January Coffee Talk: The 61c Cafe

Achievement: #78. Monthly Coffeeshop Feature

This year, we’ll be visiting a different coffee shop in and around Pittsburgh and writing about it. (Expect us to post about it on the final Monday of each month.) To kick things off, we thought we’d start with a familiar, much beloved spot: Squirrel Hill’s 61c Cafe.*

January Coffeeshop Feature

Named for the bus line that runs past day and night, the 61c Cafe is a place near and dear to our hearts — it has lovely outdoor seating for nice weather, a variety of good drinks and tasty treats…oh, and Fox and I met there, and a few months after that, I proposed to her there as well, with the help of a staff member who turned off the music and made the whole place shut up upon my signal.

January Coffeeshop Feature
But in addition to all that personal history, the 61c is just a good coffee shop. They keep a rotation of two different varieties of coffee brewing all day, though you can also buy any of their beans whenever you like.

January Coffeeshop Feature
They’ve also got a great selection of teas, as well as a nice assortment of espresso drinks, lattes, juices, and smoothies (options not pictured).

January Coffeeshop Feature
On top of all that, the 61c has delicious muffins that are baked onsite every morning and smell like heaven, as well as cakes, biscotti, several kinds of granola, and cookies. This is one of their gigantic oatmeal raisin cookies, which, even though I’ve been having them for 17 years at this point, still bring me glee every time I have that first bite. (In fact, the positioning of the mugs and cookie above pretty well approximate my facial expression whenever I realize they’ve got cookies in stock.)

January Coffeeshop Feature
So, in short, check out the 61c, a veritable Pittsburgh institution. Come for the beverages, and stay for the pastries (or the free WiFi…y’know, whichever).

January Coffeeshop Feature
Whatever you do, make sure you bring cash — the 61c has always been, and remains to this day, a cash-only establishment.

The 61c Cafe is located at 1839 Murray Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. It’s open daily, 7am – 10pm. And seriously, bring cash.

* Quasi-legal disclaimer: This post represents our personal opinion. We have not been paid by the 61c Cafe (or any other persons or entities) to promote it. We just like the place.

4 Comments

Filed under #78, #78-17, coffee, coffee shop, pittsburgh, squirrel hill

4 Responses to January Coffee Talk: The 61c Cafe

  1. Thomas M Tkocs

    Just knowing I used to clean that place when it was George Aiken’s many, many years ago, and you two meeting there brings a smile to my face!!

  2. Conte

    I was last here prior to the election and they have great coffee and muffins!

  3. Woubbie

    Sweet! It MUST be the best coffee shop because you are even more photogenic there than you usually are, and that’s pretty darn photogenic! I just LOVE that picture! (Oh, and Michael’s cute too, of course!)