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| - Feeling a bit like a glutton for gentrification, I strolled into Detroit Shoreway, Cleveland's newest emerging neighborhood. I say it's "emerging" because I spotted a rainbow flag, a public theater, and an independent coffee shop. Bringing my disposable income, I saddled up to this aforementioned coffee joint, the Gypsy Bean.
The Gypsy Bean is part coffee bar, part bakery, part United Nations, as its internationally themed drinks and decor provide an opportunity to taste a geography bee's worth of worldly treats. This particular coffee shop bakery, so often simply a microwave or toaster at other establishments, is a true bakery easily spied behind the menus. Giant peanut butter cookies, oozing chunks of Jiffy, sat next to baklava and puffy muffins with almond toppings. I went for a "Skinny Londoner," a foamy latte with butter toffee syrup and rum. At $3.50, I could have even been paying in pounds and it wouldn't have been expensive. It certainly didn't taste skinny, though that could have been the cookie I wolfed down with my British treat.
Here, the signs of sprucing up abound, as a new movie theater will open soon across the street and one of Cleveland's best new restaurants, Luxe, is just down the block. Coming from Oberlin, we still pass abandoned factories one after the other, so it's clear that one new java joint slinging mochas can't make up for the post-industrial decline of an entire economy. It has managed to revive a city block, though I don't think demand will grow great enough for it to take over the nearby factory. For now, I'll just enjoy my cup in its shadows.
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