We're not coffee snobs. Okay, we're a little bit coffee snobs. But we've spent enough time in the coffee shops near our communities to have strong opinions. Your mileage (and milk preference) may vary.
Dallas-Fort Worth Area
Houndstooth Coffee (Henderson Avenue): Third-wave coffee done right. The cold brew is strong enough to make you rethink your afternoon meeting schedule. Also a location in Sylvan Thirty with great outdoor seating.
Summer Moon Coffee: A Texas original with "Moon Milk" (sweet cream cold foam) that has an almost cult following. Multiple DFW locations. The Fort Worth Magnolia Avenue spot has excellent people-watching.
Ascension Coffee (Design District): Need a workspace? Brunch menu is restaurant-quality. Outlets at every seat. Show up at 8am, suddenly it's 2pm.
Avoca Coffee Roasters (Fort Worth): Magnolia Avenue, small but exceptional. The pour-over flight is worth trying. Dog-friendly patio, naturally.
Phoenix / East Valley
Cartel Coffee Lab (Tempe): The shop that proved Phoenix could do specialty coffee at a national level. Iced lavender latte is the gateway drink for people who think they don't like flavored coffee.
Press Coffee Roasters (Scottsdale Quarter): Great ambiance, excellent single-origin pourovers. Cold brew nitro is dangerously smooth.
Giant Coffee (Grand Avenue, Phoenix): Tiny shop, excellent coffee, neighborhood feel. Cash-only, which is either charming or annoying.
Nashville
Barista Parlor: Gulch location in a converted auto garage is most photogenic. Check which location allows laptops if you're planning to work.
Steadfast Coffee (East Nashville): The local favorite. Excellent espresso, housemade syrups (the cardamom is a sleeper hit).
Frothy Monkey (12 South): Full food menu, beer and wine evenings, reliable Wi-Fi. A legitimate all-day workspace that turns into a date spot by evening.
Oklahoma City
Elemental Coffee Roasters (Midtown): OKC's best roaster, period. Beautiful airy space, natural light, rotating single-origins. Where OKC's coffee culture lives.
Coffee Slingers Roasters (Downtown): More polished, great breakfast burritos, pastries that disappear by 10am.
Amarillo
Palace Coffee Company (6th Avenue): Converted house, on-site roasting. The barista knows your name after your third visit. In a chain-dominated city, Palace is the antidote.
Universal Coffee Shop Etiquette
Buy something every 2-3 hours if you're camping out to work. Tip well -- baristas remember the tippers. Don't take phone calls on speakerphone. And if you're bringing your dog to a patio, make sure they're leash-trained. A well-behaved dog on a coffee shop patio is a local celebrity. An unruly one is a liability. Tip extra when the barista brings your dog a water bowl.