THE Coffee Alley has rapidly become my default option in Chicago, despite its unexpected definite article evoking shades of Buckeye arrogance (all parties involved would do best to just drop the the). It’s close to my home and its lattes are slightly above average; what more could you want? Other than better lattes.

The environment seems like a good place to sit and work, which I hope to test someday. For now, it fills an important role in my life as the only place within five minutes where I can get a decent latte, and for that it gets a decent rating.