At first glance, this downtown café looks like a janitor’s closet. But you are not here to look. Drinking a cup of coffee at Courier is about staff engagement and human touch. Conversation is king, as workers only a handshake away pull special treats out of an oven and carefully pour hot water over your choice of fresh grinds. Everything speaks directly to the philosophy of its owner: scrappy, eco-minded, hyperfocused roaster and baker Joel Domreis. He seemingly communes with coffee growers, extracting the essence of the beans: each sip releasing oils and earth, chocolate sonar, floral signals, and juicy acid. While you savor his brews, the counter staff plays cuts from a vast vinyl collection, hip-hop to Bach. What it all adds up to? A delightful way to kill an hour, a few seriously good baked treats, and, seven years in, the best coffee in a competitive city.