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| 2/5/25 Cloud City Coffee |
One unfortunate outcome of the pandemic is that after cafes
were allowed to serve food and beverages with reusables again, many decided to
stay with disposables. I’m sure that using takeout boxes and paper cups is
easier than washing and managing breakable plates and ceramic mugs, so I understand
that decision from the often-understaffed café business perspective. But when I
intend to stay in a café to sketch, I miss feeling like I am “here.” Even if I
say “for here,” I often receive my refreshments as if I am “going.”
Like some regulars who come to Cloud City Coffee, I could bring my own mug to avoid a disposable cup, and I always used to do that when I drove to most cafes. That would make me feel better from an environmental perspective. I guess I should just do that again, but now I always try to walk to my coffee breaks (that’s one way I justify having a pastry), and I don’t like carrying a cup while I walk. Moreover, using my own cup wouldn’t address my personal issue of wanting to feel like I’m “here” and not “going.”
Sigh. Yet another first-world problem (or maybe it’s just my existential one).
One of my favorite local coffee places has done the same, no more coffee cups with saucers. I loved stirring my coffee (I add sugar and sometimes cream) and placing the spoon on the saucer. When I met a friend there for coffee/tea, my friend balked at the paper cups our drinks were served in. The waitress apologized but said the owner wouldn't let them serve in real cups anymore. It's not a particularly busy place but it may have something to do with the storefront itself not having a decent kitchen area for washing dishes. Sitting and chatting and sipping from a paper cup just isn't the same as lingering over actual cups or mugs. Ditto on eating your bakery treat resting on a paper napkin.
ReplyDeleteA paper cup certainly isn't as much fun to sketch as a real cup!
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