Tucked behind a house off Elms Rd. in Swartz Creek are two brick buildings – the home of Fireside Coffee Shop & Roastery. The business produces high-quality, small-batch craft coffee and hand-crafted instant blends of mocha, cocoa and chai. As the business won the 2024 City’s Choice Award for “Favorite Independent Coffee Shop”, My City sat down with co-owner Angela Root to talk about the history of the coffee shop known for its weird location … and great coffee!
The business was founded in 1988 by Root’s mother, Carol Davis, who started out making instant cocoa and mocha blends as gifts for friends and family. “At the suggestion of a friend, she then started selling the blends at craft shows and they sold out,” Root shares, adding that the cottage enterprise progressed to supplying local stores that wanted to sell her mother’s instant blends.
Fireside Coffee grew to include an online wholesale business that ships beans to stores all around the U.S., including 35 Meijer locations and many local stores and restaurants. It also became a family business now co-owned by Davis, Root and her husband, Rob.
The two brick buildings were purchased in the early 1990s and the online business started in the late 1990s. The wholesale business was not open to the public at that time. “We realized we wanted to create a space for our community,” Root explains. So, they made room for the coffee shop which opened in 2016 and has expanded twice.
“We put a lot of effort into our roasting process – the learning never really stops.”
Angela Root, Co-Owner
The trio also began roasting coffee beans onsite.”We put a lot of effort into our roasting process,” Root reports. She and Rob attended extensive roasting training in Virginia and continue to expand their knowledge every day. “The learning process never really stops,” she says with a smile. On roasting days, Root says neighbors love the aroma of coffee that wafts through the air.
Fireside Coffee Shop & Roastery purchases specialty-grade coffee beans from all over the world, working with farm-direct growers in Brazil and Costa Rica. Root spent time visiting the Brazilian farm. They also import beans from Sumatra, Ethiopia, Honduras and other countries. “Everything we buy is ethically sourced,” Root reports.
Fireside Coffee wholesales a dozen different specialty coffee blends, including two holiday blends. They include Flint Strong and Total Eclipse (dark roast), Happy Medium (medium), Sunday Morning, (light) and Fireside Zombie, one of the seasonal blends. The blends can be purchased in individual servings, as well.
Instant drink blends, which are very popular, include flavors such as Chocolate Truffle Cocoa, Peppermint Cocoa, Spiced Chai Tea and Hazelnut Brownie Mocha, to name just a few.
Patrons of Fireside Coffee Shop find a relaxing and welcoming atmosphere for enjoying a variety of coffees, espressos, cold brews, teas and cocoa, as well as Frappés and smoothies. Also on the café menu are some “good eats” – such as a French Onion Grilled Cheese sandwich, the Everything Avocado Toast (Tri-County Pepper bread from Crust – a Baking Company, topped with cream cheese and “everything bagel” seasoning), Quiche Florentine, Goin’ Ham (Black Forest ham, Havarti and colby cheeses toasted on a fresh-baked butter croissant from Crust with Dijon or honey mustard), as well as several other delicious Crust baked goods.
The owners of Fireside Coffee Shop were very happy to be recognized by My City readers as Greater Flint’s Favorite Independent Coffee Shop. “It is such an honor to be recognized by such a cool community,” Root says. “We have a lot of regular customers. We not only serve great coffee but also offer a warm, welcoming experience.”
Not bad for such a weird location!
