My friend Alexis moved to San Francisco from Miami two years ago and the first summer she was here she made a mistake a lot of people make. She assumed that because San Francisco is in California it would be warm enough to justify iced coffee basically year round. She was partially right about the…

My friend Priya has a rule. She will not order a latte somewhere new without asking what coffee they use. Not because she’s being difficult, she just got burned too many times. She’d order a latte, it would come out looking beautiful, nice little leaf pattern on top, good color, and then she’d take a…

My friend Tom is the kind of person who orders a cappuccino everywhere he goes. Not because he’s trying to test the place, it just happens to be his drink. He’s been doing it for years across dozens of coffee shops in San Francisco, from little spots in Presidio Heights to bigger cafes downtown, and…

There’s a story I keep hearing from people who plan corporate events in San Francisco and it goes basically like this. They spend weeks organizing everything, the venue, the agenda, the food, the logistics, and then the coffee shows up in those big silver thermos towers that have been sitting on a burner since six…

My friend Marco works in the Financial District and for about eight months straight he ate the same sad desk lunch every single day. A wrapped sandwich from a chain place near his office that he described as “technically food.” He wasn’t even mad about it anymore, he was just numb to it. Then someone…

My friend Jess moved to San Francisco from Austin about two years ago. She texted me on her third day there asking where she could get a real breakfast, like eggs done right, good coffee that isn’t watered down, and maybe something with avocado that doesn’t cost $22 at some trendy spot with a two…

My neighbor Tom is not a morning person. Like, genuinely struggles with mornings. But a few months ago he started showing up to work in a weirdly good mood on weekdays. Someone finally asked him what changed. He pulled out his phone, showed them a picture of a plate of avocado toast and a latte,…

My friend Sara spent her first weekend in San Francisco walking around North Beach looking for a good brunch spot. She asked a few locals, checked some apps, walked into two different places that had 45 minute waits, and ended up eating a granola bar she found in her bag. “There has to be a…