Fed up with drinking coffee in other people’s offices.

“Dunno what the difference is between people talking on a call or people talking to each other or to their kids?”

The difference is: people talking to each other or their kids are all ordering, and sitting round a table. People with laptops seem to think it’s OK to spread themselves across a table - I was recently in Cambridge: very busy café, queues out the door, but still there were the entitled laptop table hoggers! It’s not OK, and I agree that people having meetings and so forth is as anti-social as those who talk loudly in their phones in trains.

I, on occasions, visit a small cafe where a number of the seats are against a ledge in the wall. There are a couple of smallish tables too both inside and outside

They've banned laptops. There was an online outcry but they are still very busy. On chatting to the owners they said about people staying there all day having bought just one coffee. But it was also because those with laptops were taking up too much space.

In that cafe I can see their point

I think working on a laptop is one thing, and ok as long as the person is thoughtful about buying a reasonable amount for the time they're there, but taking calls/doing online meetings is incredibly off. I too am always surprised at how common it is.

I once sat next to someone in a coffee shop who turned out to be doing job interviews, in person! I initially thought the interviews were to work in the coffee shop, which made some sense, but it became clear it wasn't, they really had just scheduled interviews there. I can't imagine agreeing to being interviewed in Costa - and what was their plan if they couldn't get a table?!

Treating a café as your office is definitely out of order. It's very inconsiderate toward the owner and to other customers.

DN works in a café where a group of people go everyday and stay for hours, having bought only one drink each. The manager won't tell them to stop, so what can you do🤷🏼‍♀️

Are single people not allowed their own table?

There's often a particular quality to 'work' voices and conversations that's quite intrusive and annoying; it's often loud, booming, falsely convivial et cetera. And all the potential breaches of privacy that people have mentioned here.
Admittedly, lots of people talking with their mates and howling with laughter, and kids screeching etc, can be annoying too!
The barista in one of my local cafés told me that there was somebody in there conducting a loud work phone call who actually tried to shush the other customers

My issue would be them all taking up a table for 2 so if we go in there are no tables left.

People who WFH/remotely are often blamed for coffee shops going out of business? And now those same workers are being criticised for frequenting them?

Not the point, but where on earth are you paying £6+ for a coffee I'm in London Zone 2 (and travel to/go to cafes in Zone 1 too) and pay £3.20–£4 depending.

I understand your frustration Op. Unfortunately I am an occasional laptop wanker when I want to meet people away from the office but tbh it's usually a catch up meeting with copious amounts of food in a brilliant place that has locally grown meat and vegetables, it's superb and I'm only going there to fill my face on someone else's time.

I do agree
But I hate dogs in cafes much more ,and I've two dogs myself
One time a dog had poo really runny poo right next to the counter
Staff didn't care ,just cleaned it up and said nothing.
Near food as well yuk

As someone who has managed a cafe, it’s really difficult. Sometimes they’re problematic - taking up a lot of room but buying little, other times they’re a steady source of reliable income and you don’t want to blanket ban them as a result. It also just takes the wrong person to then post on social media about how unfriendly you are, and suddenly you’ve lost a huge amount of week day custom.
Equally, we lost a lot of regular solo worker custom from accommodating the school drop off crowd, with younger children. They took up a huuuuge amount of space with buggies, made an absolute racket and usually spent very little in comparison to the tables they took up. They also always left an enormous mess. We always had our quiet regulars in when we opened and they’d make a hasty exit once school drop off had occurred. I was regularly asked if I could ban them or move them on as the young toddlers were so ill-behaved/left to run riot as if it was a crèche (I have a 20month old so I’m not unsympathetic). Again a stern word to the wrong person and we’d have become a no go zone for families, which wasn’t what we wanted.
Essentially, it’s a huge balancing act. If it’s a chain, the staff probably aren’t paid enough to care. If it’s an independent, the staff are probably too worried about losing income to change it. You can’t win.

Use this chance to quit the expensive habit of regularly buying overpriced coffee in coffee shops. I get what you mean, but if I'm paying £6+ for a coffee, I want to be able to enjoy it in the shop without disturbing working people around me. You can't change other people's ways, but you can choose to not spend your hard-earned money in businesses that don't make an effort to make their space comfortable for everyone.

Same here. Valid point.

Agree. All I'll say is don't sit there for hours with one coffee. I always buy lunch or several drinks.

YABU.

I regularly work from my local coffee shop on my WFH days. I will buy coffees etc., tip the staff well and they don't mind it. If you don't like it, you are free to go to another coffee shop.

Are people allowed to do work on their phones? Or a wee ipad?

Our high street is now coffee shops, vape shops, nail bars, bubble tea. If people didn't work in the coffee shops there are no other people in the city to frequent them as most shoppers are either in out of town shopping centres (thanks to high parking prices and lack of choice of shops on the high street) or shopping online.

I think an iron might burn someone, no?

Would it be ok to do my ironing there? I would buy a coffee.

I believe you did this in your head.

I've occasionally worked in a coffee shop when I've had appointments out in the community and an hour or so to kill between them. I don't make any calls beyond maybe calling someone to book an appointment though, and use the time to quietly write up client contact sessions, catch up on emails etc. And I make sure I'm where my screen isn't visible to other customers.

This is always my thought! We once sat in a coffee shop listening to a man with a booming voice deliver a presentation in corporate strategy and their plans to beat the competition. I was sorely tempted to tell him that I worked for the competition as we left. So unprofessional.

There is a cafe near my work which has recently put up a sign in the window to say that from noon all customers must order food. I wonder if this is a consequence of people hogging tables for hours on end nursing a single coffee.

I avoid laptop cafes. I've found one where people don't do this. Much better.