Thursday mornings, also known as late-start day, are “refreshing” breaks from the red-eye mornings of the normal weekdays. 

Though many students treat it as a day to sleep in, others use the extra time to get themselves breakfast. Common breakfast spots are Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts. Students go there for their convenient drive-thrus and easy access to drinks. That’s why it’s not uncommon to see students with large-iced coffees on Thursday mornings. 

But, aside from those chain-stores, there are the local coffee shops that give students their fix. Gosia’s Coffee Shop in Brookfield, IL, is an alternative to the chains. They’re a locally owned coffee shop with an assortment of coffee drinks, espresso drinks, smoothies, and bites to eat. 

Gosia’s Coffee Shop is owned by a Polish immigrant, Margaret “Gosia” Glimco. They opened in late 2017 and have been serving since. She enjoys being close to the school. 

“Kids usually come before school or after, a lot of times they do their homework here. They come every day. They are good costumers,” Glimco said. 

Junior, Isabella Guttierez is a regular-Thursday morning customer, “I prefer going there over a Starbucks, even though they don’t have a drive-through.” 

“My favorite thing to get is a small Americano,” Guttierez said. 

Guttierez goes with, junior Siena Hajer, to Gosia’s on Thursday mornings. 

“Most days I get a mocha, but their smoothies and their ‘sick day tea’ is good too,” said Hajer. 

The two, enjoy their drive together on Thursday, they appreciate the quaint quiet mornings. Supporting local businesses is something they both believe in, even if it is out of their way from school, it’s something special.

“It’s brought us closer together and it definitely is [for the community], supporting smaller businesses is always a good idea,” said Hajer.  

Another local cafe was Flùr, which recently closed in November 2019 after a six and half year run in Riverside. Owned by pastry chef Adriana Saldaña-Meadath, Flùr was known for its gluten-free treats, especially their macaroons, they had customers come from far and wide for them. They also served up espresso drinks and juices. 

Being conveniently located in the middle of Riverside’s downtown, Flùr was a popular spot for high schoolers before school.

“It was closer to my house and on my way to school. It also had things that other places did not have and they were house-made, which made the Flùr experience more enjoyable,” said junior Katarina Dixon. 

Dixon was always a big fan of them, “I loved their lavender earl grey and raspberry macaroons, they also had really good hibiscus iced tea. Their macaroons were unique because mainstream places like Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts didn’t have them,” Dixon said. 

Gosia’s Coffee Shop is located on 8836 Brookfield Ave, Brookfield, IL. They are open 7 am-5 pm on weekdays and 8 am – 3 pm on weekends.

Flùr was located on 1 Riverside Road Riverside, IL. They’re permanently closed.