71 Irving Place

When I told a friend of mine about my New York move, she mentioned her love of finding a New York coffee shop in which to squirrel away for hours, reading. Personally, I'm not much for this - I am well aware that patrons who take up a table and chair for hours while purchasing only a cup of tea, can very easily be the death of an independent coffee shop. Add to this the fact that I cannot spend $50 for an afternoon of reading and drinking coffee, and I assumed I would never follow in her footsteps. Or so I thought.

All that nay-saying changed last night when a friend and I popped in to 71 Irving Street for a hot beverage and sweet treat. I instantly swooned, this space is so charismatic and inviting - perhaps not moreso than on a particularly frigid winters night - and the hot cider and carrot cake we got were delicious (although the hot cider was much closer to tepid warmth...I can only hope it's because we arrived a mere hour prior to closing?) Even better? This is an independent coffee shop. Hallelujah!

 The space was pretty packed, and I can definitely see myself returning, book in hand, to happily spend some hard earned money and some well-earned time off to enjoy a cozy afternoon in this space. New York, with each of these little stumbled-upon-treasures, you just keep making fall deeper and deeper in love.

{Read about the space, and all photos credited, here}