How to Bring the Best of a Coffee Shop to Your Home
The world over and throughout the centuries, people have gathered in coffee shops, coffee houses, cafés and other coffee-serving establishments. Coffee brings people together. It fuels thinking, new ideas and projects. After a long work week, a visit to the coffee shop can renew the zest for life on Saturday morning…or, frankly, remind people they’re still alive inside. Whatever the effect, there are two bottom lines when it comes to coffee. First, it’s the world’s second most popular drink after water, for good reasons. Secondly, the vibes and environment of coffee shops should be celebrated. Better yet, why not replicate the coffee-shop vibe at home?
If you’ve ever admired the coffee-brewing devices at your local coffee shop, this post is for you. If you enjoy the decor, friendly spaces, art and books when you visit…why not bring them home? There are many reasons to create a coffee-inspired environment. Carving a space or two that are geared toward sipping, chitchatting, thinking and reflecting is worthwhile. Decorate it with coffee shop extras like books, magazines and art. Transport the best parts of a coffee shop to your abode. It’s like being a barista, but only making coffee for yourself, your family and friends.
Variety in Home Coffee-Brewing Gear
First of all, there’s no affiliation with coffee implements here; this post won’t attempt to sell one stitch of coffee gear! However, it is fun to try basic or next-level coffee making at home. And the next level is different for everyone. It can require different types of coffee apparatuses based on preferences.
French Press
A French press is a classic coffee implement that has been improved and reinvented. The basic model has been redesigned. The principle remains the same despite new designs and decorations. From classic clear glass, to colored or painted glass, to stainless steel, to stoneware, the variety begins with the material of the pitcher. It continues with different handles, filters and bases. Among the most attractive are the new rose-gold-styled ones. Whether your French press costs $10 or over $300 (seriously), you should delight in pressing your coffee the French way for yourself, your family and guests. If your press is cool enough, they may insist on pressing themselves.
Pour Over
If you love the intricacies of the coffee-brewing process, it’s beyond time to bring a pour over home! Glass carafes are fun to watch fill up on your kitchen counter or table. Excellent opaque ones exist too. Multi-pour setups, with space for several filtering and catching receptacles at once, are super fun for guests and company. You’ll want to host a coffee-lovers brunch party.
Espresso, Latte and Cappuccino Machines
With all of the combinations of fancy coffee makers and singular-style coffee makers, there are too many types of machines to cover. Despite the push for variety, what needs saying is: a machine is often worth it. If a nice espresso maker or a combination machine will get used often in your household, why not? People who commute often invest in cars with features like sunroofs and heated seats. While you shouldn’t spend recklessly, why not start your day with the perfect coffee preparation? Your skills for your favorite drink can surpass your local barista’s.
Coffee-Serving Accessories
Bring the coffee-serving party home with coffee accessories.
Coffee Pitchers
While coffee pitchers aren’t common in coffee shops, they are a nice addition to your home coffee-drinking efforts. Especially when you have company, a primo coffee pitcher makes your home feel less like a cafeteria than a basic pitcher. Your book group will love it, and it will save you effort.
Mugs You Love
It’s no secret that starting your day by filling up and drinking from a special coffee mug is great. Many swear the coffee tastes better. However, bringing home a set of mugs that emulate the feel of your favorite coffee shop (shops have different decor, of course) can add a pinch of excitement or comfort. Whether your favorite shop is rustic, hipster, sleek and urban, Italian or French, even different mugs of the same style can spice up your home coffee scene.
Plates for Baked Goods
Whether you bake or buy muffins, bagels, scones or hearty bread to go with your coffee, don’t serve it on just any old plate. Biscotti or croissants on everyday plates? No way. Bring home a coffee shop feel for your coffee breaks.
Coffee-Drinking Spaces
Indoor Eating Areas
A few homes have a corner or breakfast nook that can be adapted specifically for coffee drinking. Most homes can’t house a dedicated coffee-drinking space though. However, evoking coffee-shop vibes in a normal eating area isn’t difficult. With wall decorations and coffee paraphernalia on a sideboard or just the counter, your favorite beverage can evoke happiness all around. Mocking the décor of a coffee shop with comparable furniture, rugs and colors will make you feel at home.
Indoor Coffee Spaces
If you can rehab a certain area with a coffee focus, that’s great. Another option is to add coffee-shop elements to sitting areas. Classic or current books help caffeine-powered conversations get thoughtful. Local art can also provoke contemplation and conversations. Plants like succulents and pothos (ivy), popular in coffee joints, can bring in an earthy feeling. After all, coffee grows on a plant in spring-like climates!
Outdoor Coffee Spaces
Many coffee shops have outdoor spaces where customers can settle with a book, buddy, date or just their thoughts. Cafés tend to sprawl into the street, back patio or garden. A garden table can produce this effect for those relishing coffee at home. With mosaic patterns, iron work or just a picnic-style table, the outdoor coffee shop or café vibe can waft outdoors too. Benches and comfy chairs welcome.
Basic Coffee
The final ingredient to complete your coffee-shop-vibe conjuring project at home is none other than…delicious coffee. On this point, the principle is the more coffees, the merrier. Bearing that in mind, you may need to cater to the average coffee drinker sometimes. It may not be where your creativity and experienced coffee palette shine. Still, having a stock of staple blends or calm single-origins in stock for the masses helps. Take it from a coffee producer: not everyone is adventurous, taste-wise. However, if you’ve read this far, you probably love coffee enough to not constrict your coffee stock just to satisfy guests and coffee-indifferent family members. Nowadays, the opportunity to venture into different coffees is too great to pass up.
Unique and Premium Brews
Brewing well-sourced and expertly crafted premium coffees in your kitchen and letting them flow into mugs headed for your new coffee spaces is exciting. It should feel like finally turning on the water in a newly built water park. Don’t waste your coffee-oriented spaces on nondescript tasting blends. Some blends are exquisite, of course. Nevertheless, to experience the beans’ growth journey based on the conditions they grew in is next level for a coffee lover. Single-origin coffees bring the growing environment to you in flavor form. If you haven’t experimented with single-origins and developed your coffee palette, start tasting at home. Coffee bags labeled for commonly detected flavors, notes and aromas let you know what to expect.
Coffee Grown in an Educational Home for Youth
Now that you’re inspired to set up and adorn your home for coffee drinking, consider the growing conditions your coffee calls home. A sustainably-sourced single-origin coffee from Honduras, Subida Coffee Co.’s delicious coffee is grown under great conditions for a good cause. By providing a boarding-school-style high school education to teenage boys, Subida’s managing non-profit creates a feeling of home. It empowers youth to improve their futures. After receiving Rainforest Alliance Certification, Subida Coffee Co. is prouder than ever of its dark and medium roasts.
