We have to adapt. We have to change. It's the only way to thrive. So, it's going to take me a bit of time to get used to going to a restaurant or café where everything is digital.
You can only make a reservation online. Even if it's the hottest spot in town, knowing someone will not get you in. No one will take your order, or even make eye contact with you. The menu is a QR code. Point and shoot at it for what you want and it will be served "within ten to fifteen minutes."
You cannot pay with cash. Everything is completely, coldly digital. The servers look away, masked, as they drop the plate. But I have an open mind. Life is a scramble. We got out our phones and figured it out and transferred the funds, more like a stock transaction than a dining experience.
The upside? The place was quite comfy. The food and coffee was great, no question of it. The bathrooms were sparkling clean. It was filled with interesting people. (The couple at the next table, he in freshly-lacquered black fingernail polish, were discussing their next HBO series writing project).
The other side: what about the people who don't have the latest iPhone iteration? Or, older people who just want to stop in and pay in actual paper currency, including a generous tip?
I must admit it threw me. But not for long. Exclusive, yes. It's now wrapped in limited edition sportswear worn by very wealthy international students and friends far more attached to their mobile devices than the people right around them. Very nice space. Freezingly polite. Not a weary busboy or smiling server in sight. And not a lot of laughter. Interesting to find that it's a big, corporate chain, not a local coffee spot.
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