America seems to have a fascination with Coffehouses. Not just with the establishments themselves, but with the entire idea and culture it all - setting up shop w/Mac and double soy latte (no foam) for all to see.
As I type this, I am sitting at a Tribeca Starbucks on one of Steve Jobs's "miracle machines" with a Grande Iced Tea beside me. I am periodically scanning the crowd of coffehouse-goers, wondering what each is thinking and observing their ordering habits; some have fifteen-part orders and take 3 minutes to articulate exactly what they want while others order a 'tall pike,' and proceed to checkout.
My old boss once said, "the longer the Starbucks drink order, the more high maintenance the person." I tend to believe him.
So what is it about flashing our fancy laptops and sporting our designer coffee brands in a public setting that is appealing to us? Some of us even look the part; we dress in stylish fabric, vintage scarfs, and shawls while others choose a preppier look, donning Polo sweaters and pleated khaki pants. Do we have a genetic pre-disposition to behave in such a way? Is it our narcissistic side expressing itself, with the goal of allowing people to observe the facade of 'coolness' and 'togetherness' which we present publicly here?
Or are we following the idea of "cool," defined by a bunch of marketing executives?
My best guess? The reason we love this environment and "soak it up" to the extent we do - in urban and suburban areas alike - is more in-line with the latter inference - that clever businesspeople at the top figured out how to tap into what we love most-ourselves-and subsequently manufactured and sold us the idea of the "coffehouse." An intimate, yet open place where we could showcase our talents in a subtle, yet blatant way. And boy, did it work brilliantly!
I can see the the meeting now: "Let's give the public a space where they can purchase a brand of coffee that's "more than just a cup of coffee," but an idea; a lifestyle. Then let's open that space up and bring in music, tables, chairs, couches, and free wifi access to ensure that a thousand chrome laptops will be illuminating at any given time. This will allow the patrons to project an image of themselves to the public, and, most importantly, new customers coming in the door - those that long to trump the "coolness factor" of the coffee-house dwellers they see before them, and thus the cycle repeats indefinitely."
SOLD.
Personally, I'm not against coffehouse dwellers; aside from the present moment, I've spent time at many a 'buck, the Oren's Daily Roast on the UWS, or even Gotham Coffee in my neighborhood. There's something peaceful about the whole environment-but who knows, perhaps subconsciously the real reason I enjoy it so much is it allows me to feel better, and view myself as "more cool," because I am working in a public space where others can see me instead of in the privacy of my own room. Could this group dynamic make me work harder, since I know I'm being watched? Or is it a place where I can go in the hopes that, amidst the generally anti-social atmosphere, a stranger will make contact and end up being the love of my life, or vice versa?
Just like the Tootsie-Pop question, I suppose given the subjective nature of situation, we'll never know the "true" reason behind New York, and America's, fascination with the Coffeehouse.
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1 comment:
I really liked your analysis, but you just gave up on all of it in your conclusion.
Judging by their popularity, it is clear that coffeehouses fulfill the needs of a lot of people, whether it is to simple get out of the house, be seen by others or hope to find the love of their lives.
I prefer a bar to fulfill much of those needs, but to each his own. Although I will make the case for bar over coffeehouse by arguing How I Met Your Mother is more entertaining that Friends.
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