On Friday, a teeny tiny coffee pop-up cafe opened in New York City. In a city that’s home to more than 1,700 coffee shops, that normally wouldn’t be big news — except that this coffee shop decided to do things a little differently.
For one week, they would only sell decaf.
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Cue outrage. Since going public, the Swiss Water Coffee Studio has caused something of a social media firestorm. New York Eater called it “the first sign of the cultural apocalypse.” One Twitter user proclaimed: “Give me caffeine or give me death," while another labeled the shop as “the enemies of man.”
Maybe they hadn’t had their coffee yet?
Dounia and I will be going here every second of our lives until they leave @swisswater pic.twitter.com/7sWrpClLgt
— andiemercado (@andiemercado) October 31, 2015
The size of the outrage is substantial, especially given the size of the coffee shop (it’s a pop-up) and the length of the shop’s duration (it will close at the end of the week). The company’s decaffeination process, according to their website, ensures that all of their drinks are “99.9% caffeine-free.” Although the pop-up will be short-lived, Swiss Water is planning different musical events to keep people entertained (and awake) throughout the week.
While many users have expressed their outrage, some decaf dissenters have quietly tweeted their support.
Decaf and simply curious drinkers alike can check out the shop, conveniently located in an abandoned BP gas station until Sunday.