Ask HN: Any real US alternatives to Starbucks for a place to work/study?
7 comments
Caribou is still around? I haven't seen one in the USA in awhile... think the last one I saw was in Incheon Airport of all places.
They were founded in the Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota area and still have a very heavy presence here and around out-state MN.
Interestingly enough, in the past year or so, they’ve been opening up drive-through only locations. These obviously carry much lower overhead than standard stores, but I’m skeptical if they’ll drive enough sales to remain open, especially as COVID (hopefully) continues to subside.
Interestingly enough, in the past year or so, they’ve been opening up drive-through only locations. These obviously carry much lower overhead than standard stores, but I’m skeptical if they’ll drive enough sales to remain open, especially as COVID (hopefully) continues to subside.
Yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever seen one outside of Denver airport.
Either way it sounds like a terrible option.
I prefer to find hipster/third-wave coffee places myself.
They tend to put a lot more effort into the coffee and ambiance.
Either way it sounds like a terrible option.
I prefer to find hipster/third-wave coffee places myself.
They tend to put a lot more effort into the coffee and ambiance.
You don’t have any comfortable furniture at home?
McDonald's
I still enjoy the local library but bring your own lunch.
i have tried libraries before, and yes, they can be real cool, esp if you desire that real quiet. it can be a revelation how quiet they can be. my local Bux happens to jack the music up to level eleventy most days. :-/
i did start considering again a coworking space. i did nextspace in san jose - was fine. not sure how much work i actually got done -- too much walk-in traffic, socializing, etc. - even when i didn't want to. looking at a place only in atl right now - https://meetatroam.com/ . their shared/open-office-style memberships start at something reasonable-ish -- $150 or so -- with the requisite scammy two-month minimum, signup fees, cancel before you'd ever expect to have to cancel restrictions, and prob a bunch of other stuff I won't find out until too late if i decide to sign up. they happen to have these solo-style offices which are bigger than phone booths, and lockable, etc., and they're yours -- think they are called 'Dedicated Desks' -- listed at $500 -- which is diff than i've seen at other places -- they are not just a dedicated desk like a reserved parking spot -- they're a private fully-sealed/contained seat/desk/booth -- which is something I'd be interested in. i'd want to knock out private calls in there, then float to the community area in between calls, etc. not affiliated, but the price seemed low enough, and they were open enough about pricing, that if i sign up to a place again, it could be them. the 'booths' at Roam are interesting because they seem to provide a touch of privacy, and seem to move back in the direction of cubicles - which were really good for getting work done. the twice i've gone to check out various locations, the booths were all filled.
i did start considering again a coworking space. i did nextspace in san jose - was fine. not sure how much work i actually got done -- too much walk-in traffic, socializing, etc. - even when i didn't want to. looking at a place only in atl right now - https://meetatroam.com/ . their shared/open-office-style memberships start at something reasonable-ish -- $150 or so -- with the requisite scammy two-month minimum, signup fees, cancel before you'd ever expect to have to cancel restrictions, and prob a bunch of other stuff I won't find out until too late if i decide to sign up. they happen to have these solo-style offices which are bigger than phone booths, and lockable, etc., and they're yours -- think they are called 'Dedicated Desks' -- listed at $500 -- which is diff than i've seen at other places -- they are not just a dedicated desk like a reserved parking spot -- they're a private fully-sealed/contained seat/desk/booth -- which is something I'd be interested in. i'd want to knock out private calls in there, then float to the community area in between calls, etc. not affiliated, but the price seemed low enough, and they were open enough about pricing, that if i sign up to a place again, it could be them. the 'booths' at Roam are interesting because they seem to provide a touch of privacy, and seem to move back in the direction of cubicles - which were really good for getting work done. the twice i've gone to check out various locations, the booths were all filled.
But then I looked a bit deeper and realized that there did not seem to be any real alternatives to Starbucks - for the type of sit-down-for-hours place I was looking for.
So, 'real' in this case means a place with nice, comfortable furniture and an atmosphere that says, "Welcome - stay a while." -- i.e. a real third place.
When I check out Caribou Coffee, for instance, which may be the biggest somewhat-like-Starbucks coffee chain in the US, and it's eh -- I really don't even want to go in. In terms of potential work space welcome, I'd give Starbucks a 6 or 7 and Caribou a 2 or 3. Why? The cheaper, less-comfortable-seeming furniture, seemingly-smaller/tighter footprints, etc. -- the whole vibe is more fast food than I'd prefer.
A place like Panera Bread is interesting-ish, but doesn't quite feel right - like when the lunch rush comes, you feel in the way -- because you probably _are_ in the way -- they do things like set timers on the wifi, etc.
I do have some smaller cafes that I go to -- some might even qualify as small chains (e.g., Dancing Goats) -- but I was kind of surprised to find out that there are no very direct Starbucks competitors for a 'third place' in the US.
Maybe places like Caribou or Philz or whatever will just take 10 more years to try to grab some market share? Or maybe Starbucks has already reached an Amazon-level of super-dominance that can now never really be challenged.