25 Cafes in 27 Days

The idea was to stay creatively motivated and caffeinated at the same time. The goal was to try 30 different cafes around the Bay Area in November. Falling short was the most disappointing part of my NaNo experience. To think, had I made it to those last five cafes, I could've enjoyed five more cups of coffee. It's sad. I know.

One other disappointment was not making it to Capitola Coffee Roasters. It served as the "home away from home" for some of my characters before their big adventure in Yosemite. I hope to fit in a visit before the end of the year.

When trying to decide which cafes were my favorites, I didn't use an elaborate rating system. It was mainly a question of which ones I would visit again. Here are my Top 5 favorite cafes:

1. Lowry's Irish Coffee House, San Jose
2. Pacific Java Cafe, Pacifica
3. Y'a Bon Espresso, Morgan Hill
4. Plumes Coffee House, Monterey
5. Fog City Java, Pacifica

Lowry's is small, clean, not crowded and offers free wireless internet. It has porch seating and a homey feeling. It doesn't have a wide selection of coffee, but what they have is good and comes in a glass.

Pacific Java is an airy, two-story cafe with seating in its loft. It has a variety of drinks and pastries. It also has free coffee refills, which is a big plus. They play uninspiring music, but I like the overall feel of the cafe.

Y'a Bon Espresso is close to home, but feels miles away. The music and interior decorating fit its theme of New Orleans. It's easy to lose yourself there and the coffee is excellent.

Plumes offers delicious slow drip coffee in the middle of historic downtown Monterey and Fog City Java in Pacifica, though small and somewhat dingy, offers this view.

Honorable mentions include University Cafe (Palo Alto), Mission City (Santa Clara) and Cafe Borrone (Menlo Park). They can be noisy at times, but they have an energy about them and long hours. If you're looking for something cozy with tasty soup, I'd recommend Flower Flour in San Jose.

At the bottom of my list were the following three cafes:

• Kalisa's La Ida Cafe, Monterey
• Espresso Garden & Cafe, San Jose
• Starmars Cafe, San Jose

Kalisa's was cramped like a storage closet. Espresso Garden, with its white tablecloths, felt like an uninviting restaurant. Starmars was empty and the pumpkin spice cafe au lait the owner recommended was, in a word, nasty.

A few cafes remain on my On Deck list. I hope to visit them soon. The cold month of December seems like the perfect time. Thank you to those who gave recommendations. I appreciate it.

Note: Sorry if everything is too brief. I tried to be helpful, but keep the length blog-readable. If you have questions about a particular cafe, let me know.