"A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" is a short story by American author Ernest Hemingway, first published in Scribner's Magazine in 1933; it was also included in his collection Winner Take Nothing (1933).
When the old man orders another brandy, the young waiter purposely overfills his glass.
He muses on youth and observes that he is now one "of those who like to stay late in the cafe," likening himself to the old man.
He mentions the importance to some people of having "a clean, well-lighted place" in which they can spend time.
James Joyce once remarked: "He [Hemingway] has reduced the veil between literature and life, which is what every writer strives to do.