Coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the United States, with coffee shops carrying large cultural significance.
According to Statista, 72.9% of American consumers drink coffee every day. In another poll from Statista, 26.9% of respondents said that they order coffee from a coffee shop at least a few times a week, and only 7% of people said that they never do.
However, coffee shops are more than just businesses or places to buy coffee. Coffee shops have wider cultural significance and a history that goes back centuries.
Coffeehouses originate from the Ottoman Empire during the 1600s, where they served as places for intellectuals and writers to meet and discuss ideas. In contrast to other aspects of Ottoman society, coffeehouses were open to the wider public and served a more egalitarian function by allowing free discussion and debate.
Coffeehouses were also present in Europe at the same time. In 1652, the first coffeehouse in England opened in Oxford, and it soon spread to larger cities such as London. Coffeehouses in England would soon come to be called “penny universities,” in reference to the kind of intellectual discussion on topics such as philosophy, science and politics that could be accessed for the price of a coffee. Prominent English intellectuals, scientists, writers and politicians such as Isaac Newton, Samuel Pepys and Alexander Pope could be found frequenting London coffeehouses.
These places were so popular in Paris in the lead up to the French Revolution that it is believed they may have played a role in the outbreak of the revolution. Coffeehouses were often attended by enlightenment philosophers such as Voltaire, Diderot and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. More recently, coffee houses were frequented by writers, artists and philosophers such as Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Satre.
Today, coffeehouses play a similar role in our society, even if modern coffeehouses may not always contain intense philosophical discussions. Visiting coffee shops in Tuscaloosa, one will find students working on homework or assignments, talking with friends, studying, reading or having something to eat.
There are many different options for coffee shops in Tuscaloosa, including at least four on campus and three on the Strip. Other coffee shops exist off-campus in Tuscaloosa and are frequented by students. Some of the more popular stores aside from Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts include Heritage House, Monarch Espresso Bar, Turbo Coffee, Strange Brew and PJ’s Coffee.
For students in Tuscaloosa and worldwide, coffee shops are places to work and to socialize with a good cup of coffee and maybe a pastry. A study from Western University shows possible positive effects on creativity through ambient noise in what has been called the “coffee shop effect.”
Working in the presence of other people who are also working has proven to be contagious, which could have the effect of boosting productivity. In a 2021 BBC article, Carnegie Mellon University professor Sunkee Lee said, “One of the biggest things about coffee shops is the socialization effect: you go there, you see other people working and it puts you in a mood where you just naturally start working as well.”
Lee said that having different visual stimulation could also help with creativity and problem solving, making the environment of coffee shops themselves beneficial for working or studying.
The very real productive and creative benefits of coffee shops are a key aspect of what makes them so popular. There is a reason behind why so many intellectuals, famous writers and philosophers attended coffee shops for centuries.
The social benefits are just as important. Coffee shops can occupy the role as “third places,” or neutral places for socialization beyond the home and work or school, which can help boost community and foster relationships. As social interaction among Americans declines, third places as sites to socialize remain more important than ever.
One study from Sage on coffeehouses in Minneapolis has found, however, that coffeehouses geared towards independent work may harm their potential as third places. While it is true that focus on quiet study could harm social interactions in coffeehouses, learning is ultimately a social process. They should be seen as places to work and study, but should also be places to socialize as well.
Coffeehouses occupy a unique place in our society. Between the popularity of coffee and the demand for these social meeting points, they remain strongly essential for work and socialization. The next time you get a craving for coffee and have an assignment to work on, or if you just want to meet up with some friends, maybe try going to a coffeehouse.
