Coffee Spot? April 25, 2006

Whether you’re a traveler or a local in Scottsdale, you’ll probably want to spend some time in one of the delightful coffeehouses or cafe restaurants here. Scottsdale features the comforting and familiar coffeehouses you likely frequent in your hometown as well as some wonderfully unusual places. A coffeehouse is a great place to gather with friends or associates to drink coffee, listen to music, or check out local artists’ work. But which one do YOU like best? Share your comments with other Scottsdale area residents and visitors!

Here are some of our favorite places:

• Macy’s Coffee Shop – 14 S Beaver St, Flagstaff, Arizona 86001 (928) 774-2243 www.macyscoffee.net Okay, okay…so this place isn’t in Scottsdale…but nonetheless Macy’s Coffee Shop in Flagstaff got a really cool vibe and is worth writing about. I spent Labor Day weekend in Flagstaff – escaping the seemingly-endless summer heat of Phoenix – and made my way into Macy’s on a Sunday late-morning. Aside from my very large and very delicious mug of steaming European coffee, I had a great brunch-time meal in the Mediterranean plate. Macy’s atmosphere is definitely that of the Flagstaff hippie beat, with Eastern philosophy and the resulting peaceful, alternative attitude permeating the place. Local artists’ work for sale covered one wall and every one of the vintage tables, chairs and stools was occupied, evidence of Macy’s as a Flagstaff favorite coffee spot.

• Cave Creek Coffee Company - 6033 E. Cave Creek Rd, Cave Creek, AZ 85327 (480) 488-0603 www.cavecreekcoffee.com Far and away one of our favorite coffee hangouts. Located in downtown Cave Creek amidst funky western bars, antique shops and mexican/rustic import shops, Cave Creek Coffee Company (or C4) serves home-roasted coffee, pastries, kick-ass breakfast burritos in the morning…and turns into a hip neighborhood lunch and dinner restaurant and wine bar at night. Great specials every day of the week, live music and clearly a popular neighborhood joint, Cave Creek Coffee Company is a Cave Creek/Carefree area local favorite.

• Big Daddy Mojo Espresso Bar & Soda Fountain - 6141 E. Cave Creek Rd, Cave Creek, AZ 85331 (480) 575-7889 Just up the road from Cave Creek Coffee Company is Big Daddy Mojo…a local favorite coffee hang-out with a completely different vibe than C4. An old converted gas station, Big Daddy Mojo has a crowd of regulars gathered around outdoor seating (where the gas pumps used to be) and has a very casual style. Just this month (September 2006) Big Daddy Mojo/Big Earl’s Greasy Eats was transformed into a real Hollywood movie set. The place was rented for one day by a film crew shooting a scene for “Joleen,” directed by Donald Sutherland. A location scout was passing through Cave Creek a month ago and thought Big Earl’s would be perfect for the pivotal scene in which leading lady Jessica Chastain meets bad guy Dermot Mulroney, said Eric Westerlund, owner of Big Earl’s. The restaurant was turned into a drive-up burger joint with carhops on roller skates, said Westerlund, who added that one of his employees, 21-year-old Kari Johnson, will have a role in the film as a skating carhop. Westerlund would not say how much he’s being paid for the gig. “But I can’t complain,” he said. Scenes for “Joleen” are also being shot at a tattoo parlor in downtown Scottsdale and in Prescott to simulate North Carolina.