Really enjoying 61B so far. The renovation is a stunning improvement. The staff have been friendly when I've visited. I was surprised to learn that they make nearly all their pastries in house, they are really tasty. Apparently they will be adding more seating on the lower level which is even better. I absolutely couldn't stand Katerbean and 61B is just about a 1000x improvement over what was there before. They even had good music playing inside! As a freelancer I'm always looking for good local places to get some work done; if I'm going to spend a zillion dollars on coffees while partaking in free wifi it may as well be at a nice local shop!
So far I've gotten an iced latte and an iced coffee. The iced coffee I didn't love; it seemed thin and watery as if they did not brew it double strength, but that could have been a fluke. I've also gotten a few pastries...a croissant, a macaroon, and a cookie that were all very good and the prices were actually very reasonable.
Only issues...cash only. I really hope this is temporary since there is no free ATM in that area for me. Also I always prefer to see baristas in some kind of uniform or dress code for food safety reasons. One woman working was wearing a tank top, which I was under the impression that those were against health department rules; I've never been permitted to wear sleeveless tops at any food service job I've had. But these are relatively minor issues, so soon enough I'll be a regular here.