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| - Loop is the quintessential autumnal coffee shop: a smallish, charming, chrome-shiny place: occasionally loud (the chairs tend to scrape, one notices), if still infinitely relaxing, and overseen by a handful of bright, eager, mutli-pierced/tattooed--and yes, deftly conversational and veritable musicologist staff, whose tastes in both their coffee and their tunes are unapologetic and diverse and who seem to only serve premium and/or expensive roasts that are your inner indulgent spendthrift's daydream (it should probably go without saying the lattes are the stuff of legend--complete with the necessary flourish-squiggle x-mas tree or blossom or rorschach art on top), a comprehensive offering of worldly teas in shiny tins, and, elsewhere-- fascinating, colorful, occasionally confrontational (chiefly) local artist wall offerings for sale on what would seem an arbitrary rotation (though one supposes there's some method to the madness (the place is too much a well-oiled machine for there not to be)), and, yes, yes, perhaps most exciting of all: multitudes of new and used vinyl (some hideous, lovable $1 finds, to be certain) curated in such a caring, meticulous way as to conjure up all sorts of envy in our old friend Rob Gordon (the staff are so giving as to clamber upstairs and help you sift through the bins if there's something noteworthy or dreadfully elusive that you seek), not to mention the patio which is spacious and gets good light, and the enormous front windows which give onto a view of Tremont, arguably Cleveland's most bucolic and somehow wise-seeming, remote, subtly gorgeous environs, particularly in fall; etcetera; you never feel like a stranger here, which makes it, by circuitous logic, the quintessential autumnal coffee shop.
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