One of the most major changes that has occurred to me since arriving in New Haven last Fall, and especially over my second semester, is my newfound addiction to caffeine. Though I still only loosely call it an addiction - I don’t NEED it; I just really like it, and I sometimes get decaf - I know what it looks like from the outside, and that’s an addiction.
What this “addiction” has given me, beyond long nights, is a deep familiarity with the coffee shops around Yale’s campus. Some of them, such as Common Grounds on York Street - right next to my humble abode of Ezra Stiles College and right behind Sterling Memorial Library - and the Jitterbus, a black bus located on Grove Street right next to Silliman College, know me by order. This is something very telling, and semi-embarrassing. Nonetheless, I wanted to give my own personal reviews of the coffee shops of Yale that I am most familiar with.
Keenan Walker, The “Addiction” (2024). iPhone Camera. Keenan Walker’s Photo Gallery.
I’ll start with the one I frequent the least: Koffee. Koffee is located at 104 Audubon Street, down from Timothy Dwight College. I think Koffee is cute, and I have never been disappointed by a drink I have received there; however, I will say that darker, indie decor is not necessarily my thing. It definitely feels like the bedroom of a heavily thrifting Environmental Studies major, which is super cute, but just not for me. Though I do enjoy their drinks, the reason I frequent them the least is their location. Very far from Stiles - and the farthest of the coffee places I will be discussing further on - it is definitely a trek, one I am not usually in the mood or have enough time to take.
Next is Willougbey’s. There are two Willougbey’s on campus. One is at 194 York Street (my favorite) on the first floor of the Loria Center; the other is at 258 Church Street, next to Timothy Dwight College. Having two locations, on opposite ends of campus makes Willougby’s very accessible to students in any college. I enjoy the spaces of Willoughby’s a decent amount, as well. It’s always nice to sit in there and hangout with friends or do some light work; however, it should be noted that both Willoughby’s are pretty small, and it can often be a little difficult to actually find a seat for yourself, much less for two. I do really enjoy their bendy straws though.
Now, we come to Common Grounds. Same with Willoughbey’s, there are two Common Grounds on campus. One is at 84 Wall Street, next to Silliman; the other (and my favorite) is at 276 York Street, across the street from Sterling Memorial Library. One of the nicest things about Common Grounds is its spaciousness - compared to the other coffee shops on campus, Common Grounds has the most space for you to sit, either by yourself or with a group of friends. In my experience, it’s almost never full, so you can always count on Common Grounds to provide an aesthetic collegiate hangout and/or study session. When it comes to the menu, Common Grounds is very extensive. They have basically every syrup you could possibly imagine, super good ice pebbles, and relatively cheap pricing. One word to describe Common Grounds is “dependable.”
Keenan Walker, The York Street Common Grounds (2023). iPhone Camera. Keenan Walker’s Photo Gallery.
Last, and the absolute most, is the Jitterbus. The Jitterbus is located at 163 Grove Street, next to Silliman College at the base of Hillhouse Avenue. I fell in love with the Jitterbus in the Spring semester of my Freshman Year, and it’s the kind of love you have a hard time remembering an existence without. Being a humanities major, I didn’t frequent that side of campus, so I was ignorant of the beauty of the Jitterbus my whole first semester. However, coming into the Spring with 5.5 credits, I knew it was going to take an awfully strong drink (of coffee, of course) to get through it. I made the miniscule trek to the Black Bus parked on Grove Street and ordered a dirty chai. It changed my life. The menu of the Jitterbus is smaller than those of the other coffee shops of Yale’s campus, but what they lack in options, they make up tenfold in pure quality at low costs. Though it may sound crazy that the best cup of caffeine I have ever received came from a short bus, that is the Yale way.
Keenan Walker, The Lifesaver: Iced Dirty Chai from the Jitterbus (2024). iPhone Camera. Keenan Walker’s Photo Gallery
These are, of course, my personal opinions. As you acclimate to Yale, you will simultaneously acclimate to the cafes of New Haven and find your own ranking. Perhaps surprisingly, this isn’t even an exhaustive list of coffee shops on Yale’s campus, but simply a list of the ones I frequent the most. There’s Atticus Bookstore Cafe, located within the Yale Center for British Art at 1082 Chapel Street, which is cute, but a bit expensive. There’s Steep Cafe, high up on Science Hill (where a lot of the STEM departments at Yale are headquartered), which is cute but far too out of my way to visit. I hear good things, though, and for upperclassmen, you can use your dining points there. Another place you can use dining points is The Elm in the basement of the Schwarzman Center, which is also decent and pretty cheap. There are, of course, the usual suspects - two Dunkins and one Starbucks within walking distance of campus. This is all to say that this list alone is an embodiment of my own personal tastes, and as you make your home at Yale, you will find your own. Perhaps if you, too, someday write a half-obsessive article about coffee places on campus, your will include entirely different locations than the ones I listed, and that’s the beauty of the plentiful options and experiences waiting for you in New Haven.
Keenan Walker, The Black Bus: A Cornerstone of the Yale Experience (2024). iPhone Camera. Keenan Walker’s Photo Gallery
