After-dinner coffee in the Triangle

[brokegradstudent]

I like nothing more than to linger with friends over a nice cup of coffee at the end of a good dinner, or more often eat dinner at home then go out for coffee and dessert. I've found good restaurants in the area to have really uneven coffee service.

For instance,

...

At Crooks Corner (Counter Culture), the coffee sometimes tastes like it has sat too long before service, the is especially true after about 9pm (we have a bit of a fetish for their banana pudding so we find ourselves here at the end of many nights in Chapel Hill).

At Blu the coffee was decent, surely nothing to write home about, but the staff was really nice about letting us hang out even though they were busy (and of course we tipped accordingly). Many places aren't nearly so accommodating.

Is there a restaurant around w/ good and more importantly consistent coffee after a meal or with dessert?

[bbqme]

In Chapel Hill we usually end up at Cafe Driade and Open Eye Cafe in Carrboro. They have the same owners and roast their own beans (Carrboro Coffee Company). In Durham, I really like Joe Van Gogh on Broad St. It's owned by the same guy as the Cup o Joe's in Chapel Hill and Hillbrough, and he too roasts his own beans.

For a cheaper alternative, we often go to Weaver Street Market. Grab a cup of coffee and a delectable treat from their bakery and we're good to go. Plus, Weaver St. has one of the best selection of coffee beans in town with Equal Exchange/Fairtrade and local roasters Counter Culture (house blend for Crooks, Mag grill, Panzanella, and some others available), Larry's Beans, and Joe Van Joe.

[brokegradstudent]

I love all of those places but I'm thinking more about a restaurant setting than a coffee shop setting, though often we end up going the route you suggest owing to the frustrations outlined in the original post.