| rev:text
| - Try the mocha!
Been going almost every week since it opened a couple months ago. Great little independent place that puts a strong emphasis on high quality coffee. Over time, I've become a little bit of an advocate because I value places like these in our community, but I'll try to be objective here in explaining why.
1) Focus on coffee
Top quality beans, water, and equipment is all there. Staff knows what they're doing and does it consistently. The open interior has a light smell of coffee (and just coffee). While they have baked good, they're freshly made in the area's surrounding bakeries. They're not processed and they're not cooked there, so there's no smoky bread smell. I don't know anything about the tea and can't comment on that. They do fruit smoothies, which are great, but they're made in super quiet blenders and don't distract from the coffee experience.
2) Independent
Staff has always been knowledgeable and friendly to me. The owner has also been around for most of my trips, and seems to make an effort to greet customers, chat, take orders, and carry out drinks, and clear off the tables (no need for customers to carry anything to the trash). I've even seen him keep everything open late a couple nights just so customers didn't have to rush their drinks. Compares favorably to another local place I enjoy, Summit, but more personal and consistent. Plus it has better hours and a lighter, more-open and clean layout with plenty of seating.
3) Capable
It's hard to just explain in writing, but the end product is really good. Try a "coffee flight" for comparison and you'll notice the differences. Espresso shots are creamy, beans are fresh, temperature is consistent, etc. Lots of flavors on hand as well as Soy Milk and Almond Milk options for lattes. Can make anything the big guys can. It's a little on the pricey side, but comparable in price to any other good coffee shop.
So while I'm a little bit of a fan, I feel like Waterbean is objectively providing unique value to the community and is exactly the kind of business we should be supporting.
4) Technology
Outside of the high tech coffee equipment, they offer the best free internet connection I've ever experienced in public place. It's an open access point with no passwords, timeouts, or nag screens, and connected via a solid router to a fiber-optic line. Their register is run with a touch screen tablet that doubles as a finger-signature pad. And they also accept bitcoins as payment. My work-from-home days just got a whole lot better.
EDIT: sorted points and added a few lines in response to some of Dorthy's points below (coffee smell, local pastries, etc).
EDIT2: added the technology section after bringing my laptop and btc wallet and being super impressed.
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