How Caffeine Became the World’s Favorite Drug | Eater

"Originating from the broader use of caffeinated drinks—initially adopted by Sufi and Buddhist practitioners to stay awake for long periods of prayer and meditation—these public venues became social hubs where people bought beverages and lingered for hours to talk business, science, and literature. In 17th‑century Europe they helped produce a clearer, more focused public consciousness by reducing habitual alcohol consumption, created unusually mixed‑class public spaces (women were typically excluded), and subdivided into specialized spheres for scientists, writers, and merchants. Their rapid proliferation (at one point roughly one such venue per 250 Londoners) made them incubators for new institutions and practices and helped extend work into night hours, contributing to the social conditions behind the scientific and industrial transformations of the era." - Amy McCarthy