Mocha Monkey Cafe opens on Carpenter Road

Residents looking for a fresh alternative for coffee in Pittsfield Township have a new option: Mocha Monkey Cafe.

This is the third coffee shop to move in to the retail strip at 2871 Carpenter Road, but Jamal Abusway, co-owner, thinks his café has something the former coffee houses did not.

“I’m excited to offer a locally owned, quality alternative to the drive-thru coffee chains, where people can gather and enjoy healthier food and beverages with friends,” Abusway said.

Abusway has owned three other cafes in Washtenaw County, including Backdoor Café in Saline and Sway in Ypsilanti.

Mocha Monkey offers coffee drinks brewed with coffee from The Great Lakes Coffee Roasting Company, a Michigan-based company that sources high-quality, fair-trade organic beans and roasts them locally for optimal flavor. The cafe also offers smoothies made from made from whole fresh fruits and non-fat yogurt with no added sugar.

The cafe also specializes in soups, sandwiches and “morning starters,” like bagels, muffins and and Mediterranean pastries from New Yasmeen Bakery in Dearborn.

Prices for menu items tend below comparable items at larger chain cafes. A house coffee $1.85, smoothies are $3.75 and sandwiches are $5.25, served with chips or fruit.

The cafe opened on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day. As tribute, there is a heart-shaped wall mural where patrons are invited to come in and add the word for “peace” in any language.

The cafe’s grand opening will take place on April 1, the “41 on 4/1 event” will feature free baked good samples and a free drip coffee for the first 41 customers of the day.

Mocha Monkey is open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.

Angela Smith is a freelance reporter. Reach the AnnArbor.com business desk at business@annarbor.com.