My Coffee Odyssey – Classen Coffee Co

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Classen Coffee Co opened recently and this is my first visit. My thought on walking in was, “I like this place.” The décor is eclectic and invites you to sit and hang out for a bit. There is plenty of seating inside as well as some nice patio type seating outside. They sell coffee, tea, and a selection of other drinks. There was no large selection of goodies from which to choose so, yeah, this is definitely a coffee shop. The baristas are friendly and attentive. 

I, naturally, asked for a cup of dark brew. It was, reportedly, an Indonesian mocha Java. My limited palate scores my cup a Good+, maybe closer to Great. I liked it a lot. The price list was reasonable.  

My first impression was correct. I sat in a comfy chair. I checked email. I read some of an ebook on my tablet. I like this place. Would I tell you to meet me here for coffee? Absolutely!! Hit me up. I am pretty available for coffee.

Disclaimer: I am not a coffee connoisseur. I am just a guy who lies to drink coffee in coffee shops. I tend to think of my coffee in terms of Meh – Okay - Good – Great. Most coffee I drink is okay to good. It has to make an effort to get to Great or Meh. These are just my opinions. Take or ignore them as you wish.

My Coffee Odyssey

 

It began with a real conversation. 

Me: “We need to have coffee and catch up.” 

Friend: “Sure. When?” 

Me: “How about….?   (We agreed on a date.) 

Friend: “Where do you want to meet?” 

Me: (Pause) “I’ll get back to you.” 

I paused because I realized I wanted to go to a real coffee shop but I wasn’t sure where to suggest. There are plenty of places to drink coffee and there are coffee shops. They are generally not the same thing. I have launched My Coffee Odyssey to find and visit real coffee shops. I will write about my visits as they occur. When I visit a coffee shop I want a place to sit in peace, drink coffee, and read or perhaps visit with a friend. When I drink coffee, I drink it black and usually dark roast. That is what I am interested in. This is not a tour of muffins, bagels, quiche, cupcakes, or any other munchies that may be available. 

My Coffee Odyssey will evolve as it happens. I expect to learn and develop my notion of what a coffee shop should be. As a starting point, here are some of my thoughts on what I will be looking for. 

Most important, and my first comment in any report, will be the coffee. I will drink it black. It will be dark roast. It should be reasonably priced and may or may not include refills.  

A good coffee shop should be a little unique, someplace one wants to meet a friend to catch up. If it looks and feels like a chain store with a national advertising budget it just doesn’t make the coffee shop cut. 

Coffee shop patrons will generally be grown-ups. They are not after school or evening teen hang outs. They are not places where you expect to see (or hear) small children or infants. 

Coffee shops will almost certainly not have a menu for your table. The more service and food choices you have the less likely you are in a coffee shop no matter how good their coffee might be. It is a place to drink coffee. 

Starbucks is an easy example of a chain store that many people confuse with a coffee shop. On any given day, there is a contingent of teenagers and moms with small children. Every store is pretty much like every other store. They are a place to drink coffee. They are not a coffee shop. 

(Feel free to make suggestions in the comments regarding anything I have overlooked.)

This is a mission I have chosen for myself. I will write about my odyssey because it is what I want to do. If you are interested you can follow along. If you are really interested you can suggest coffee shops I should visit. If you are really really interested, you are welcome to meet me for coffee. When I tweet about my adventure I will use the hashtag #MyCoffeeOdyssey. (If you don’t follow me, @drcamey, on Twitter, you should.) Most of my visits will be around the greater OKC metro area but as I find myself in other areas I will be looking for good local coffee shops.