What can be said about the importance of a coffee shop? I can't think of any single thing I'd rather have open in my own neighborhood. It's about the brew, sure, but it's also about the place. The "third place" to be more specific.
A "third place" is someplace besides home and work where we can gather. We meet our neighbors in third places. We build our communities in third places. Third places are what the suburbs lack and cities have. The best of third places are coffee shops.
In recent years some corporate types have discovered how to make third places, in the form of coffee shops, work pretty well. Carribou, Starbucks, Seattle's Best, and others are known for great brews in cool spaces. Yet no one seems to do it better than the local who gathers some used furniture andodd coffee mugs and rents an old storefront. These are the best third places.
I have not been to Corduroy's Espresso Spot in Chicago, but every time I pass through a town or city neighborhood, I look for a shop like it. From the Café in San Francisco to Gallery Coffee in Savannah to the Beehive in my own city, these are the places to stop to meet the locals and get some local flavor.
I am jealous. What a wonderful day it would be, the first day meeting folks at your own coffee shop! Every following day would surely be unique and full of the magic of the city.
We look forward to hearing more from Corduroy's and hope that Amy continues to contribute tales from her local haunt.
by Amy Kaspar
The first customer every Sunday, without fail, is Richard. Richard recently got a new job, tells whichever employee is working that she is beautiful, and orders a small coffee with no cream. On a recent Sunday, Richard actually came back on his way home from church because he forgot to get his hug.
Every weekday at around eleven in the morning, Jim the Crane Operator enters through the glass door with dirt under his fingernails and a pleasant demeanor radiating from his face. Sometimes he orders a large coffee, but more often than not, he just sits on the blue couch and flips through the tabloid magazines on the table. After about ten minutes, he tells a story of the events of his previous night to anyone within earshot, including other customers.
At least twice a week, the shop is graced by a visit from Cookbook Man. None of the employees knows his name; however he peruses the cookbook section every time he patronizes the place, procures a book until his following visit, and never purchases anything. One thing Cookbook Man does do, though, is he tells everyone to have a blessed day as he walks out the door
In a Midwestern city with a metropolitan area of more than eight million people, watching hurried professionals run into and out of the local corporate coffee bar in two minutes flat is commonplace. Gone are the days of Main Street and the local post office, replaced by endless retail chains and electronic transmissions on the eventually-obsolete "information superhighway."
Gone, except for Corduroy's Espresso Spot.
Tucked away in the West Haven section of Chicago, Corduroy's may appear to be just an ordinary coffee shop and used book exchange. Sure, many of the drink names are Italian in origin, free wireless internet service is available, and several local free publications are readily available near the front door. Upon closer inspection, though, Corduroy's Espresso Spot is actually the throwback cornerstone to an up-and-coming neighborhood.
It is located at the vortex of three hospitals, two colleges, the United Center, a high school, four churches, several residences and Labor Union offices, a retirement center, two public transportation stops, and new construction in every direction. The address is on Ogden Avenue, a United States Highway formerly known as the beginning of Route 66, and in bicycle-friendly Chicago, there is extra lane space for people who would rather travel on two wheels.
Corduroy's is an attempt at breaking every modern-day rule of what the corner coffee spot looks and feels like. The theme is a cozy combination of simplicity and warmth, with a touch of cutting-edge for good measure.
What makes this Espresso Spot truly unique is its customers. On any given day, a typical person leading a typical existence can be seen walking into Corduroy's with an expressionless face. When they walk out, be it two minutes or two hours later, the typical person leading a typical existence will have been touched by a sense of community that will show clearly in his or her body language, from the smile to the spring in their step.
One Sunday afternoon, the owner was overheard chatting with customer Clarence Brownlow on his between-church-services-down-the-street visit. "Why is it," she said pensively, "that you can go into a bar and order a martini, and the person making your drink will know you want a gin-and-vermouth mixture, but when you order a coffee you can't just order a Brownlow? Why do you have to say you want a large iced latte with extra ice and a shot of sugar free vanilla?"
Clarence looked down at his drink, swished the ice in a spiral pattern so the straw spun through the plastic top, and said, "Well, the only way to change that is to start something new. This," he uttered as he pointed to the beverage, "will now be called the Brownlow." The owner concurred.
Meanwhile, a couple of tables over, Bill and Karen were chatting about their mutual interest in real estate. They have no interactions with each other outside of their friendship at Corduroy's Espresso Spot.
If you're in Chicago, please do stop by Curdoroy's and get to know the locals, or just stay tuned for future editions of "Scenes from Corduroy's Espresso Spot" in the New Colonist. No matter where you live or work, you are always welcome to hang out at your new neighborhood coffee joint. Wherever you are, in nearly every town or city around the globe, there's usually a place like Corduroy's, where you can stop in, meet some great people, treat it as a second home.
It's where the city happens.
