Before Starbucks, cafés used to be places where you could watch the world rush by through the window, shrouded in the warm mist of a cup of coffee. Here are places that can offer you a place to relax and enjoy life—and won’t kick you out the second your cup is empty.
Columbus Bakery
“We’ll never frown upon someone buying one cup of coffee and sitting here all day,” said Bianca Almonte, manager of Columbus Bakery.
With treats like the blackout cookie ($2), which combines creamy dark chocolate and sugary white powder, and the sweet and delicate oatmeal-raisin cookie ($2), you are sure to buy more than just a beverage.
“I really like the high ceiling since it gives it a feeling of great airiness,” said first-time customer Alex Hickox, who was sipping an iced tea and working on his laptop.
While the back area of Columbus Bakery feels spacious, the front feels like a “cozy kitchen or a bakery from the past,” said Stuyvesant sophomore Hayward Leach.
Columbus Bakery opened in 1995, and has since become like home for Upper West Side moms who drop their kids off at nearby P.S. 9. The bakery is also a great place to sit with friends over pastries in the evening, as dim candles create a romantic quietness.
Almonte said the staff “relies on teamwork and respect, and this creates a friendly atmosphere in the café.”
“Bring a laptop, read or bring all your friends, as long as you like the food,” said Almonte. With all the tasty pastries Columbus Bakery has to offer, it’s not hard to fulfill this condition.
Life Café
A feeling of mysterious melancholy surrounds Life Café. Owners Kathleen and David Kirkpatrick opened the shop in the 1980s, choosing to conceal the deteriorating storefront of the former antique store with old Life magazines.
Life Café gradually transformed into a refuge for artists. The café became a place for listening to music and writers, chatting with other artists and writing poetry. In the ’80s, playwright Jonathan Larson wrote some of his Pulitzer Prize-winning rock musical “Rent” here.
Today, the cafe’s walls are the canvases for largely unknown outsider artist John Sunderland’s chalk drawings (outsider art is raw, from the soul and outside of the mainstream). The shop also offers Wi-Fi free of cost to customers.
The café serves traditional American fare and the occasional Mexican dish, such as a quesadilla filled with caramelized onion and sautéed mushroom ($6.50), and Pan-Asian dish, such as organic tofu ($2.25). There is also a large vegan selection ranging from three-bean vegan chili ($3.25) to sautéed seitan (a beef substitute made of wheat gluten) with chickpeas and spinach ($14). Most dishes are relatively inexpensive, but there is an $8 minimum charge per person.
Though the Life Café no longer hosts music or art shows, it still has the same bohemian atmosphere, perfect for artists looking for some inspiration.
Veniero’s
Veniero’s boasts a 113-year history and a dazzling window display of cakes and pastries. The long, winding line in the take-out area is intimidating, but in the café area, the waiting time in the afternoon is practically nonexistent.
The store has a 1950s ambience. There are golden lamps and beautiful engravings on every wall. Endless mirrors add to the café’s romantic aura.
“It’s a great place for first dates,” said Irene Hwang, a frequenter of Veniero’s. “It’s airy and comfortable, yet also very intimate.”
Though you can’t go wrong with any pastry at Veniero’s, the Italian Cheesecake ($3.25), crafted with fluffy ricotta cheese, is particularly scrumptious. The Baba Rum ($1.80), a small cake soaked in rum, is also a must-have.
Robert Zeriloi, the Daytime Overseer of Operations, said Veniero’s is “a great place for kids to come and have a drink.” It has everything you need in a café: quality food, good value, friendly service, free Wi-Fi and spaciousness.
Veniero’s is somewhat hard to reach by subway and the waiting time for take-out is lengthy, but the excellent pastries and elegant atmosphere compensate.
Flowers Café
The hippie-themed Flowers Café seems to have it all: super-friendly service, colorful décor, quirky dishware. The shop maintains the air of a friendly neighborhood café—old ladies sit on the bench outside and gossip over coffee.
William and Ronda Frasier, a husband-and-wife team, started up Flowers Café two years ago. William Frasier is “a hippie-wannabe,” said clerk Stephanie Guzman.
The café feels just like a home on the Lower East Side. It is warm, energetic and filled with fresh rye bread for sandwiches. “The atmosphere is definitely very intimate and we’re even on a name-to-name basis with many of our customers,” said cashier Megan Villacorta. “A lot of people will just come in to say hi.”
Perhaps Flowers Café is most enticing because of its menu. The Wood Stock Sandwich ($6.95) contains savory roast beef, horseradish and cheddar cheese, and the Downtown Salad ($7.95) mixes mandarin orange, chow mein, chicken and romaine lettuce. The café also offers a variety of baked desserts, all for under $5, and bowls of soup for $3.50.
“The people are really nice here,” said customer Sharon Joseph. “I can be sure everything I eat here is healthy and not fried.” Her personal recommendation is the tuna melt ($4.75), which is one of the café’s “Oldies but Goodies.”
Flowers Café opens at 9 a.m. every day. It is a great place to watch people in the morning and have a cup of the shop’s popular raspberry mocha cappuccino ($3.50).
Egg Custard King Café
Egg Custard King Café offers many Chinese delicacies. Though most Chinatown bakeries are packed 24/7, this café has a larger seating area, allowing customers to truly enjoy the store’s specialty: the egg custard tart.
“The café has far better bubble tea and sesame balls than anywhere else in Chinatown,” said Elena Pearson, who works above the café as a tutor. Her students often drop by the café after a tutoring session to recuperate with bubble tea, which comes with “generous bubble servings,” said Pearson.
Egg Custard King Café sells both the original custard tart and tarts with a variety of different flavors, including honeydew, almond and banana. The variations are perfect for egg custard connoisseurs looking for something new, though the honeydew custard tastes as artificial as its green hue looks.
The original custard tart is the tastiest by far. Its flakier crust and creamy texture cannot be beat. The $5.75 lunch/dinner special, Hong Kong-style baked ziti, is also recommended for its unique combination of Cantonese spices and Italian cooking.
Despite the café’s traditional Chinese-bakery décor of simple metal furniture, the place provides a wonderful view of the park across the street.
Columbus Bakery
474 Columbus Ave (at 83rd Street)
(212) 724-6880
www.arkrestaurants.com
Life Café
343 E 10th St (at Ave B)
(212) 477-8791
www.lifecafenyc.com
Veniero’s
342 E 11th St (at 1st Ave)
(212) 674-7070
www.venierospastry.com/cafe.html
Flowers Café
355 Grand St (at Essex St)
(212) 777-8785
Egg Custard King Café
271 Grand St (at Forsyth St)
(212) 226-8882
