After a year spent living on campus here at Eastern Michigan University, I am convinced that Ypsilanti has a sort of “quirky quota” it is obligated to fulfill. If the peculiarly shaped water tower landmark isn’t proof enough, just stroll into one of the many businesses lining the downtown or Depot Town area. You’ll be sure to find a surprisingly chill, typically artsy and nearly always eccentric vibe.
Café Ollie, 42 E. Cross St., is no exception.
The brightly-painted coffeehouse is located in the heart of Ypsi’s historic Depot Town, and obviously sells coffee—good coffee. But not content to be a one-trick pony, it lives a double (quadruple?) life as a restaurant, a place to buy beer and wine and an ice cream shop, all while moonlighting as a record store.
“We’ve had kind of a theme of vinyl,” co-owner Mark Teachout said. “We sell records—local records and also used records.”
The influence of music is obvious from the moment you walk in—look to your left and you’ll find plenty of flyers, some from local acts. The sugar and creamer holders on the table are crafted from melted-down 45 rpm records.
In January 2011, teachout and his wife Danielle opened Café Ollie, which is connected to their other business, the MI General Store, a gift shop specializing in Michigan-made goods.
Café Ollie is not a stranger to promoting local products itself.
“[Our] coffee comes from Henrietta House Coffee Roasters in Wyandotte,” Teachout said. “We try to concentrate on local products here.”
It’s true that even the ice cream is locally-sourced, and the wide variety of beers and sodas are also made in Michigan. As one may expect, the diverse amount of products offered by Café Ollie allows for many unique and amusing drinks.
“We kind of get pretty creative with it, as far as using a lot of espresso, a lot of chai, even a lot of beer in our milkshakes,” Teachout said. “We mix Vanilla Java Porter, espresso and caramel macchiato ice cream into a milkshake … Sometimes we’ll use a little bit of saké and a little bit of espresso.”
The coffee itself has a pleasant taste, and I was surprised at how little sugar it took to make my coffee taste bittersweet. The iced coffees also carry a refreshing taste, with a fuller flavor than one may expect from an iced coffee drink. You’ll be offered an array of choices in flavored syrups to add a personal touch to your latte.
The sole disappointing aspect of the cafe’s coffee is the lack of a much bigger size, as12 ounce and 16 ounce cups are all that are offered. After only a few sips, I was still left wanting more.
Thankfully, the cafe is offering a way for you coffee fiends to get your fill.
“We always encourage people to come in and bring their own container, and you get a discount off of the drink if you do that,” Teachout said. “We’ll pour a whole gallon in there if you want.”
Café Ollie’s diversity lies not only in the number of services it provides, but also with the demographics of their customers. In fact, one of the striking features of the cafe is its multigenerational appeal.
“We notice that there are people from a lot different generations hanging out in here. People who are freshmen, people who are high school students, as well as people who are college professors,” Teachout said.
Some may argue that it is better to focus on doing one thing well, but Café Ollie begs to differ. Come for the coffee, stay for the food. Or the ice cream. Or the beer. Or the records.
Jess’s pick: Latte with macadamia nut flavor.
