I was put off of these because, the first time I saw them (in Washington state), they were advertised as “bikini” coffee shacks. I had a visceral reaction to this—it felt both creepy (What kind of person would work in such a place? What kind of person patronizes it?) and gross (non-zero probability of pubic hairs in the drink). I think strip clubs are problematic too, but they seem somehow more honest and less creepy because of their transparent purpose.

I’ve heard from others that these places have good coffee, but, perhaps unfairly, I am repulsed by them.