What was the origin of studying at a coffee shop? When did a study date change from a quiet library to a coffee shop filled with the sound of grinding blenders and the come and go of many strangers balancing drink carriers full of lattes, macchiatos, and green teas while talking over the phone – saying something about I’ll be right there or I’m on my way, boss.
The nearest Starbucks or local coffee shops always have their appeal with their seasonal drinks and reusable cups, but there is an additional element added when the leaves start to Fall, the sweaters are dusted off, and the pumpkin spice lattes are available.
Likewise, what is it about a coffee shop in the Fall that is so compelling?
Ambiance
The rich smell of espresso beans, the warm temperature and atmosphere of the place, the soft house, hipster, and/or instrumental music drifting through the room – these are all things that a coffee shop can give freely that no place else can. Not to mention, in the Fall, the drizzle of rain or silent falling of snow swished around by a gust of wind creates a cozy environment.
Setting
With the music and the chilled weather, the setting of a coffee shop brings a sort of whimsical feeling. The warm and dark space filled with mahogany tables, couches, coffee tables, artwork on the walls, and the large open windows add to the environment that feels like a home away from home.
When looking around the shop, there are many people stationed around the room scattered far from each other in comfortable distance either working on their laptops, writing in journals, or having a nice, long catch-up with their friends they haven’t seen in either days or years (you can usually tell if they’re there for hours and talking animatedly). The comfort that you are one and the same in this little coffee shop trying to be more productive than you ever would be at home feels like it is a community in and of itself.
Sitting by the window, a warm cup of cocoa or pumpkin spice in your hand with a book or laptop in front of you with the orange, red, and yellow leaves framing the world reflected in the puddled rain and snow, it is as if the doors to this place are a portal to another world.
Distractions
While this sounds like a place you just want to go to relax, there is an ulterior motive: getting more done. Doing work at your place just allows you to take a quick break which then turns to hours of TikTok, stress cleaning your room, or watching one YouTube video which then turns into a whole thread that leads from watching an acoustic cover to watching a whole episode of Dance Moms.
Without these crutches and outlets to justify straying away from work, the coffee shop minimizes the things that most people would go to to escape the harsh reality. There is no couch to sprawl out on or take a nap, but sitting straight in the chair with others doing the same creates a motivation for wanting to finish that to-do list as soon as possible and to only take few minute breaks.
To the many seasonal pumpkin spice lattes and Fall leaves!