North Seattle Treasure - Cloud City Coffee in the Maple Leaf Neighborhood

North Seattle's Maple Leaf neighborhood has a gem tucked discreetly away from Seattle's pop-coffee culture. There may be a Starbucks on virtually every corner here in Seattle, but what many people (who don't live here) don't know is that there is quite an alternative coffee movement. I live here in the Maple Leaf neighborhood in North Seattle and we have a local community coffee house called Cloud City Coffee.

Cloud City is a great spot within the North Seattle community to hang up your umbrella and grab a nice tall latte. If you're hungry, you can order anything from a cinnamon roll to the Cloud City Club Sandwich. Sit back on one of the couches and enjoy the free wireless internet access.

Sometimes the baristas might look a little grumpy, but once you start talking to them you'll realize first impressions aren't worth a dime at the cafe.

My favorite thing about it is the location. Most coffee shops compete with each other on busy thoroughfares, like Lake City Way or Northgate Way. But Cloud City is on the corner of 88th and Roosevelt. Tucked away in a community that loves dog-walking and has a large family park right in the middle of it.

There are some other great small businesses in the Maple Leaf neighborhood that I'd like to write about, but I'll write about those later.

You can learn more about the coffee house here: www.cloudcitycoffee.com

- Jay