No matter the time of year, coffee shops are my safe haven. My mission after a week in my Dupre double is always to do my work at a coffee shop in the Twin Cities on the weekends. This ritual gets me off of the Macalester campus, and lets me lock in on the many essays I should have started during the week. My routine became a staple last semester when I met an older couple from St. Paul who had been to almost every coffee shop in the Twin Cities. They shared a Google folder with 70 coffee shops along with their reviews, and it has become a goal of mine to visit as many of them as I can — a goal that has hurt my bank account, but to me is a well deserved sweet treat after a long week.
Having visited 10 coffee shops so far throughout the Twin Cities, The Lost Fox is my favorite. It sits right next to the Union Depot, only a 17-minute ride from Macalester on the 63. I discovered it just last month, when my sister was visiting from Chicago and we decided to step into a coffee shop to get a sweet treat. Together we tried the last piece of their homemade chocolate cake. Since then, I have spent two Saturdays there and sampled other food, such as their bagels and croissants.
When you step inside this coffee shop, you will notice that it is also a restaurant and bar, divided by a wall of plants. I have yet to spend my time on the restaurant side of the building, but I plan to in the future and possibly sit down for a proper meal. The Lost Fox has many board games, books and, again, an amazing amount of plants, which I appreciate. My favorite thing about the location, though, is the lighting. There is something about ambient lighting that makes me want to continue typing my 12-page research paper. Some of the tables even have their own lamps, a unique touch that adds to the cozy and calm feel of the coffee shop.
Besides the aesthetically pleasing atmosphere, their coffee is amazing. I have had their vanilla iced coffee and caramel iced latte, both of which were incredible. The iced coffee was perfect, and they added whipped cream on top, which was a delicious surprise for me. One of the best things about this coffee was its nugget-shaped ice. If you’re an ice fanatic like me, you know how much a drink can be affected depending on the kind of ice that is used. This ice in particular helped the iced coffee stay flavorful and didn’t water it down over time. The iced caramel latte, though, was even better, so I would recommend it more than the iced coffee. It just had more flavor, which I believe has to do with the caramel syrup, as the vanilla flavoring was very light. Thankfully these drinks also did not break my budget for the week as the 16 oz. cost just about $5 each and with my tip, they cost about $8.
I spent about five hours there each of those days, which I have been told is an insane amount of time, but trust that the amount of work that I accomplished was so worth it. I was able to finish not only my Spanish essay but also half of my psychology final research paper in that time. Maybe one of these days I will be kicked out. I am starting to think one of the workers recognized me on my last visit.
All in all, I would recommend taking the bus over here not just for the great atmosphere and excellent coffee, but for a way to get out of the Macalester bubble and finally get some work done.
5/5 Stars
