I guest posted this over at Neighborhood Notes, but thought with the current financial climate it was worth cross posting over here. (Use your local coffee shops.  Do not spend money on an office for your startup.)

With the economy where it’s at… saving some money is a good idea. While financial advisers often tell you to avoid expensive coffee shops when on a budget, if you can save on the major expense of paying for office space by leveraging your local coffee shop… Grab your laptop, order a drip coffee and move your office into your neighborhood coffee shop… just try and stay away from the pastries.

I’ve been what they call down south in the valley a “New Bedouin,” working primarily from a home office and a number of coffee shops around town for a couple years now. I can’t do my writing at home with all my normal distractions so I leave the nest to find comfort in a cafe with a cup of coffee. I know the shops that have food, quite space for meetings and the ones that are open late. While Starbucks are useful because of their mass number of locations and consistently decent coffee, they still charge for wireless access and I’d prefer to support my local independent shops. Overtime I’ve narrowed down my favorite places to work by rating them on the following criteria:  Hours, Food, Space, Table Size, Coffee Quality, Parking, Internet, Bathrooms.

Hours

I’m a late owl.  I can’t tell you how early a shop opens, but I’ve been there when they all close.  As I like to work late into the evening, I give extra points to the place that stay open late.  While around 7-9 is the average, there are some places around town that are open super late.

Food

Very few coffee shops also serve good food and needing to eat is probably one of the main reasons I leave a place.  Only one from my list of favorites below actually serves any sort of substantial meals… I can only eat so many muffins and scones before I fall into a diabetic coma.

Space

A bad environment can ruin my working mood or it can motivate it.  I like open and bright space, but still enjoy my own table space that provides me with a little island to work on.  Although I recognize that making coffee isn’t the quietest process and people will be having engaged conversations, but I prefer to work from spaces that also provide some quite space or are quite in general.

Table Size

I tend to need my space.  I have my laptop, my moleskin notebook and usually a book.  I like being able to spread out and work freely without worrying about knocking stuff off my table or encroaching on somebody elses space.

Coffee Quality

I drink my coffee black so I especially notice when it isn’t very good.  Lucky for me, I live in a city with tons of great quality coffee all around.  I wouldn’t call myself a coffee afficianado, but if I wanted burnt tasting coffee I’d stop at a 7-11.

Parking

Having to remember to plug the meter is no fun at all… especially since I know I’m going to get focused on work and forget.  Finding a great coffee shop with a large open parking lot is pretty hard to find, but any place with free street parking gets high marks.  Sometimes free street parking can be found just a few blocks from your favorite places, so do a little block cruising to find out.

Internet

I want it free and I want it fast.  Having to pay for internet at a coffee shop is a huge turn-off for me.  I have a mobile access card anyway, but I’d prefer to know a place has reliable high-speed access.  Sometimes speeds can get a little crippled when other patrons are catching up on their torrent downloads…

Bathrooms

I tend to drink a lot of coffee while I work and I often get so focused on work that I push the limits of what my bladder can hold before I need to visit the bathroom. Coffee shops with only one bathroom and high traffic can develop a queue for the loo, so any place with more than one gets extra marks in my book. Also, important is the cleanliness of the bathrooms.

Power

Running out of battery juice can ruin a great work session… having only a few outlets can ruin a coffee shop for me.  I don’t care if they’re hidden under benches or in the ceiling, I just want to be able to plug in without running an extension cord across the whole shop.

My Favorite Portland Neighborhood Coffee Shops

NE - Albina Press

Photo by Coffeed

So, I rarely make it into N & NE Portland for coffee, but I was recently up north meeting with Ken and some other community focused creatives and was quite happy with the space and environment at Albina Press.  Several of us were gathered on the couches in the back room as others worked and relaxed on tables near the big bright windows up front.

Hours: Open til 8pm M-F.
Food: Standard cafe snacks and pastries.
Space: Good sized space with a great couch & lounge space in back.
Table Size: Several good sized tables to spread your work out on.
Coffee Quality: Serving the quality Stumptown coffee.
Parking: A good sized lot with street parking on surrounding streets.
Internet: Free and fast.
Bathrooms: Only one, but was clean and stocked.
Power: Several outlets.

SE - Stumptown

Photo by Stumptown Coffee Roasters

I’m probably a little biased as I met my fiance at this Stumptown Coffee, but this place has great quality coffee and a small but good energy filled sitting and working area.  The tables are big enough to spread out on, but the narrow room can feel a bit cramped when full of people.

Hours: Open til 7pm M-F.
Food: Standard cafe snacks and pastries.
Space: Narrow room can get packed.
Table Size: Big enough to spread your work out on. work space for two people.
Coffee Quality: Stumptown is well known for their great coffee.
Parking: Small parking lot and street parking on the neighboring streets.
Internet: Free and fast.
Bathrooms: Only one, decent shape.
Power: Several outlets.

SW - Blue Joe Coffee “Lake Oswego”

Photo by Coffee Shop Journal
While I know Blue Joe Coffee this is technically outside of Portland proper, this coffee shop is just down the hill from the SW Portland neighborhood that I call home and I spend quite a bit of time here. The space is large with plenty of table space as well as couch space to lounge and read. The jimmy-buffet-all-the-time radio station they play can be a bit much sometimes, but the coffee is quality and parking is always easy to find on the 4 hour or 1 hour free streets of L.O.

Hours: Open til 9pm M-F.
Food: Croissants, quiches, muffins and scones.
Space: Huge open space. Several tables and one long table seating 8+.
Table Size: Big enough to spread your work out on. Not big enough for two.
Coffee Quality: Great. One of the better Americanos I’ve had.
Parking: Lots of easy to find 1 hour and 4 hour free street parking spots.
Internet: Free and fast.
Bathrooms: Only one, but it is always very clean and stocked.
Power: Several outlets.

NW - Urban Grind

Photo by sandpuppeteer

Urban Grind seems to be the place from the twitterati crowds.  Almost every time I’m there I see somebody from the Portland tech / web scene tapping away on their laptop.  This place is one of my regular mobile offices around town and one of my favorites because of the fact that they also serve good food.  Parking downtown sucks on the meter, but if you park just a couple blocks west of 405 there is free street parking.

Hours: Open til 10:30pm M-F.
Food: Standard pastry type food as well as a menu of sandwiches and soups.
Space: Big open space. Several tables and one long table seating 8+.
Table Size: Big enough to spread your work out on. Working space for two people.
Coffee Quality: Always great quality.
Parking: Metered street parking outside, but free street parking within 3 blocks walking.
Internet: Free and fast.
Bathrooms: Two bathrooms, always stocked and clean.
Power: Several outlets.

What are your favorites?

Mobile Coffeeshop Office Fun from Improv Everywhere

For our latest mission, three agents entered a Starbucks one by one with their own giant desktop computer and CRT monitor. They bought coffee and worked at their computers as if they were laptops. One computer even had a Wi-Fi card installed, enabling our agent to surf the web.

Read more about this mission at Improv Everywhere

Co-Working: Between an Office and a Coffee Shop

For those of you that enjoy the ability to leave the house and find some nice quite place to work, but who want a bit more structure and privacy then your neighborhood cafe… there are some co-working spaces that might be a good solution for you. Check out Souk on the west side and CubeSpace on the east side.