Write Around Tampa

Twigs Cafe

St. Joseph’s Hospital—North

4211 Van Dyke Road

Lutz

St. Joseph’s: I’ve had to make friends with them this year. From check-ups at my doctor’s office to an ultrasound and biopsy on my thyroid, a colonoscopy and mammogram, I might as well park it in their cafeteria and have a cup of joe while I expel my feelings about all this poking and prodding.

Quality and pricing of food and drink:

Best of both worlds here. It’s a cafeteria with a little coffee bar. It’s daily hot meals and a salad bar, refrigerated cases that feature Chicken Salad Chick. I brought my own water and bought a container of chicken and pasta salad and a handful of cucumbers and mixed it all together. $11 and delicious.

Are there enough outlets?

Yes, there are a few, even by the window overlooking a large courtyard.

How’s the wifi?

Public.

Will my muse come out?

Yes, especially if you’re working on anything that is set in or featuring a hospital. Plenty of people walking about yet none of it invasive to your thoughts. The background noise is a welcome hum that lets you know you’re not alone while also not interrupting your creative path.

How long can I park it?

A very long time and it’s easy to let it trip away from you. You’ll sit long enough that you’ll need to get up and stretch, refresh your drink and maybe grab a second nosh.

Final rating: 5 out of 5 laptops (they have no books but you can bring your own and read until your heart’s content)

Rachel Remick’s fiction and non-fiction stories have appeared in various magazines, among them Rosebud, Bluestem and ellipsis . . . literature and art. A frequent contributor to women’s magazine Sasee, her writing has also been published in several volumes of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series of books. She lives in Tampa, Florida.