With an increase of students on campus, it can be hard to find a spot to study. Good coffee, suitable background noise and dependable, free Wi-Fi are all things to look for in an off-campus study spot. Here are some options:
Inkwell Bakery and Café (2 locations)
If you are a fan of working and eating – or if you just like brunch – Inkwell is the place to go.
Both of the Inkwell locations offer a menu of traditional coffees, brunch and lunch items and freshly baked goods.
The more well-known location is on North College Avenue, right on the Bloomington Square. It is the bigger of the two locations and has a more traditional café design, with exposed brick and wood finishes, that makes you feel like you’re in a city café. The best time to go is midday during the week, when many people might not be thinking about going to work in a café. This Inkwell location is a 15-minute walk from the Indiana Memorial Union.
The secondary location is on Woodlawn Avenue, right next to the School of Optometry. While this location is half the size of the downtown one, it still offers a nice and quaint study spot — with a lot of accessible power outlets. While it doesn’t have the same interior design as the downtown Inkwell, this location is brighter with its white painted interior. The location is also an eight-minute walk from the IMU, making it more accessible from campus.
The con is that both Inkwell locations can get crowded quickly and you won’t always be able to find a spot to work.
Poindexter Coffee
The Graduate Hotel located at the intersection of Kirkwood Avenue and Lincoln Street might not be your go to spot – but it should be. A 12 minute walk down Kirkwood Avenue from the Sample Gates, the Graduate Hotel is home to Poindexter Coffee.
You might be surrounded by porcelain dolls and eccentric wallpaper, but Poindexter still serves as one of the calmer and more accessible off-campus study spots. It is also one of the only coffee shops in Bloomington that has numerous power outlets near tables, so you won’t have to worry about your laptop’s battery life.
Poindexter’s food and drink options include bakery items, coffees and teas. Other than sitting in the main coffee shop area, there are also study spaces available in the room on the other side of the concierge space.
Morgenstern’s Bookstore
While it might not be accessible on foot from campus, like the other locations, Morgenstern’s Bookstore provides a lively and refreshing off-campus study spot. If you don’t have a car, the bookstore is accessible from campus by taking Bloomington Transit buses 3 or 9.
In terms of seating, the bookstore has a few to choose from. You can sit and work in the café area, which has a handful of tables and bar-style seating at the window. Morgenstern’s café offers a variety of coffee drinks, baked goods and pastries.
There is also an outdoor patio if you prefer to work outside. And outside the café area, tucked away in a corner – among psychology and religious books – is a long wooden table with comfortable chairs and accessible outlets.
The con of Morgenstern’s is that it can get a little too loud depending on who is shopping around the store. So, if you prefer to have calmer and less auditory sensory-heavy study spots, Morgenstern’s might not be the place for you.
