Grilled cheese & tomato soup, anyone?

I just love this about a place:

"It's a grilled cheese and tomato soup kind of day" -- noted in a 'daily special' email from Old Town Coffee

Actually, there’s a lot I love about downtown Traverse City’s newest coffee shop, not the least of which is the friendliness that awaits each and every time you walk into the place. It’s no doubt because of chef Mark Fowler, the brains behind Old Town Coffee’s yummy (and healthy) food who also is there welcoming customers and making them feel right at home.

I discovered Old Town Coffee, at 517 Union Street in one of my most favorite Traverse City neighborhoods, earlier this winter. Opened since summer, the coffee shop/eatery has attracted a following, including parents like me who drive their kids to one of the several nearby elementary schools and then stop in for their morning caffeine fix.

My first morning there, I felt like I’d been coming for years - that’s how easy-going and kind Mark is. As he made my latte, we kept up a conversation – me peppering him with questions about the business, when it opened, how it’s been doing, what music is this playing? and he kindly indulging my curiosity, demonstrating a definite passion for his work as he talked about having had his own restaurant in Cadillac for four years before connecting with Old Town Coffee owner Sterling Hill.

I ask him about the comfortable atmosphere he provides, about the customer service that isn’t so easy to come by these days, even in a down economy when you’d think more places would do whatever they could to keep customers coming back for more. Why is being different important to him and Old Town Coffee?

“My philosophy in any restaurant I've ever worked in is that you are not walking into my dining room -- you are walking into my living room,” Mark tells me. “When I ask, ‘How are you today?’ I truly want to know. That's how I would treat someone if they were in my living room.”

I ask Mark about the music playing. It reminds me of Norah Jones, but it’s a little livelier, folksier, a sound I can’t quite define but just know makes me feel good.

“Potato Moon!” he enthuses, and then, after placing my steaming latte before me, reaches under the counter and produces a CD he’s recently burned of the Michigan group’s music. “Here, you will love this.”

And I do love it. I’ve got my husband hooked, too. Potato Moon, check it out.

I told Mark I was going to mention Old Town Coffee on my blog. I asked him what he’d want people to know about the business.

“The one thing I am most proud of here at Old Town Coffee, is our products,” he says. “We try to buy all local and fresh products, starting with Bay Bread Co. Breads, Higher Grounds Coffee, Brownwood Farms, Mustard's, Light of Day Teas. I also prep all vegetables and soups on a daily basis, guaranteeing only the freshest products.”

As for that “grilled cheese and tomato soup” mention, here’s how it's made at Old Town Coffee:

Melted Sharp Cheddar and Aged Swiss Cheese, Baby Spinach,Tomatoes, Red Onions and Scallion Cream Cheese Grilled on Country Italian Bread

Want to learn more? Call Old Town Coffee at (231) 933-4200 or visit www.myoldtowncoffee.com . Ask about getting on their email list, which will alert you of daily specials and other news.