Arosa Coffee and Waffles: Breakfast of Champions

Great customer service gets me every time.

I could overlook high prices and even mediocre products when the service dazzles.

Fortunately,  you don't have to sacrifice a thing at Arosa Cafe in Madison Park.  The prices are average, the coffee is good, and the service is stellar.  The owner, Michelle, is the perfect local business owner, working behind the counter, greeting people by name,  and starting their orders the minute they walk in the door.  Warmly engaging each customer and thoughtfully remembering the minutiae of their lives, she gives away something you just can't buy...the DESIRE to be a regular.

It's strange.  Arosa is about a block from my house, and I never felt compelled to go until a year ago.  Seattle offers about 152 places per square mile to buy excellent coffee, so picking a favorite is a multi-faceted endeavor.  Proximity is important, quality matters, prices probably don't even show up on most addict's radar, but service reigns supreme.  Loyalty is the name of the game in this town, and people resist venturing far from their favorites.

I had my faves, but only an uptight social misfit would refuse to leave the confines of their comfort zone when someone else invites them to try someplace new. (You know who you are!)

Needless to say, I was taken by the comfortable ambiance inside Arosa, and couldn't resist the power of local neighborhood conversation, the language spoken here.  Agnes, the cheerful, engaging barista who remembered my name, my kids' names and where I went on vacation, sealed my fate as an Arosa-loyalist.

And if all of the above weren't enough, (**insert Cheers lyrics) then did I mention homemade waffles??  Michelle makes the dough fresh daily, and grills them up on a waffle maker in the store.  They are the kind of treat you eat with your hands, like a doughnut...sweet, sticky, warm.  Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...........ain't nothin' like hot coffee and a waffle.   



**Sometimes you want to go

Where everybody knows your name,
and they're always glad you came.
You wanna be where you can see,
our troubles are all the same
You wanna be where everybody knows
Your name.