Why I Bring Briana Along When I Judge Cafés

I rarely visit a café for a ranking completely alone.

More often than not, Briana is sitting across from me.

It might seem strange to bring another writer along when I’m supposed to be making my own judgment, but I’ve found that having her there actually makes my reviews more honest.

We approach cafés very differently.

I’m usually the practical one. I’m looking at the things that are easy to measure: Is the coffee consistent? Is the service efficient? Does the menu make sense? Is the space functional? Does the experience actually justify the price?

Briana notices something else.

She gets emotionally attached to places.

She remembers how a café made her feel, which table she sat at, the conversation she had there, or the particular coffee that made her want to return. Sometimes she’ll leave a café talking about the atmosphere more than the food.

I used to think that was something that could make a review less objective.

I’ve come to realize that it’s actually useful.

Atmosphere is part of the café experience, even when it is difficult to measure. A place can serve technically excellent coffee and still leave you cold. Another café might have little that stands out on paper but make you want to stay for another hour.

Having Briana with me helps me see that difference.

When I’m too focused on whether something meets a particular standard, she reminds me to ask whether people would actually enjoy being there. And because I’m less emotionally attached to the experience, I can sometimes pull us back when a particularly memorable moment starts influencing our overall judgment too much.

That balance matters.

I don’t think an unbiased review means removing emotion completely. It means understanding where that emotion comes from and making sure it doesn’t become the only reason we recommend a place.

In fact, some of the cafés I’ve ranked have been better because I had someone beside me who experienced them differently.

That’s also why I enjoy reading Briana’s café reviews. You’ll notice that many of the places she writes about are cafés we’ve visited together, but her perspective is often completely different from mine.

And I think that’s the point.

Two people can sit at the same table, drink the same coffee, and walk away with two very different impressions.

For café reviews, having both perspectives is sometimes the best way to get closer to the truth.