Coffee Shop Etiquette

Is your local Panera Bread or Chick-fil-A now someone's office? It is in my neighborhood. And sometimes, the business chatter takes away from my enjoyment of lunch! It might be time to set some guidelines for those "coffee shop workers".

1. Don't spread out. Keep your work contained to a small table. You don't need a table for 6 - leave that for diners.
2. Buy something. A good rule of thumb is to buy one coffee or snack every hour you're there. Be a patron - not a squatter!
3. Be quiet. This is not the place for a long business call or loud conversations.
4. Don't overstay. Set a time limit. I heard that in some Panera Bread facilities, they cut off the internet at a set time.
5. Meet one or two people only. This is not free meeting space. Unless everyone is eating a meal, make other arrangements.
6. Tip! It's not necessary to add to the tip jar, but if you spend a lot of time at a certain restaurant, it's a good idea to be nice to the people behind the counter.

More and more restaurants have WiFi now, so it might be good to share the tips above. As our work becomes more mobile, we need to learn a new set of good manners!