Help Daddy Likey Help Your Barista!

Dear Daddy Likey,

I'm looking to find shoes that are super super comfortable for work. I'm in school and am working two jobs, both at coffee shops, which means I'm usually on my feet at least 8 hours straight a day. It seems that everyone who shares this predicament ultimately turns to those orthopedic sneakers for old women, or *gasp* crocs. Now, really the look of the shoe comes in second place for importance, but I would really like to avoid those options. Do you have any suggestions on shoes that could be attractive, but also relatively cheap (because I am constantly spilling things on them) and also don't make me want to saw my feet off by the end of my shifts?

Signed,
Disgruntled Barista Who Would Prefer to Keep Her Feet

Dear Disgruntled,

Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), every job I've ever had has required a lot of sitting on my ass (we writers are a dramatic yet comfortable bunch). Although whenever I eat lunch at the restaurant where my friend is a server, I am shocked at how physical the work is, and how far and fast she has to walk (it upsets me so much, in fact, that I eat extra bread to console myself).

Unfortunately (this time for real), when I asked this friend if she'd ever found cute, comfortable work shoes, she said "No." in a tone so cold and flat you'd have thought I'd asked her to consider the merits of intelligent design.

I would ask my boyfriend, who is a barista himself, but he killed his credibility last year when he wore a pair of hand-me-downs (handed down by an 85-year-old uncle, no less) nearly identical to these for six months:

Yes, we almost broke up.

And so, I turn to you, dear, hardworking, stylish, brilliant readers. Has anyone out there found a work shoe that's attractive, affordable, and comfortable? Does such a trifecta not exist in nature? I have some issues with Dansko (I grew up in Oregon, so I have issues with Dansko the way people from Chicago might have issues with, I don't know, wind), but I know that they're mega comfy, cute (sometimes), and expensive. Have people found cute styles on ebay? Good deals in dark alleys? Any suggestions?