People Are Paying to Work From Bars and Restaurants

At 7 a.m. on a recent morning, Simon Collins was at his office in New York making a video call to China. The fashion consultant was about to launch into his plans for an upcoming conference he’s organizing before his overseas colleague interrupted: “Are you in your grandmother’s dining room?”

He was actually at Public, a dimly lit restaurant with dark oak tables and vintage décor located in New York City’s trendy Nolita neighborhood. The Michelin star eatery undergoes a transformation each morning into a co-working space for freelancers and other professionals. A network of five such restaurant-office hybrids is run by a local startup called Spacious.com, which is finding a niche among people looking for a place to work that’s cheaper than WeWork but quieter and more reliable than a Starbucks.