By OnMilwaukee Staff Writers   Published Jan 15, 2003 at 5:14 AM

Milwaukee coffee roaster and retailer Stone Creek Coffee has announced that it will open a new 1,500-sq. ft. cafe in Bay View in May, the second new location in six months. A Stone Creek cafe was opened in the Grand Avenue Mall in December.

The new cafe, which will serve espresso, coffee, teas, fresh bakery and whole bean coffee, will be at 2266 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., at Lincoln Avenue, an intersection that is also home to Lulu Cafe and a range of recently-opened retail shops. Stone Creek will lease the space from building owners William Doyle and Robert Bach.

"I see nothing but great things happening in Bay View. Over the last couple of years lots of new retailers have opened in Bay View and we are excited to be part of the changes happening along KK," Stone Creek Coffee President Eric Resch says. "We are very excited about this new location because it will have a true neighborhood feel. Although we know we will have many commuters stopping on the way to work we feel that this store will be great spot to take a break on the weekend -- Grab a latte, buy a paper, chat with friends and hang out on the patio."

Stone Creek will lease a park adjacent to the café from the City of Milwaukee for the outdoor patio with seating for 30, and has assumed responsibility for maintenance of the park as well as capital improvements to the site. Stone Creek asserts this will save the city about $2,000 each year.

"We have been looking for a store in Bay View for a couple of years," says Resch. "The neighborhood is great and we have been looking for a location that would accommodate a vibrant outdoor cafe area next to our store. By partnering with the city we are able to create not only a great new coffee store but also an outdoor patio area that will create a gathering area for the neighborhood. We believe our presence in the neighborhood will attract other business to the neighborhood."

Inside, the 50-seat café will be adorned with cherry wood wall panels, cabinetry and retail displays. But Resch believes the product, not the decor, will draw customers.

"Good coffee is in short supply in Bay View. Our mission is to find those spots in the city that do not have amazing coffee and find a way to build a Stone Creek. This is how we arrived in Bay View.

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"Although there are other cafes in Bay View we will be the first true coffee store. Although we sell a line of fresh baked pastries we are not trying to be a restaurant. We are strictly a coffee company," Resch says. "Different than other coffee companies in town we believe that you can't make amazing coffee while trying to serve chicken soup, ham sandwiches and cobb salads. All of our coffee is roasted by us at the Stone Creek Factory in Milwaukee. Our coffee arrives at our retail stores within days of roasting; fresh roasted is better."

Started in 1993, Stone Creek Coffee -- which has its offices, warehouse and roasting facilities downtown -- currently operates six other cafes in the metro Milwaukee: Whitefish Bay, Shorewood, Wauwatosa, Oconomowoc and downtown in the Iron Block Building and The Shops at Grand Avenue.