A NYC coffeeshop can offer you two things: great coffee, and a home away from home. How many times have I taken my laptop to a coffeeshop in the city and whiled away the hours, when I could have just easily stayed at home to get work done? Countless. Ost Cafe in the East Village had become one of those cozy little coffeeshops that was not only Instagram-friendly but also warm and inviting with its old-Bohemia ambiance and decor. With a consistently delightful playlist and overall charming ambiance, it became a place of welcome when I felt so foreign and small in a new city.
But yesterday afternoon, Ost Cafe closed its doors permanently on the corner of E 12th Street and Avenue A, and I felt like a part of me stayed behind those closed doors too, eventually disappearing into the ethers along with what would used to be this gem of a coffeeshop. Eventually, something new will come and take up root in this corner location, as it always does in the ever-changing New York City, but it probably won’t parallel to Ost Cafe’s daily scene of flooding warm sunlight beckoning locals and tourists alike to come in for a good cup of coffee, stimulating conversation, and quiet musings over books and laptops.
Thanks for the memories, Ost Cafe, East Village. I’ll be seeing you at your Lower East Side location soon, but I know the experience won’t be the same.
