Let me save you a click: > “specialty” coffee from roasters like Sey or Counter Culture, Partners or Intelligentsia meltedcheeseonwhitefish isn't drinking sma

Let me save you a click: > “specialty” coffee from roasters like Sey or Counter Culture, Partners or Intelligentsia meltedcheeseonwhitefish isn't drinking small roastery specialty coffee. They're drinking small chain roasted coffee. More importantly, they're visiting coffee shops that don't roast their own coffee, and then they act surprised when the baristas don't know much about that coffee and don't put much effort into a decent cup. Coffee shops that put lots of effort into their process are few and far between. Even the best are often inconsistent, because there are lots of variables to control and when you get busy it's hard to keep those variables consistent. I find that combination roasteries + coffee shops frequently do the best job, because they tend to understand the process better. Perhaps more importantly... it's tough to find a decent cup of drip coffee (not espresso) at a random coffee shop. Frequently shops just buy a decent drip machine and run it regularly, but don't doing anything special. And if they charge more than $2 for a cup of plain old joe, don't bother. You're almost certainly better off on price and quality if you make your coffee at home, especially if you just want drip. That being said, if you want a good cup from a coffee shop, there are some alternatives. Order an Americano instead -- if a place cares about espresso, it should taste pretty good. If the place seems pretty bougie and the barista seems competent and business is slow, order a pourover. But you're likely to get the best results by investing in a home coffee setup -- a decent grinder, an aeropress or a clever or a french press, and a kettle -- buying fresh beans, and brewing yourself, instead of going to the shop every day. If you truly want a good cup from a coffee shop... you're going to have to hunt for a shop that you like.