After seven years of “uglifying” the Ypsilanti community, the Ugly Mug Café and Roastery celebrated the coffee shop’s seventh birthday Saturday evening with patrons and passers-by. The birthday crowd packed the café and turned the parking lot into a patio space complete with lawn furniture.
“The Ugly Mug has this super-welcoming environment,” said Leigh McLinden, a five-year regular. “People of all ages show up, customers will bring their children and people as old as ninety years old will hang out. Everyone feels welcome. It’s delicious.”
In honor of the celebration, the Ugly Mug treated attendees to a barbeque and potluck, an art showcase and live music featuring baristas Meg and Trevor (The Westmen) and Chris Dupont (and his trio).
“The Ugly Mug brings people together who share the same tastes,” said Chuck Beightol, a two-year regular. “It’s a cool place for live music. There’s just this environment that’s more chill than your typical bar.”
Filling the tables outside the shop were chili, hotdogs, guacamole, hummus, fruits, veggies and much more, complementing the calm autumn evening.
“My favorite season for the Mug is definitely fall, like how the weather is right now,” said Julie Willacker, a four-year regular. “Today is wonderful; the coffee’s hot and it’s cool outside. There’s nothing like coffee on a crispy fall day.”
Inside the café, a timeline composed of news clippings and articles illustrating the Ugly Mug’s impressive history fills the shop’s south wall. From its humble beginnings, the café now sells merchandise and roasts and ships its own coffee out of state.
“We’re branching out,” barista Kelsey Carbonell said. “Not only are we a café but we also roast our own coffee and send it out West and to Chicago.”
You could go in for a cup of coffee and leave with Ugly Mug postcards, stickers, T-shirts, diner and traveler mugs and/or vacuum canisters to keep your coffee beans, ground or not, fresher longer.
“As a coffee shop, we really shatter people’s perception of Ypsilanti,” said Matt “Birdman” Fleming, a barista of four years. “Visitors are quick to label it as a crappy town or a college neighborhood but the Ugly Mug is Ypsilanti’s wild card. In the last year or so, we’ve thrown everyone for a loop by becoming a more professional-looking shop. At the same time, we’re a good representation of personalities. Everyone here is an artist.”
A short distance from Eastern Michigan University’s campus, the café draws coffee enthusiasts and students of all class standings.
“The Mug is a good spot to hang out, do homework and people watch,” Willacker said. “Some crazy people come through here. It’s awesome.”
Its “out there” reputation draws a certain crowd and brings everyone together. While other coffee chains are known just for their coffee, regulars agree the Ugly Mug is known for its coffee and community.
“Our customers like the Mug and come here for a product and the knowledge in its craft,” Fleming said. “We’re all very friendly and that also brings people back.”
Carbonell said. “It’s really just an awesome place to hang out and get some of the best coffee you’ve ever had. The care each barista puts into every drink is superb.”
“We used to be the daytime version of a dive bar,” Fleming said. “But now we’re the place you go when you want to take a step outside your comfort zone to experience coffee and community, almost by accident.”
Another way the Ugly Mug separates itself from the rest is through a new way to support the Ypsilanti community: by doubling as an art showcase for local artists.
“I love the idea of featuring the art in a public place,” Carbonell said. “It’s such an intimate space. You don’t have to pay to see the art and it makes the community feel so much more tight-knit.”
From photography to painting and illustration, the Ugly Mug displays the community’s artwork with pride and joy.
“I’ve always enjoyed exhibiting Ypsilanti’s creativity,” Fleming said. “There aren’t enough places in this city where you can get this kind of interactive community. We have such a diverse clientele so it’s nice to showcase the artwork of our locals.”
Given the diverse clientele, the decision to display such artwork has received positive response from its patrons.
“Having local art on display is sweet,” Willacker said. “People don’t have to go out of their way to see it. They can come in the morning to grab some coffee and see the work of local artists while they wait.”
Baristas at the Ugly Mug get to show off an art of their own. Through latte art and the skill needed to make specialty drinks, these coffee artists give locals a look into another world.
“The Ugly Mug does a lot for the community,” roaster-in-charge Miro Lomeli said. “I can’t tell you how many people are happy to have a roaster in the area. It’s a portal to the specialty side of things. We’re not a chain; we’re just nerds showing what coffee can be and a lot of people don’t get to experience that.”
It’s an experience that leaves customers and even the baristas smiling.
“Every day is so much fun,” Carbonell said. “I love my job. I get to work with awesome people and make awesome coffee.”
In the front of the shop by the two espresso machines is a framed Ugly Mug business card which reads: “Coffee, Art, Music & More.” For this tight-knit community of regulars, they couldn’t agree more.
“When I’m out of town, I find myself missing the coffee,” McLinden said.. “We love it here.”