People say a lot of things are the perfect ying to the yang of coffee, but for many of the world that grew up before Amazon destroyed bookstores, books have a special place in the evolution of coffee culture. There's something about flipping through a fresh brook while sipping on a hot cup of coffee that just makes one pine for simpler times.
It certainly is no indication of good coffee, but there's something about giant coffee shops. There are precious few in the northeast but once the region of super high rents begins to fade in the rear view mirror, the landscape starts to blossom with shops the size of houses. One recent visit to Arizona turned up a fine specimen, a gorgeous, large footprinted cafe slinging out good coffee called Sagebrush.
I traverse Northern Liberties much less than I used to, but it's always good to see quality coffee shops when I do get over there. One seasonal day, I had some time to squander so I made over to a shop I had heard much good of, a cafe called Persimmon Coffee.
I have fabulous memories of Bethlehem, PA. I recall visiting a distant cousin and going to a Christmas market as a child, stopping by for numerous respites while passing through and recently, a long-overdue tour of the silent steel mill. Sadly not many of these visits had a great coffee stop but that fortunately changed on my most recent visit.