Definition of "coffeehouse" [cof•fee•house]

• A restaurant where coffee and other refreshments are served, especially one where people gather for conversation, games, or musical entertainment. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "We had to go through what I call the coffeehouse period, where for a while we sort of said, "Let's just sit around with the troops and talk about stuff and let's be buddies.""
• "Michael Sheehan, the deputy police commissioner in New York City responsible for counterterrorism until 2006, explained that hotheads in a coffeehouse are a dime a dozen."
• "The coffeehouse has been a popular and frequented location for the past 15 years among tourists and neighborhood folk alike, but has recently undergone a vast rehab to showcase a locally and sustainably sourced design and functionality."