Written By: Owen Weems, Staff Writer
AMBIANCE: Riverside has a lot of cool and unique coffee shops, but which one is the best when it comes to overall environment and fostering good study habits?
Students often find it hard to focus on work when they are at home, and sometimes their bedroom or dining room can become a little boring. Going to a coffee shop can offer a nice change of pace and make any work that a person has to do feel more enjoyable, but these coffee shops aren’t just for studying either. Some have an incredibly fun environment, whether you are going to work on assignments or just hope to enjoy a fresh cup of coffee. The problem arises however, when it comes time to choose which coffee shop to go to. With the many choices all around town, it can be daunting to choose the best one, but in this article I will lay out the pros and cons of a couple hoping to make that task easier. Throughout, I will use a couple parameters to weigh the coffee shops around town, such as: price of coffee, quality of coffee, accessibility of the shops, and ambiance of the stores.
The first of these coffee shops that I hope to cover is the most popular of them all, Starbucks. Of course, Starbucks is known by many for its renowned coffee and incredibly creative drinks, a recognition which it most definitely deserves, and for this it’s popularity has grown. Furthermore, being the incredibly popular chain that it is, it is easy to find all around town and almost everyone has one within driving distance from their house. Its accessibility makes it many people’s first choice, but is it really the best? The most obvious issue with the drinks at Starbucks is the price. Reaching up to 8 dollars in price once including tax, this can be quite the steep price to pay if you are hoping to make daily visits. Despite this, many are willing to pay the higher prices in return for the drinks that they are so used to getting. Many share the sentiment that Starbucks is the best for unique drinks, of which they do have many, but for studying, the ambiance is quite ordinary. Although nothing is blatantly apparent as to take away from the studying experience, the busy atmosphere of Starbucks can sometimes distract from one’s work and prove to be a hindrance to one trying to use their time most effectively. One must also consider that the CEO of Starbucks has publicly voiced anti-unionization sentiments, so if that plays any role in your decisions when it comes to where to spend your hard earned money, choosing them may not be the best idea. Overall, Starbucks is a strong place to start, especially if you don’t know many other coffee shops, but there are quite a few factors that hold it back from being, in my opinion, the greatest study locale.
Next, we have Coffee Bean. Coffee Bean is another chain that has reached a similar level of popularity as Stabucks, yet isn’t a phenomena to the same degree as its competition. Although it isn’t as popular and its menu is a little more limited, the drinks and food that they do have are still very good. Along with this, they are slightly cheaper than their counterpart, which is one reason to maybe choose it over Starbucks. It may have similar drinks and cheaper prices, but one thing it doesn’t quite have is the ambiance. Every time that I have gone, it just hasn’t given me the vibes of somewhere to go if you want to study. If you ever want to try somewhere other than Starbucks, Coffee Bean might be the place to go, but there are so many other options as well that have better ambiance to make your coffee run feel like a truly special experience.
One of the most unique coffee shops in town would have to be Back to the Grind. It can be found downtown and has to have one of the best atmospheres in all of Riverside. Although being a little out of most people’s way, it is a great place to study or to just hang out with friends. The coffee is reasonably priced and pretty good quality. Not to mention, they have varied and comfortable seating arrangements that make it feel unlike any other coffee shop that I have been to. They also have events every evening, that sometimes make it a little hard to study, but if you are looking for a peaceful environment it is great earlier in the day. I would definitely recommend checking out this coffee shop if you have never been or haven’t gone in a while. It is a unique place that offers a very different atmosphere.
Coffee shops aren’t the only restaurants where a person can get work done. Bakeries, the most common being Panera, can also offer a quaint and enjoyable atmosphere to get work done. There are also boba shops that can be an alternative to coffee if the high caffeine is starting to put a toll on your body. Some might still say that a person’s home is the best place to get work done, but to that I counter that a new location or vibe can sometimes help open up the mind and create a new focus that wasn’t there before. Coffee shops can be a great place to get work done or just spend an afternoon, but it is important to check around and experiment to find the one that best fits your needs, wants, and availability. Outlining a few can be a way to start, but to truly find the place where you feel most comfortable, one must explore the variety around town. If I were to recommend more to explore, a couple that come to mind are Crave Coffee, Molinos Coffee, and Condron Coffee; all of these places have very unique vibes that may fit exactly what you are looking for.