Unlike some of the homes, shops and restaurants in its own neighborhood, Great Bear, like its namesake totem, remains steadfast and simple. In Great Bear, people seem to behave themselves without really trying.
Ceiling fans turn lazily amid old-fashioned chandeliers.
Coffee drinkers sit at round, neatly polished tables in slat-back chairs. An exposed brick wall shows off photographs by Andy Nozaka. Oodles of coffee beans line the back wall, fronted by a long wooden bar, not the usual in coffeehouse seating. As a place to people-watch, Great Bear is king. If you sit and sip a hot chocolate-topped chai or a bottomless cuppa joe for two bucks, you'll be treated to a constant stream in the street.