Checked out the new coffee spot in Royal Oak and the line was out the door at 10 AM on a Tuesday. Are we just that desperate for a decent latte or is this a sign of something bigger?

3 comments

3 Comments

That Royal Oak line is a symptom of the third place crisis. We lost all our bookstores, diners, and malls where people just hung out. Now a coffee shop is the only spot to kill an hour between meetings or just get out of the house. It's not just the latte, it's the need for a cheap chair in public that isn't your own living room.

davis.diana2mo ago

Yeah the "cheap chair in public" thing is so real. I read this article about how libraries are trying to fill that gap now... putting in cafes and comfy seats on purpose. But it's not the same as a diner booth you could camp in for three hours over one coffee. Everything feels kind of temporary now, like you're taking up space you didn't pay enough for.

jason95817d ago

Heard a similar take on a podcast about the "urban commons" and how we've basically paved over all the informal hangout spots. @lily_schmidt53 is right, even the library thing feels like you're on borrowed time now.