“Bagels and Joe” Community Response
English 4
Haleigh Fitzsimmons

Dear Reader,
I have always been drawn to coffee shops, so for my community experience I decided to visit Bagels and Joe on 84th Street. The store is exactly how it sounds, selling bagels and coffee throughout the morning and into the early evening. They also provide sandwiches, smoothies, and other pastries for customers. There are two locations in Lincoln, making this a Husker oriented coffee shop for the community. There are a wide variety of individuals seen in the coffee shop, but all are evident Husker fans. On the Saturday I visited Bagels and Joe, was of course a Husker Game day. Meaning all the customers were decked out in Husker apparel. From the moment you walk into the store, it’s clear to see it is a central location for the Lincoln community. I decided to write a reflective essay about my experience, and focus on the senses gathered from the community feel and the basic relaxation feel of the shop as well. I wanted to give the readers a descriptive look into the community shop, in hopes to advertise and encourage others to visit Bagels and Joe. As you. Read this Essay keep in mind my love for coffee shops, and my focus of bringing the audience a clear description and encouragement to try new things, such as Bagels and Joe.
There’s something special about coffee shops. Something simple and relaxing. The atmosphere changes your world, makes the volume of chaos in the outside world dial down in nearly an instant. As life begins gaining it’s quick pace, adversity and stress take full control of the average person’s day. Suddenly, there’s no time to relax or unwind. No place to allow your mind to stand still, and no chance for peace in one’s heart. Perhaps coffee shops were invented for the soul purpose of changing all of that. “Bagels and Joe” brings every aspect of a coffee shop adding one extra delight, bagels. Never was there a grander invention than combining two things coffee lovers hold so deer. Throughout this essay, allow the words to take you on a journey to a place where stress is uninvited, and sorrowful hearts are healed. Let this essay take you on ride towards the sweet sensation of the “Bagels and Joe” community.
The soft music of John Mayer, Ed Sheeran, and Sam Smith create a melody of relaxation. Sounds of smoothie blenders and cashier sound effects fill the room, adding to the simple-acoustic sounding-music playing overhead The smells of coffee, freshly made bagels, and newly whipped cream cheese overwhelm the customers with security; featuring the deluxe sensation of caffeine. No more lingering smells of polluted Lincoln air lure over the nose, a new world fills the nostrils bringing automatic smiles to the mouth, and heart. The menu provides creative artwork and colorful-eye catching-visuals that draw the anxious coffee lovers in. Eyes dart back and forth from the extravagant menu, to the freshly made pastries in plain view of the public. So many options, so little time, yet not at all stressful..
Various types of people filter through the entrance. Carrying laptops, notebooks, newspapers, and books. College kids with their friends, fresh “off the boat” hipsters attempting to meek a stand, lovely couples holding hands, and families with small children walk by the counter, informing the workers bustling about behind the counter top of their hearts desires. Once the order is placed, finding a seat is the next step to the adventure of a coffee extravaganza. The sounds of the smoothie machine and whipped cream mixer begin to fade-coffee shop music grows louder yet keeps the soft volume simultaneously-begin to flood the ears. Warm sunlight filters through the picture windows next to the booths. Soft speaking occurs among the costumers, as if an unspoken regulation among coffee drinkers hangs over their heads.
After sitting in your seats every weight is lifted from your shoulders, no stress holds bondage to you no longer. Every chain of bondage to sorrow is broken, even if it means only a brief moment. The community of “Bagels and Joe” has every remedy for a broken, and hurting heart. One strawberry smoothie and Cinnamon Bagel for the broken hearted, Chai Tea Latte with a Salmon Quiche for the ones who need a breather. A plain bagel with cream cheese for those who are in search for an escape, while blueberry muffin with a hot chocolate is provided for those who need their spirits lifted. Never will you run out of options when entering “Bagels and Joe”.
It’s Husker game day, which means Nebraska football apparel floats everywhere with a caffeinated drink in their hands. What would a Lincoln community be without the color red? Answer, non-existent. Bedazzled Husker hats shine in the sunlight, red pigment dances on the walls ahead, and the environment of hope and hype gather around the room, awaiting the kick off. It isn’t tension you feel, it’s excitement in the most lovely way as a coffee shop can bring.
You know you’ll dread leaving the comfort sanctuary, but the hope for a return gives you a sensation of hope you’ll need to survive the outside world. Reminding yourself to fear not, for one day you’ll return to a place your heart will call home. A coffee shop so grand your love may explode from your heart at any moment. It’s within these walls of “Bagels and Joe” rest is found in the most earthly way possible.
Coffee shops act as a place to escape the chaos of the world around us. Coffee shops within the community provide a chance for the members to indulge themselves in relaxation and comfort. There will never be an environment as welcoming as the warm sensation of a coffee house. As people, we hold onto the things we can see, smell, hear, and touch. Bagels and Joe is a perfect example of a place worth holding onto, and a community anyone would die to be apart of. As local bands come and go, receiving their first starts within the Lincoln area, it may also act as a launching pad of exploration within the Lincoln community. There will never be another feeling, than the feeling of entering the new world of “Bagels and Joe”.