There is nothing we like best than meeting with friends over a cup of coffee. Just thinking about it evokes good feelings in us–the sound of a Lakeland coffee shop, the feel of a hot brew on your hand, and the moments you get to spend with your friends catching up and talking about practically everything under the sun.
People have been socializing over coffee since the 15th century, when intellectuals, artists, musicians and writers share ideas in coffeehouses. Today, not much has changed. We still use Lakeland coffee houses as our meet-up or gathering places.
This phenomenon is called the coffee culture, a social atmosphere or social behaviors that depend greatly on drinking coffee. When you go to a coffee house, you’ll notice how old friends catch up with each other’s lives, how new friends get acquainted, how students finish their group projects, how writers brainstorm about their books, and how workers relax after a long day in the office.
No matter where you go, coffee shops have the relaxing atmosphere where couples can date and friends can hang out. Paired with a cup of joe and a dessert, your conversations can last that you’ll eventually lose track of time. Why, even our favorite characters from the hit TV show “Friends” are no stranger to our social addiction with coffee.
In Lakeland, there’s a lot of coffee houses you can choose from. There’s the Concord Coffee Company, the Black & Brew Coffee House & Bistro, and Mitchell’s Coffee House, among others. Of course, there’ll never be a shortage of the usual Starbucks in every town.
And it’s not just these quaint little cafes that capture our coffee lovers’ hearts. Even small bodegas and food carts that sell a cup of coffee, especially during the colder months, tend to get closer to our hearts.
When we drink coffee with friends, we don’t even need to look at how cute the cafes are or how homey the feel of its interiors. We can have coffee with friends in a park, overlooking Lake Mirror, and it would still feel the same. Somehow, coffee has the power to trigger good memories from us.
And it’s no surprising why. Coffee remains to be an addictive potion we all willingly succumb to. So surely, coffee culture will be here to stay for a while. Though we also welcome the prominence of matcha green tea (and other drinks) these days, there’s still a long way to go before it can replace coffee in our hearts.