The Search for Coffeehouses

Hmm, it is NOT going to be straightforward to find places outside of the apartment to get my computer work done. There are coffeehouses here, but the culture is very different. For one thing, many of the local coffee places seem to add cream and sugar for you, which is odd to me.

One thing I'm realizing is that I don't probably need to worry so much about whether this place or that has wi-fi. There are a lot of wireless networks in NY, and even if the place in question doesn't have it's own access point, chances are good that someone else has an unsecured one in the vicinity.

Starwich

I forgot my laptop at Brie's last night, so she was kind enough to take it to work with her, and I took a train into Manhattan this morning to pick it up at her offices. I had previously looked up wifi spots in midtown Manhattan, and one of them was right by her office. So I set up in Starwich and had a really yummy egg sandwich on crusty bread with sauteed onions and cheddar cheese and bell peppers. Very tasty, but the coffee was kind of lame. I'm not finding great coffee here so far. Anyway, they had their own secured internet connection, which is great, but they didn't have public restrooms so I won't be able to set up shop here ever.

There were 23 (!) available access points from within Starwich, 4 of which were unsecured. I get the feeling I should worry first about finding a good place to set up and then go from there.

Boma

One of the nice little cafes in Harlem which offered free wi-fi has closed down! Shame, cuz this might have been one of my go-to places when near Brie's.

Freeze Peach

The most Austin-y place that I've found so far is not far from my house in Astoria. What a weird name, I thought. Seems like the name of a smoothie place like Jamba Juice but it has more the vibe of a very small Mojo's Daily Grind. The internet is only free for the first 1/2 hour though, which is a huge strike against it. I asked about the wireless connection and he said it was unsecured and I should just use the "Free Speech" network. At least that's what I thought he said until I realized the wordplay involved in the name of the place.

So, this has been the best place so far, except that it's really tiny and the internet isn't free.