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Zoka Coffee Roaster and Tea Co.2907 Blakeley St, Seattle, WA | Directions 98105
47.665729 -122.296412View More
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A great spot for lingering coffee break or study session. Also, if you're a cafe mocha fan, I have a friend from NYC who I'm pretty sure mainly visits Seattle to get her Zoka mocha fix.
Fall of an Empire.
I feel lucky to have visited zoka during it's heyday. It had the feel of a busy European coffee establishment, full of people from all over, mostly young, talking about interesting subjects.
One could overhear talk of health, ethics, the politics and times, all mixed together in a high density but comfortable place.
Business people, students, or anyone who wanted to work late with the aroma of coffee could go there.
They have since invoked a wifitime limit.
"crickets"
I went back, and to my surprise noticed the detritus of a coffee establishment. The receipt now held wifi credentials, and after about 20 minutes I figured out that after connected to their network you needed to enable your browser to use a system wide proxy, and then log in. It would then give you a session 2 hours long. After the time period elapsed, you would have to then buy a new drink / item to add more time.
Whether by inconvenience, or the aversion to being put on a drink regiment, the population has declined to near extinction.
Gone is the previous atmosphere that once defined this establishment.
The herds have broken up. Some back to their dorms, others to their lonely apartments, and again still a tourist moves on to another place after a quick review of the internet policy.
Advise:
Session leases per mac address with a time limit is ok, BUT with a duration of 24 hours.
This will keep the encryption cracking hounds with directional arrays from sniffing and decoding your signal (keeping it to your clients alone), AND most importantly remove the hassle of the 2 hour repay.
Customers will feel welcome and return.
They will be happy knowing the wifi is secure, and that it is only one simple login per day.
Great place for homework. Chill place for great coffee and getting some work done if you can find a seat. I prefer this location over their Greenlake one; staff is very knowledgeable and friendly.
Quality coffee and a work-conducive atmosphere at this friendly University Village coffee shop..
In Short
The laptop-to-person ratio is extremely high, as students and computer-toting professionals camp out at the cozy tables for hours, drinking coffee and frantically typing. The large, dark-paneled room feels like the hippest library on the block, with assorted table sizes and a long curved bar nicely breaking up the space. Coffee is roasted onsite and is strong and complex; a long list of teas and baked goodies are also available.
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