Kuro Kuma Espresso & Coffee

This petite, eight-seat specialty coffeeshop in Morningside Heights peddles Counter Culture beans, espresso shots pulled from a gleaming La Marzocco machine and Balthazar croissants and scones. The restored cherrywood floors and a wall of sky-blue tiles behind the counter make for a serene, Zen-like room, which is no fluke—the shop's name is Japanese for "black bear," an homage to nearby Sakura Park, a Japanese cherry-blossom garden.