5 Tips to a Better Coffee House Experience

1. Try something new. You never know what you might like, and if you don't try something, you'll never get to experience it. Usually get a mocha latte? Try the house blend. An iced coffee person? Order an iced chai tea.

2. Ask for a recommendation. Many baristas drink so much coffee that they're able to find interesting drinks and combinations that are very good, and if you ask for a recommendation, you may find something not so ordinary that becomes a new favorite.

3. Attend an event. Many coffee houses have open mic nights, author speaking engagements, mini-lectures, and other things available for customers to attend. At my local coffee house recently, for example, there was a french press lesson. Not only do you get to meet new people and learn new ideas, but it's just another opportunity to drink coffee! Yum!

4. Visit a new coffee house. Sometimes all it takes to appreciate a great coffee is to get a fresh perspective on your favorite drink by ordering it somewhere else. Each coffee house is a little different (even if the recipes are the same), so when you order your drink somewhere else, you get a slightly different drink, and it helps you discern what you like as a coffee drinker.

5. Sit at the coffee house to drink your coffee. There is atmosphere in coffee houses, and sometimes it's relaxing and refreshing to just sit and take it in for a while. Listen to the music, smell the coffee brewing, watch the people coming in and out, or the people hanging out in the atmosphere themselves. Maybe it's the writer in me that loves to sit and people-watch, but I think coffee houses are great places to spend time!