Delightful, Delicious, D'Espresso

When time permits, it is not in poor taste to hunt for a bargain.  I thought I'd found one when the move-in papers at my new apartment claimed that, as a resident of this building, I'd receive a 15% discount at D'Espresso, a small coffee shop around the corner.  But when I waved my key fob and asked my barista if it got me a discount, he replied with a brusque "absolutely not" without skipping a beat.

Lesson: Never believe what your apartment people tell you.

I thought since I was there I might as well stay, so the barista, whose name turned out to be Ese (like essay) and whose manner turned out not to be so surly, made me a fine macchiato and welcomed me to the neighborhood.  He recommended me restaurants and we passed pleasantries while other customers came and went.
D'Espresso (the Lower East Side location) is small and straightforward, stark and sparsely decorated, all off-white with a couple of paintings of coffee beans.  The music is upbeat and modern: nothing you've heard, but nothing that sounds unfamiliar either.  All this comprises an atmosphere of cool, ordered calm: a lovely environment in which to enjoy a coffee.  There is wi-fi and window seating.  And as for that bargain hunt, next time I'll probably stay home with my Nespresso Essenza.  But on special occasions when i do go back, I hope it's Ese who's there to greet me.