One thing I’m learning about New Yorkers is that they absolutely love abbreviations. Which — after all — makes sense, since every second and syllable is of value here. Why waste your time saying South of Houston Street when you can slam it all together into SoHo. And then of course if you have a SoHo you need a NoHo. And joining these two sister neighborhoods are other riddles of abbreviation such as FiDi, TriBeCa, NoLIta, and SpaHa – which we’ll visit at a later time.
Until then, I sit in NoHo. And — Yes, you guessed it! — NoHo is simply North of Houston Street. Although NoHo is a much smaller neighborhood than its southern sister, it has very similar characteristics: expensive lofts and pricey shops — and a Starbucks!
This Starbucks separates itself from the others I’ve visited in one very cool way — the paintings on the walls are both real and for sale. This reminds me of a cafe my friends and I used to frequent throughout high school — believe it or not I once refused the idea of monopolizing chain coffee. The Sun Shoppe was our cafe of choice. The drinks tasted different each visit, and they were always closed on Sundays, but somehow that place holds a special place in my heart. Before new management took over, they used to sell the decor right off their walls.
Another factor working in favor of this location is the larger than normal seating area near the entrance. People are chatting, studying, texting, or gazing into computer screens. It’s an eclectic group, and this Starbucks can hold plenty of them. Also, this Starbucks seems to be on top of it with their choice in music. So far, I’ve heard Amy Winehouse, Adele, and Ellie Goulding. Keep it up!
Starbucks and the City 