Okay, so here's the first one. I'm looking for the best and worst coffee shops around. I'm going to begin the journey with Cappuccino's Cafe in Emmaus, PA. It's not amazing or worldly. In fact, they're just starting to get some character in the place. However, it's only a five minute walk from my apartment - the main reason I frequent the place.

Cappuccino's is small, with only five tables. Overall, the coffee is great; that is, the brewed American-style coffee. They use coffee beans from Fasig's, an Allentown, PA based company. When you first walk in the shop, there is an entire wall of various flavored coffee beans, all from Fasig's. Unfortunately, Fasig's makes great flavored coffees, but fails to pull through when it comes to espresso beans. There's just too much oil in the beans. This makes Cappuccino's espresso a bit below par, and brings the cappuccino to average. So much for the name sake, I guess.

The nice thing about Cappuccino's is that it's not busy. Now, normally, yes, this is a bad sign, but at 8am having a bagel and coffee before work, it's nice to have a quiet place for just such a ritual. There's usually some good jazz playing as well. The breakfast and dessert selection are pretty good. The bagels are fresh, the pastries are tasty, and baklava comes in a good sized wedge. Never any good pies, though.

Recently, they've added a shelf of coffee paraphernalia behind the counter. This has added immense character to the place. There's even a really evil-looking bagel slicer that brings to mind images of the French revolution.

Overall, Cappuccino's is a good morning coffee and bagel place. It also serves well for the quiet-evening, get-to-know-someone-over-coffee-and-dessert mood. If you're looking for a Friday evening hangout to meet people, look elsewhere.

Cappuccino's cafe is located at the East Penn Plaza on Chestnut Street in Emmaus, PA. There is another at the Tilghman Square Shopping Center in Allentown, PA. I've never been there, but it's the same ownership.