If you are searching for a new place to study, get a coffee or espresso, or just relax, The Classic Bean in Fairlawn Plaza is the premier spot.

It is spacious, laid back, the coffee is good and they have live local artists perform on Friday and Saturday nights.  Plug-ins are readily available and Wi-fi is free, making it easy to bring your laptop and you don’t have to worry about your battery life. There are couches, over-stuffed armchairs and barstools.The tables are all different sizes, for your preference you can have a small round table if you are alone, or large square ones for groups, and it doesn’t bother the staff if you move the tables around to accommodate larger parties.  If the party is larger than 20, the Bean also has a rentable conference room on the side. There is a fee to rent the room, but the cost isn’t high—just call ahead to see if it is available.

There is another location in downtown Topeka, which is where they roast their own coffee beans.  If you buy the beans in bulk, they will grind them for you as well, and on your seventh pound of coffee they will give you a free half pound of your favorite beans.

Studying with a group somewhere and need a pick-me-up? Classic Bean also offers coffee to go, for up to 16 people at a time.  For $15, the staff will brew you 16, 8 ounce cups of coffee and put it in a large disposable container for you to take with you. For $3 more, you can also get the disposable coffee cups and condiments for the coffee.

Not only does Classic Bean offer awesome coffee and espresso, it also has a good sized menu, featuring soups, salads, sandwiches, and wraps.  Because sometimes they are a little busy, you will receive one of the various cute, stuffed animals to sit on your table so they know who to bring the food to when it is ready. In addition they also serve various flavors of bagels, muffins, cookies, scones, and biscotti.  They will warm them up, or toast them at your request and are baked fresh daily. Their pies are ordered in, but they are still good and worth your time.

The live entertainment usually takes place on Friday and Saturday nights after 7 p.m. and varies each night.  Some nights will feature an acoustic rock band, the next night it might be blues or jazz, it could even be folk-rock.

“There is usually a large crowd when there is live music,” said Sandra Ready, Washburn sophomore art major, who is also an employee at the Classic Bean.  “I think it is good because they usually have community donations, and local artists who come in.”

Ready also talked about how great it is to work at Classic Bean while she is attending Washburn University seeking her art degree.

“I definitely like it a lot,” said Ready. “The boss is great about working with my school schedule.”

To find out more about the Classic Bean, check out its website at www.classicbean.com.  There you can check out the visiting local artists for the next couple weeks, as well as look at their food and coffee menus.  The location downtown is only open Monday through Friday, but the location in Fairlawn Plaza is open 7 days a week and you can check out their hours online as well.