There are a lot of us Seattleites who try hard to go to the indie coffee places rather than the megaempire Starbuck's. And I think they DO overroast their coffee so it's fairly bitter.
I have a local, no-name expresso place run by a mother and two daughters that I go to. They're right next door to a skilled nursing place and the espresso stand owners built a garden for the nursing home residents.
My favorite drinks--double short Americano, or double short nonfat mocha with half the usual amount of chocolate.
"My predominant feeling is one of gratitude. I have loved and been loved;I have been given much and I have given something in return...Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and an adventure." O. Sacks