*Rant* Anybody else hate the Brewster cafe?

[Maybell]

Or is it just me?

To start, I built this thing not knowing what it was supposed to do, went there only to be ripped off 200 bells for a random cup of coffee that I was then forced to immediately chug down my throat because god forbid I let it cool down first...
...Seriously, it’s funny how all the other villagers are free to sit in the cafe for as long as they want, but you, the mayor, are forced to drink and leave immediately...

[Side note: I never understood why these games decide to give you useless, unavoidable dialogue options if they’re not actually gonna make any difference... What’s the point???
Especially in this case, you have to go through the same “Ok!/I’ll let it cool” dialogue every time you buy a cup of coffee and you’re always forced to click on “Ok!”.... LIKE WHY?!?!?!?!
Why not just skip it altogether? I don’t get it...]


Anyway, I went and searched what the point of cafe was supposed to be and found out you could get a job as a barista if you buy 7 cups of coffee or something like that, so I decided to give it a try.

Of course, you can’t buy all of them in one day because Brewster doesn’t want to serve you more once per day.
I mean, it’s not like serving people is supposed to be his job or anything...
But, whatever.

Eventually, after I finally managed to waste enough money, Brewster dignified to ask what kind of coffee beans I prefered, after which I had the privilege to choose between three different kinds of beans for him to pour hot water over.
Yay!





Fast forward, after what seemed like 15 days, I finally got an “I want to work here” option in my dialogue, only for Brewster to say “No thanks”...

Confused, I searched the internet again to find out it apparently had to be past 11 a.m. for me to get the job because ...reasons?

Of course, the game doesn’t tell you that.

So I went there again after 11 a.m. so he could tell me that “I can’t be a “good barista” if I have things in my pockets...”
Again ...because reasons...

So I went ahead and got rid of pretty much everything I had, came back for the third time and was finally able to get the job, along with the condescending “give the customers *exactly* what they want” comment from Brewster, even though he, as a barista, never even cared to ASK a single customer what they wanted, yet I’m supposed to care.


And then, the final straw...



I start my shift.

A villager walks in and asks for a cup of coffee made with “mocha” beans.
...So I choose mocha beans, no milk, and no sugar since they didn’t ask for any, they drink it and say they’ve had better.
...
The second villager walks in and asks for a cup of coffee with one teaspoon of sugar.
...So I give them one teaspoon of sugar, no milk, and a blend of coffee beans since they didn’t specify what type they wanted.
They take a sip, trash it, and leave.
...
The third villager walks in and asks for a cup of coffee made with “kilimanjaro” beans, I give them that, they complain it’s not sweet enough and leave.
...

This went on for a while.
...

It made no sense.


And after ALL of that,
...after all the work,
...and the days spent,
...and the bells wasted...

What do I get as a reward?
....A bag of coffee beans.

What can I do with them?
....Sell them at ReTail for the same price as a seashell.



...

I don’t even know what to say at this point...

I’m beyond disappointed.
I officially HATE the Brewster cafe and I hate Brewster HIMSELF even more!!!

As you can tell, this whole thing got to me so I felt the need to write a rant post about it because I’m still in disbelief. If anybody cares to read this, I hope my misery entertains you somehow.

I’m gonna go drink some TEA now and listen to sad songs...
I just hope I’m not the only one severely disappointed with this place. Surely, somebody else out there shares my hatred for Brewster, right?

 

[Jam86]

so like, i love brewster and his cafe
however i do understand why u would hate him, his cafe may be cute but it is pretty pointless to be fair

when i work there, i always use google to see what the villagers favourite coffee is so i could unlock the cafe uniform
now that i think about it, the cafe uniform and other coffee furniture is all u get from it
once u collected them all, there's no point in the cafe existing

so yeah, i like brewster but he literally has no purpose in the game apart from decoration i suppose

that being said, i'm super excited for when he gets added in NH so i can watch my character drink coffee in high quality ☆

 

[JKDOS]

There really never has been a point to Brewster. When he was first introduced, he was basically a functional background character for the Roost, where K.K. Slider performed.

Removing him from the museum and giving him his own shop was likely due to the direction New Leaf was going.
And working there or getting coffee allowed it to be functional while keeping a well known character in the series.

The extra dialogue options are just put there for a small sense of immersion.

 

[glow]

all love for my boy brewster hes just living his best life and have u seen his gyroids????

coo.

 

[Maybell]

so like, i love brewster and his cafe
however i do understand why u would hate him, his cafe may be cute but it is pretty pointless to be fair

when i work there, i always use google to see what the villagers favourite coffee is so i could unlock the cafe uniform
now that i think about it, the cafe uniform and other coffee furniture is all u get from it
once u collected them all, there's no point in the cafe existing

so yeah, i like brewster but he literally has no purpose in the game apart from decoration i suppose

that being said, i'm super excited for when he gets added in NH so i can watch my character drink coffee in high quality ☆

I’m glad someone understands.
The villagers coffees are probably only worth making using Google to find out what they want, since they don’t actually tell you...

 

[Bluebellie]

You know, I never really even cared about the cafe in new leaf. I just pretty much ignored it. Now that they haven’t added it into new horizons, a small part of me kind of misses it. A tiny part.

 

[Maybell]

That really never has been a point to Brewster. When he was first introduced, he was basically a functional background character for the Roost, where K.K. Slider performed.

Removing him from the museum and giving him his own shop was likely due to the direction New Leaf was going.
And working there or getting coffee allowed it to be functional while keeping a well known character in the series.

The extra dialogue options are just put there for a small sense of immersion.

I guess I just don’t like him because I find his behavior to be rude, I mean dictating how a customer is and isn’t allowed to drink their coffee is beyond ridiculous imho...
Also, paying me for my work shift in coffee beans??? I mean, come on.

Btw, I have nothing against games giving the player a sense of immersion if the dialogue actually goes somewhere. It’s just that in this case you literally don’t have a choice but to click on the “Ok!” option because the dialogue just keeps repeating over and over again until you do so. So why not give me an option to skip it altogether.

Post automatically merged: Jan 14, 2021

You know, I never really even cared about the cafe in new leaf. I just pretty much ignored it. Now that they haven’t added it into new horizons, a small part of me kind of misses it. A tiny part.

Trust me, I’m gonna ignore it from on as well. I didn’t even know they didn’t add it to NH. I guess that’s the first AC game that doesn’t feature it...

 

[LoyalDragonfly]

Sorry, OP, but I couldn't disagree more. Brewster is one of my favorite Animal Crossing characters, and I love the cafe! It's probably my favorite public works building.

Brewster is like a breath of fresh air. It's important to have some different personality types among the NPCs beyond just 'cheerful' (this is why I love Phyllis, too). I like that he warms up to you a little over time, but always maintains that deadpan stoic personality, which makes him such a delight. His conversations with the other villagers are great, too... I love it when a smug villager asks him to make the player a sandwich or other food item, and Brewster is just like "this is a place for coffee and coffee only." And his love of coffee at a billion degrees is pretty funny to me, honestly. He's like a pigeon version of Godot from Phoenix Wright.

From a gameplay perspective, I could see somebody saying that the cafe is pointless, but it's got so much charm. I love coffee, and I also love making and eating/drinking food and drinks in games, so even though there's no mechanical benefit to sitting down and having a cuppa next to one of your villagers, it's just very cute. It becomes part of my daily routine, and having my ol' pal Brewster making me my 'usual', seeing him prepare my adorable tiny coffee complete with equally tiny milky foam, and hearing the little jingle after I've had a sip... all together, it makes me just a little happier than I was before. Also, I love playing the minigame every day, even after I've received every prize possible, just because seeing villagers bustle up to the countertop, followed up by their 'first taste' animation, is cute every single time and never gets old. Besides, you can get coffee furniture, which I've always loved, especially the little coffee cups.

I will say, though, that the little part-time minigame is very much a victim of 'guide dangit' especially when villagers who aren't from your town come in. I suppose in Nintendo's ideal world scenario, people are going to other people's towns all the time and would therefore maybe see other villagers enough to write down their coffee preferences, but that's a pretty big ask when there's so many villagers out there and, as far as I know, it's not guaranteed that each one will be at the coffee shop at any given time. I still haven't seen every one of my villagers at my own coffee shop, much less anybody else's.

Still, I can't help but approve of the passion that OP feels. I feel that much dislike for Leif, even though nobody agrees with me on that front, so I can sort of feel and understand your pain.

But regardless, I love this place, and I love Brewster, and I even love the 'useless' coffee bean prizes! I'm thinking of putting some of those superb coffee beans in my grocery store fantasy room as a setpiece.

EDITED: I almost forgot to mention, the adorable little takeout coffee that you can sip while walking around your town! I love to do this, especially on a brisk day when I, myself, have ordered a takeout coffee. Villagers will even comment on it, too. I love it!

 

[Maybell]

Sorry, OP, but I couldn't disagree more. Brewster is one of my favorite Animal Crossing characters, and I love the cafe! It's probably my favorite public works building.

Brewster is like a breath of fresh air. It's important to have some different personality types among the NPCs beyond just 'cheerful' (this is why I love Phyllis, too). I like that he warms up to you a little over time, but always maintains that deadpan stoic personality, which makes him such a delight. His conversations with the other villagers are great, too... I love it when a smug villager asks him to make the player a sandwich or other food item, and Brewster is just like "this is a place for coffee and coffee only." And his love of coffee at a billion degrees is pretty funny to me, honestly. He's like a pigeon version of Godot from Phoenix Wright.

From a gameplay perspective, I could see somebody saying that the cafe is pointless, but it's got so much charm. I love coffee, and I also love making and eating/drinking food and drinks in games, so even though there's no mechanical benefit to sitting down and having a cuppa next to one of your villagers, it's just very cute. It becomes part of my daily routine, and having my ol' pal Brewster making me my 'usual', seeing him prepare my adorable tiny coffee complete with equally tiny milky foam, and hearing the little jingle after I've had a sip... all together, it makes me just a little happier than I was before. Also, I love playing the minigame every day, even after I've received every prize possible, just because seeing villagers bustle up to the countertop, followed up by their 'first taste' animation, is cute every single time and never gets old. Besides, you can get coffee furniture, which I've always loved, especially the little coffee cups.

I will say, though, that the little part-time minigame is very much a victim of 'guide dangit' especially when villagers who aren't from your town come in. I suppose in Nintendo's ideal world scenario, people are going to other people's towns all the time and would therefore maybe see other villagers enough to write down their coffee preferences, but that's a pretty big ask when there's so many villagers out there and, as far as I know, it's not guaranteed that each one will be at the coffee shop at any given time. I still haven't seen every one of my villagers at my own coffee shop, much less anybody else's.

Still, I can't help but approve of the passion that OP feels. I feel that much dislike for Leif, even though nobody agrees with me on that front, so I can sort of feel and understand your pain.

But regardless, I love this place, and I love Brewster, and I even love the 'useless' coffee bean prizes! I'm thinking of putting some of those superb coffee beans in my grocery store fantasy room as a setpiece.

I definitely appreciate different personalities being within the game as well. It’s just that I don’t like when NPCs are rude for the sake of it. Like Phyllis and Brewster...
I want to play a game like AC to relax, not to be condescended by an AI.

 

[LoyalDragonfly]

I definitely appreciate different personalities being within the game as well. It’s just that I don’t like when NPCs are rude for the sake of it. Like Phyllis and Brewster...
I want to play a game like AC to relax, not to be condescended by an AI.

I get you. I've never personally felt that Brewster was ever condescending, just a stoic kinda guy. But then again, I'm apparently the only one who feels like I'm being condescended to by Leif every time I just want to see what kind of flower seeds are for sale only to be told to come back when I've changed my 'happy little mind' when it's something that I don't want.

 

[Maybell]

I get you. I've never personally felt that Brewster was ever condescending, just a stoic kinda guy. But then again, I'm apparently the only one who feels like I'm being condescended to by Leif every time I just want to see what kind of flower seeds are for sale only to be told to come back when I've changed my 'happy little mind' when it's something that I don't want.

It’s mostly the “not allowing me to let my coffee cool down and forcing me to drink it as fast as possible” dialogue part that I find to be the most condescending about him.
As well as telling me to get the orders EXACT, even though he never even bothered to ask me for an order when I was a customer and just served me whatever.
Besides that, I wouldn’t mind him as a NPC if only they got rid of the useless dialogue options and made it so I could actually make a proper order from day 1 instead of day 25.

 

[LadyDestani]

While I don't hate Brewster or the cafe, I also don't love them like so many other people. I can honestly take them or leave them and after completing everything possible for the cafe in my main town, I decided not to build the cafe in my second town because it really didn't fit the aesthetic I was going for.

I bought enough coffee to unlock the part-time job and that's it. I don't like coffee in real life so there is no appeal for me to drink it in the game.

I worked at the cafe long enough to get all of the rewards and then I stopped because having to google everyone's coffee preferences just wasn't fun and enjoyable for me. Most of the rewards were useless to me as well because I don't even make kitchens in my Animal Crossing houses so I had no use for the furniture items, but I did want the gyroids that Brewster gives out last because I love gyroids and wanted to complete my collection.

If you do decide to work at the cafe again, here's a tip, though. Instead of just selling the coffee beans to Reese, you can put them up for sale in Re-Tail for 4 times what Reese is willing to pay for them minus 1 and your villagers will buy them if they are walking around in Re-Tail. So if you get all the orders perfect, Brewster will give you superb coffee beans which I believe you can sell to Reese for 2,000 bells...or you can put them in a slot in the flea market for 7,999 and when a villager shows interest in them, you can convince them to buy them for that price. If you want to really increase your friendship levels with your villagers without messing up their houses, I've also heard that you can send them the coffee beans in the mail and they love them but don't display them.

Anyway, I think your opinion is valid even if I don't completely share it. And sometimes you just need to vent and that's okay, too.

 

[Cowplant]

Aww, man, why you gotta do Brewster like that?

Seriously, though, I love that coffee loving pigeon! In previous games, he added such a quaint, small town atmosphere. It made it feel like a community when you could pop in, get a cup, talk to some neighbors/NPCs, and watch KK Slider preform. ❤

So when I found out you could place his café in New Leaf? Oh my God, I was over the moon! The café makes New Leaf seem like that much more of a community. I loved having a spot where the villagers could relax. And I found it one of the most satisfying places to decorate!

I also really enjoyed the mini game. People are talking about looking up guides, but I never did that. I would write down any new information they gave me about their order and eventually I could make all of my villagers and several NPCs their drinks without looking it up. I know the minigame isn't for everyone and I get that no everyone would have the time/patience to write down each order, but it felt really good knowing all of their orders. It was my own little goal and it felt great accomplishing it! ❤

 

[LoyalDragonfly]

If you want to really increase your friendship levels with your villagers without messing up their houses, I've also heard that you can send them the coffee beans in the mail and they love them but don't display them.

Wow, I'm not sure why, but I've just never thought of sending coffee beans to my villagers before! I'm definitely gonna start doing this.

 

[Tindre]

Lol that was funny.

As everything in Animal Crossing, its supposed to take time. All your villagers have specific preferences that never change. Youre supposed to learn what everyone prefers over time to do a better job serving them.
You also really shouldnt drink too much coffee in a day, so if you could buy 7 at once that would be pretty bad.

That said I love the cafe and Brewster so I guess thats why I don't connect with your rant at all.

 

[Maybell]

While I don't hate Brewster or the cafe, I also don't love them like so many other people. I can honestly take them or leave them and after completing everything possible for the cafe in my main town, I decided not to build the cafe in my second town because it really didn't fit the aesthetic I was going for.

I bought enough coffee to unlock the part-time job and that's it. I don't like coffee in real life so there is no appeal for me to drink it in the game.

I worked at the cafe long enough to get all of the rewards and then I stopped because having to google everyone's coffee preferences just wasn't fun and enjoyable for me. Most of the rewards were useless to me as well because I don't even make kitchens in my Animal Crossing houses so I had no use for the furniture items, but I did want the gyroids that Brewster gives out last because I love gyroids and wanted to complete my collection.

If you do decide to work at the cafe again, here's a tip, though. Instead of just selling the coffee beans to Reese, you can put them up for sale in Re-Tail for 4 times what Reese is willing to pay for them minus 1 and your villagers will buy them if they are walking around in Re-Tail. So if you get all the orders perfect, Brewster will give you superb coffee beans which I believe you can sell to Reese for 2,000 bells...or you can put them in a slot in the flea market for 7,999 and when a villager shows interest in them, you can convince them to buy them for that price. If you want to really increase your friendship levels with your villagers without messing up their houses, I've also heard that you can send them the coffee beans in the mail and they love them but don't display them.

Anyway, I think your opinion is valid even if I don't completely share it. And sometimes you just need to vent and that's okay, too.

I’m happy to hear you understand where I was coming from. I probably wouldn’t feel the need to rant at all if I knew from the start that the cafe was pretty much useless.
As a PWP request, they made it seem like it was going to be this extremely important place and then made it so you can’t demolish it after you build it. -_-

Post automatically merged: Jan 15, 2021

Lol that was funny.

As everything in Animal Crossing, its supposed to take time. All your villagers have specific preferences that never change. Youre supposed to learn what everyone prefers over time to do a better job serving them.
You also really shouldnt drink too much coffee in a day, so if you could buy 7 at once that would be pretty bad.

That said I love the cafe and Brewster so I guess thats why I don't connect with your rant at all.

Good to know I made at least one person laugh at my over the top rant.

But the things you said are pretty much why I dislike the cafe as much as I do... I can’t believe Nintendo expects you to write down customers orders so you would be able to get them right...
It’s so annoying to have a customer not tell you what it is they want and then trash your drink because “it’s not good enough.”

Also, yes, “the one coffee per day” thing makes sense as a game mechanic so the whole thing wouldn’t be too easy, but at the same time, it just makes Brewster seem like a jerk.

 

[Maybell]

Aww, man, why you gotta do Brewster like that?

Seriously, though, I love that coffee loving pigeon! In previous games, he added such a quaint, small town atmosphere. It made it feel like a community when you could pop in, get a cup, talk to some neighbors/NPCs, and watch KK Slider preform. ❤

So when I found out you could place his café in New Leaf? Oh my God, I was over the moon! The café makes New Leaf seem like that much more of a community. I loved having a spot where the villagers could relax. And I found it one of the most satisfying places to decorate!

I also really enjoyed the mini game. People are talking about looking up guides, but I never did that. I would write down any new information they gave me about their order and eventually I could make all of my villagers and several NPCs their drinks without looking it up. I know the minigame isn't for everyone and I get that no everyone would have the time/patience to write down each order, but it felt really good knowing all of their orders. It was my own little goal and it felt great accomplishing it! ❤

I honestly wish I could relate. It does seem like the cafe is supposed to be a relaxing place, but for me, it all gets ruined when I’m forced to drink my cup as soon as possible and then get off the seat immediately.

For some reason, I expected the cafe to be the place where you can sit down and have conversations with other villagers while you’re drinking coffee, instead of having to chug it right away and only be able to speak to them from the ground just to get two/three sentences from them.

I just think the entire NL building could’ve had more potential, especially after they took K.K.Slider out.

 

[Bilaz]

I don’t like the café as much in New Leaf because I feel like the airy feel of the separate building is less cosy? I looooove the museum café in the basement personally but that might just be me.

I love his character too because I love how silent he is. I don’t think he’s impolite, I like the dialogue option, because back in Wild World I used to say ‘it’s gotta cool’ and then while Brewster was displaying the ‘shocked’ emotion I’d leave it like that? xD to just? Sit there? With whatever NPC was there? Then when I was satisfied I’d say ok and drink it and I loved the descriptions of the drink

idk it’s cosy and I like Brewster

p.s. maybe this is because that’s how I drink tea, I wait for a certain temperature and then drink it at once lol

 

[Tindre]

I’m happy to hear you understand where I was coming from. I probably wouldn’t feel the need to rant at all if I knew from the start that the cafe was pretty much useless.
As a PWP request, they made it seem like it was going to be this extremely important place and then made it so you can’t demolish it after you build it. -_-

Post automatically merged: Jan 15, 2021

Good to know I made at least one person laugh at my over the top rant.

But the things you said are pretty much why I dislike the cafe as much as I do... I can’t believe Nintendo expects you to write down customers orders so you would be able to get them right...
It’s so annoying to have a customer not tell you what it is they want and then trash your drink because “it’s not good enough.”

Also, yes, “the one coffee per day” thing makes sense as a game mechanic so the whole thing wouldn’t be too easy, but at the same time, it just makes Brewster seem like a jerk.

Youre good at dramatic writing xD

I personally drank too much coffee during some time and now if I have more than one I get anxiety/*****y.. so for me its more that he wants me to enjoy a healthy amount, it also makes it more special. (He is a coffee geek, so he takes great pride in making coffee which is also why he tells you to be up to his standards and to drink it before it cools because it affects the taste.) Its part of why I love his character, its good to take pride in ones work and master ones craft.
So to me he just feels hardworking and serviceminded and a little shy which is super cute to me ♡

 

[Maybell]

I don’t like the café as much in New Leaf because I feel like the airy feel of the separate building is less cosy? I looooove the museum café in the basement personally but that might just be me.

I love his character too because I love how silent he is. I don’t think he’s impolite, I like the dialogue option, because back in Wild World I used to say ‘it’s gotta cool’ and then while Brewster was displaying the ‘shocked’ emotion I’d leave it like that? xD to just? Sit there? With whatever NPC was there? Then when I was satisfied I’d say ok and drink it and I loved the descriptions of the drink

idk it’s cosy and I like Brewster

p.s. maybe this is because that’s how I drink tea, I wait for a certain temperature and then drink it at once lol

I feel the same way about the NL building.
I think they should’ve done something to compensate for K.K. Slider and the museum being taken out (maybe an interactable Jukebox, or the ability to have dialogue options with special characters like Isabelle, Tom Nook, etc... since it’s the only place where you can meet them when they’re not working.)

I don’t mind Brewster being quiet, I just find his dialogue to be curt (impolitely brief).
Like saying “.....hi..” instead of “Welcome.”
Or “.....bye..” instead of “Thank you.”
I also find the whole “you have to drink the coffee you’re paying for exactly how I want you to or else...” extremely condescending, and that alone makes me not wanna go there.

I also wish they allowed you to either skip the coffee dialogue or made it so you actually had a choice. Otherwise, it just servers no purpose.