Emails and espresso

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@eatout_southafrica

Emails and espresso

Thursday, March 24th, 2011

Are you a member of the ‘new Bedouin’ tribe? Whether working as freelancers, consultants or office drones, marooned on business trips, a growing number of people find themselves using coffee shops as mobile offices. Here – and even more so in the UK and US – certain coffee shops have begun to resemble open-plan corporations, with writers, traders and designers tapping away at their keyboards side by side.

So what are the ideal circumstances for coffee shop offices? Personally, I favour a quiet venue. While writing my thesis, I was one of the only regulars at an exceedingly unsuccessful establishment, on the edge of my university campus. Their wi-fi cast such a wide shadow around the building, stretching out into the field in front of it, that on summer days, I discovered, it was even possible to work on a bench near the duck pond, returning to the coffee shop to top up my vast mug of tea when my hands got cold. (This was English summer, after all).

A Canadian friend meanwhile, favoured chain coffee shops. She migrated between our tiny village’s two Starbucks joints, finding the anonymity and the hiss of milk being frothed therapeutic. Another friend headed to the cosy, artsy places – the ones where he could sit on tattered leather couches, and listen to obscure jazz, while drinking loose-leafed Sumatran tea.

Whatever your preference, there’s sure to be a mobile office for you in your city. Check out this list of great spots that serve wi-fi with their affogatos.

Johannesburg

Pretoria