Wake up and smell the coffee!

Cities change. That’s no great secret to anyone who has more than a hand full of working brain cells. With that change also comes the fact that buildings, shops, or other places you may have come accustomed to simply fade away, relocating, closing due to old age or other reasons, and that new businesses move in. This is normal, change and evolution are the two most fundamental driving forces in life. Resisting these forces is impossible over any extended period of time, and those that try will get crushed in the attempt sooner or later. That doesn‘t stop many from trying though.

The latest threat to the "Irish way of life"?

Here in Cork, a frequent target of this ire has been something seemingly innocent: cafés. Yes, you read that right, and no, I didn‘t sprinkle any LSD into your coffee! And no, we‘re not just talking about the big chains like Costa, Caffe Nero, or Starbucks here, but independent cafés as well. It seems that for some, the very concept of a coffee house is like waving a red flag in front of a particularly ill-tempered bull. It hasn‘t gotten to the degree of large scale demonstrations against them, but any discussion about the future of Cork will almost invariably bring out the anti-café brigade, and their familiar worn out tirades against „hipsters“, „bloody foreigners“, and whatever other part of society is particularly despised right now.

Cafés can now be found in almost every kind of location in Ireland.

Where does this hostility come from? Well, I‘ll be the first to admit that I haven‘t done any in-depth study on the subject, but from the context I‘ve seen, there are several very clear reasons. One of them is the change in demographics that cafés symbolise. A lot of the customers frequenting them will be people who grew up on the continent, mainly in countries with a very well established café culture. As someone who grew up in Austria, whose café culture is so prevalent that coffee houses have made it into the Civilization series of strategy games as a special building for that faction, I count myself among these. Hell, this very article was written in a coffee house on the ground floor of the office building I work in during my lunch break. For a small but very vocal minority, this means a threat of a loss of identity, of the supposedly close-knit community they often grew up in, and they will invariably lash out against it.

Then there‘s the „dry“ aspect of it. For a long time, the only real spaces for socialising were the pubs, with a few tea rooms thrown in here and there, and having a pint after work, or even during the lunch break was seen as normal. To be honest, I still don‘t see a problem with that, and I‘m certainly not able to keep up with even the most self-controlled of my Irish acquaintances when it comes to drinking. However, the perception in some corners seems to be that cafés are part of some grand conspiracy to force Ireland „dry“, and believe me, I wish I was making that part up. The fact that the rise of the café in Ireland occurred in parallel to the decline of many traditional pubs certainly didn‘t help that impression.

The fact is however, that cafés are just a new forum for people to socialise and hang out, one that doesn‘t progressively degrade your intellectual faculties the longer you stay there. It is also a safe space, where the chance of ending up with a spiked drink is significantly lower than in many clubs or pubs. In these days of flat-sharing and a general housing crisis, cafés have become a second living room for many people, a place where they can hang out, meet friends, study, write blog articles ;) or even get some work done. In fact, the background noise levels in cafés have even been proven to boost productivity and creativity, something that I find out myself every time I‘m struck down with writer‘s block. It is even a space for many to get some peace and quiet, something they may not be getting at home. And in that regard, even the much maligned coffee chains like Starbucks or Costa have a role to play. For many people new to the city, these brands may be some of the only ones they recognise, particularly if they‘re from further afield, and provide a much-needed anchor. I know I felt like that when I came across Costa when I first came to this city back in 2012.

The increasing proliferation of cafés, both chains and independent outfits, and the fact that many of them seem to be thriving despite stiff competition, including from multinationals, just shows how many people need these spaces. They offer an escape for many people, a neutral ground for others, and a welcome rest for yet others. I can understand how it might seem to be a bit of overkill to have around a dozen coffee houses & cafés of all shapes and sizes in the city centre of Cork alone, but the demand certainly shows that they have a reason to be here.

That being said, the fetishisation of coffee by some café owners can be a bit grating at time. When some people elevate coffee to the same level of pretentiousness and self-importance as wine, that‘s when you‘ve gone a step too far. I‘m pretty sure that last line will have cost me what few readers I had left in France ;) Seriously though, I get that it‘s important what you drink, that it should be prepared by people that know what they‘re doing and talking about, but when you start dictating to people how they must drink their coffe, you‘ve gone of the deep end and deserve to be called out and ridiculed for it. That being said, thankfully things here in Cork haven‘t escalated to that stage yet, unlike back in Berlin, where some café owners have started banning people from bringing any electronic devices or even books into their cafés. And even in Berlin, these fanatics are a small, if vocal minority.

So to all those who turn up their noses, I have only three words: Get a life! No one is being hurt by these cafés, they offer a communal space that this city has far too little of, and they are an anchor for many of the new arrivals that come into this city every year. These shops are far more valuable than the incessant bookmakers and vape shops that seem to be dominating many high streets these days. So chill out, grab a coffee, tea, or whatever catches your fancy, and sit back. I think that‘s something that‘s happening far too little in Ireland these days.