CuppaCoffee

the coffee here is taken seriously, which you'll figure out fast. cuppacoffee sits at 1 merrimac st, close enough to north station and the td garden corridor that it pulls a genuinely mixed crowd, commuters and locals who've clearly made this a fixed point in their day. the regulars aren't casual about it either, and a place doesn't earn that kind of loyalty without consistency. specialty coffee in boston has gotten competitive, but the shops that hold their ground tend to do it through repetition and reliability, not novelty. if you're coming for the first time, don't overthink the menu. go with whatever the bar is pulling as espresso that day. merrimac st in the morning, one of those cups in hand, is a decent way to start anything.