The scenery that surrounds us easily dictates our mood. Quiet chatter encourages easy creativity, silence leads to intense concentration, and pleasant music minimizes the daunting stress of a heavy workload. Finding locations where productivity can thrive in different forms can be a difficult feat. As I have continued to explore different corners of New York City, I have come across endless quiet corners, hidden nooks, and warm cafes, each with a different history, and unique atmosphere. From grand libraries to humble cafes, I’ve put together a list of seven of my favorite spots to study–whether you’re looking to buckle down in silence, visit with friends and balance chatter with work, or find somewhere to go on a quiet rainy day by yourself.
Charisma and Comfort: Hungry Ghost
A few years ago, I visited Hungry Ghost in between long dance rehearsals. Tired and sore, I was hesitant to buy a coffee as the taste always struck me as too bitter. However, upon the whim of a recommendation from a friend, I ordered an oat milk vanilla latte. The coffee was sweet yet subtle, and ultimately turned me into an avid coffee drinker. I was hooked on the smooth Stumptown coffee and the easy atmosphere of Hungry Ghost, and I return whenever I need a quick pick-me-up and a table for my work, whether it’s a Saturday morning or week night. Regardless of the hour, I can find a reliant source of energy both in the coffee and baristas at the humble coffee shop.
“Hungry Ghost is a brief moment during a busy day when I can pursue something fully for me. A good coffee shop can be one of the most stable things in a person’s life—that’s what Hungry Ghost is to me, ” said Casey Seifer ’25.
Of their 12 locations across the city, nine are in Brooklyn and three are in Manhattan, and I’ve noticed seating options vary across locations, but generally each spot has a mix of high top seats and normal tables. Each barista has their own playlist, some filling the lively space with SZA and Kendrink Lamar while others keep it more laid back with bands like Radiohead or The Backseat Lovers. Regardless of what’s on, the music plays easily in the background, and becomes white noise as your focus enhances.
More times than not, I make my trip to Hungry Ghost alongside friends, as do many customers. The space often fills with easy chatter of people discussing work or recounting recent stories or memories. Whether you’re looking for somewhere to go with a friend to debrief over coffee or somewhere to come alone to find serenity and focus, Hungry Ghost is an easy place to return to.
Crunch and Munch: Maman
Sometimes we all need to escape the urban jungle of New York City. While some locations immerse us in the bustling city landscape, others bring us back into nature and ground us.
Maman is one of my favorite spots in the city for its beautiful interior. The decor, characterized by rustic wooden tables, exposed brick, and large bouquets of flowers, creates an atmosphere that feels connected to the natural aspects of New York City that are often discounted. Adding more vitality to the space are many large windows that allow natural light to stream in, glistening against the pastry case and flower vases.
While the matcha at Maman is often an inevitable part of my visit, I rarely leave Maman solely with a drink, their French-influenced food and pastries being simply irresistible. In the winter, their soups give the perfect warmth, but year round, the steak sandwich is always in my order. Considering they cater more towards morning coffee and lunch, most of their locations close around 4 p.m. Nonetheless, it’s a great place to escape distraction and the boisterous city for a few minutes at a time.
Syrups and Stories: Variety Coffee Roasters
With locations ranging from Morningside Heights and the Upper East Side to Tribeca and Park Slope, Variety Coffee Roasters is multifaceted in both its menu and its customers. Their menu changes often to reflect the changing seasons and evolving city atmosphere. Along with their selection of pastries in the front, at their self-serve counter they offer free vanilla and simple syrup, an aspect that I find refreshing as coffee prices continue to surge at an intense pace.
I come back to variety often at the same time each week: Saturdays between 12:30 and 2:30, during my break in between dance rehearsals. Each time I come back, noticeably, there’s a different cast of characters settled in the variety of tables and countertops.
One week, I sat next to a man deep in the process of creating a collage for a loved one, while the next week, I worked across from college students studying intensely for exams. Recently, I sat at the table in front of two men who sat in silence for so long that I didn’t notice their presence, until I stood up to leave and my chair hit one of their shoes. He gave me a pleasant smile as I apologized and grabbed my things, but said nothing.
As my work becomes repetitive and disengaging at times, I need something to keep me interested, something slightly unpredictable, something like Variety Coffee Roasters.
A Slew of Seating and Evening Affairs: Think Coffee
Sometimes our productivity isn’t at its highest and what we truly need is somewhere that’s interesting and tranquil, but isn’t the safety and comfortability of our own homes. At Think Coffee, there’s always a table or booth to claim, whether it’s in the cool natural light or the warm hues of lamps and fixtures. The decor in each location has a vintage and almost rustic feel, with the dark tones of wood and brick creating a relaxing yet organic environment.
The endless options for seating makes Think Coffee an ideal place to come with friends to study collaboratively. Before a midyear history exam, I shared a table with two friends for hours, recounting each of the important themes and terms. Sometimes typing endlessly on your computer can only get you so far, and it can be helpful to find a place where collaboration can thrive.
With 11 locations throughout the city, 10 are found in Lower Manhattan, and one in Brooklyn. While hours vary depending on the location and the day, one aspect that keeps me coming back toThink Coffee is that its hours generally extend until 7 p.m. As someone who drinks coffee at all hours of the day (and night), I sometimes find myself staying until closing unknowingly. Having ordered three coffees and staked out a table for many hours, I’m able to finish my entire todo list.
Couches and Concentration: Black Cat Cafe
While many coffee shops around the city have commercialized, Black Cat Cafe, nestled in the heart of the Lower East Side, remains true to a niche vintage cafe feel. With couches, upholstered chairs, and wooden tables characterizing the space, the Black Cat Cafe is designed especially to cater to study groups, creating a warm and connected atmosphere.
At night, the space hosts creative events including open-mic and comedy shows, themed movie and Netflix nights, and academic lectures and tutoring. They go beyond what a typical cafe can often grant its customers, providing a highly academic space that also feels homey and open to collaboration.
The cafe’s owner, Aaron Ho, is a criminology professor who created the cafe as a place to bring together students, professors, and other intellectuals, creating an interesting space to do work outside of a typical setting. I can confidently say he’s succeeded.
Beauty, Space, and Silence: New York City Public Library’s Rose Room
Historic architecture and grand art pieces create a serene oasis in the New York City Public Library’s Rose Room. Located on Fifth Avenue, directly east of Bryant Park, the Library itself is unmissable, spanning the length of almost two city blocks, with the iconic pair of lions welcoming visitors at the main entrance. The rose room, found on the third floor, is a 1911 Beaux Arts design by Carrère & Hastings. This style, characterized by ornamentation and balanced compositions, can be found in much of the architecture in Paris in the late 19th century, giving the vast space a majestic and historic feel.
As the entire room is nearly the length of a football field, it’s split into three parts, each one with a dedicated mural of an ethereal sky. Under each of these murals is a multitude of tables, some equipped with desktop computers and others solely finished with lamps, allowing one to maintain focus even on rainy days or as the sun begins to set.
The room is open every day except Sunday between 10 a.m. and 5:45 p.m. People come and go, finishing their tasks and leaving within an hour or so, while others remain planted in one seat until the staff begins to usher people out. Regardless of who comes in and out, the room maintains a silence that is prominent but comfortable. I often come to the Rose Room with a distinct goal in mind: a certain number of topics I have to master or a concrete amount of words to write. As those around me are focused and intentional with their work, productivity becomes inevitable.
“The library is a great environment for studying. Everyone around you is very focused and that always motivates me to get a lot of work done,” said Sophia Birman ’26. “It’s also really fun to go with friends, because the area around is nice, and sometimes there are tables outside the Rose Room that are good for studying.”
Stained Glass and Nostalgia: Jefferson Market Library
Since I can remember, the Jefferson Market Library had been a place of serenity and comprehension. Located in the West Village, a few blocks from Washington Square Park, the library is a municipal landmark. Built between 1875 and 1877 in a classic Victorian Gothic style, the building originally served as a courthouse. The top floor, now the adult reading room, served as a civil court; the first floor, now the children’s room, served as a police court; and the basement room, now used as the reference room, was used as a holding area for prisoners on their way to jail. The building’s unmistakable bell would ring to summon volunteer firefighters.
And the building is famous in literary history as the site of the Little Review Ulysses trial of 1921, in which the editors of the literary magazine The Little Review, Jane Anderson and Margaret Heap, were found guilt of obscenity in publishing excerpts from James Joyce’s Ulysses, which at that time, was still a work in progress.
While all the original architecture remains, including high ceilings and beautiful stained glass windows, the building now holds volumes upon volumes of novels and nonfiction works. The academic and intellectual energy of the building creates the perfect mindset for getting work done efficiently. My parents used to take me to the first floor when I was a kid, and I would read on the soft couches for hours as my parents completed work upstairs. My mind as a child was restless, yet somehow, the Jefferson Market Library was able to do wonders, and to this day that remains true.
I often make it a goal to explore different spots in the city, but for these spots, returning has become muscle memory. I return time and time again to Hungry Ghost and Maman for my morning coffee runs and for quick study spot, to Think Coffee, Variety, and Black Cat for their easy and homey atmospheres, and to Jefferson Market Library and The Public Library’s Rose Room when I am seeking a guaranteed silence and concentrated atmosphere. Each one satisfies a different range of motivation, and allows for a different quantity of work.
“Hungry Ghost is a brief moment during a busy day when I can pursue something fully for me. A good coffee shop can be one of the most stable things in a person’s life—that’s what Hungry Ghost is to me, ” said Casey Seifer ’25.