Sit and stay awhile...

Some of the area's best coffeehouses

Natalia Fitzsimmons of Clifton talks with friend Richard Lajoie, also of Clifton, at Kaldi's. (Photo by Leigh Patton/CiN Weekly)

The best ones you walk in and think, I'd love to just sit here. There are the diners and the greasy spoons - the 24-hour night-owl establishments. And then there are the coffee houses - for those who really intend to stay up all night.

Coffee is the common denominator, but each coffee shop has its own scene, from great music and espresso to food and art. Some are better for those who like to linger, and others are better for getting in and out.

The beauty of coffee hangouts is that they are hassle-free. No one is going to interrupt your reverie to ask if you're all right. You can sit as long as you like and drink as much as you want.

They are social and anonymous at the same time. Multiples come in to catch up or gossip, while others work or read or escape. You can feel comfortable about being by yourself in a coffee shop. If you don't tell anyone where you are going, no one is going to find you.

The perfect one for you is out there. There are those for smokers and non-smokers. Ones for the readers and ones for talkers. Depending on your interest at that particular moment, any number of neighborhood coffee shops can meet your needs. Here are a few to try, if you haven't already.

KALDI'S: FEELING SOCIAL?

Catch up at Kaldi's. Kaldi's in Over-the-Rhine has been a mainstay in Cincinnati for 10 years. If you don't come for the coffee, you come for the food, the music or the atmosphere. Divided into smoking and non-smoking sections, Kaldi's offers the perfect blend of coffeehouse hang-out and restaurant.

"Anywhere where there are this many books can't be bad," says server Jen Watts. "Whenever I get tired, I just look at the titles and I'm like, 'ahhh.' "

The bluegrass sounds of the Kenton County Regulators and the selection of used books are also a great reasons to hang out in Kaldi's.

LOCATION: 1204 Main St., Over-the-Rhine. Coffee. Food. Music. Books. It's got it all.

BUZZ COFFEE SHOP: WANT TO BURN A FEW?

Buzz Coffee Shop in Corryville is so laid back it's almost stopped. Only the ambient music moves. Buzz is decorated like your first apartment - strands of lights hanging from the ceiling; worn out, sunken-in couches; ashtray pedestals and hand-me-down lamps. Not to mention the stellar CD collection. Buzz caters to the college crowd with its espresso and Pop-Tarts, but its clientele includes young and old.

LOCATION: 2900 Jefferson Ave., Corryville. Coffee. Pop-Tarts. Bathroom graffiti.

SCRIBBLES: BUY THE BOOK

Scribbles in MainStrasse is only a few weeks old. But owners Carla and Rodney Wilson already have it packed floor to ceiling with great books - titles you'd actually want to read or have already.

Each month they will feature a different artist's artwork. This month, the walls belong to Chris Plummer, a friend of Rodney's since elementary school.

Plummer is a printmaker - an artist of woodcutting. He succeeds in pulling slices of his life from blocks of wood and placing them onto paper. Looking at his prints, you feel like you know him: His wife and him in the kitchen; his three cats hiding from the dog.

Scribbles offers its books at half the cover price. And it already has the books on the best-seller lists.

LOCATION: 616 Main St., Covington. Coffee. Cookies. Books. Large couches.

ZEN AND NOW: ENLIGHTEN YOURSELF

The west side isn't usually known for coffee hangouts and Eastern philosophy. But it should be. Zen and Now is the Cheviot retreat for coffee, live music and all your bohemian needs. Think '60s. Think Woodstock. Jewelry, oils and incense, not to mention books.

LOCATION: 4453 Bridgetown Road, Cheviot. Coffee. Jewels. Books. Board games.

THE COFFEE EMPORIUM:
YOUR HOUSE OR THEIRS?

The Coffee Emporium in East Hyde Park is a coffee and tea explosion in this little Victorian house. You can't live in Cincinnati and talk about coffee without hearing about the Coffee Emporium. It has customers so loyal they come in every day. The beans are locally roasted, so you are assured a great cup.

LOCATION: 3316 Erie Ave., Hyde Park. Coffee. Tea. Quirky.