of the seating area where electronics were not allowed. 

The perfect location for studying doesn’t exist, but I am still dreaming about the Cinnamon Bun latte from Blank Street, I am gratified with the efficiency of my work at Tatte, and I would love to spend more time reading in Flor, so your options will all depend on your goals for the day you choose to leave the Foggy Bottom campus and GW Dining.