Sozo Coffee Roasting

First of all, when it comes to coffee, my expectations are high, and I’m a bit of a connoisseur of a good, properly made, fresh cup of coffee (so keep that in mind with my coffee house reviews…). ;)
I drove about an hour up to check this place out. From everything I could gather, it seemed to be a place worth the drive in order to get some fresh roasted beans, and based on the fact that there is a large «Demand Fresh!» vinyl stickered on every window in the place really had my hopes up!
Unfortunately, it didn’t really pan out that way. :/​
It is a very nice place inside. Large, roomy, inviting; and with a roaster in the middle up against the wall. They have a decent selection of coffee devices for sale; lower end grinders, French Presses, and pour overs. Too bad they don’t use any of them though; I ordered a 16oz. coffee, and when I asked, was told it was the Guatemalan. It came out of a large air pot brew vat, and had probably been made many hours earlier and left to over brew all day long. Very bitter and overextracted. I ended up pouring it out in the parking lot.
Before purchasing, I perused the coffee bean selection. Several single origin beans (a good sign) but when checking the «roasted on» date on the back, they had all been roasted a month ago! Not at all what I would expect from a small coffee house that self roasts and proclaims a penchant for «fresh».
All in all, it’s a nice place, the staff is friendly, and if you are not too demanding, you will probably enjoy a decent coffee based drink.
Update: I’ve stopped and gotten beans there a couple of times now. I’ve figured out a couple of «tricks» when buying them; reach around and check bags in the back of the display, there might be fresher beans hidden back there. If not, ask if they have anything that has been freshly roasted. I asked them if they had anything fresh and they went to the back and grabbed me a bag that had been roasted a couple days prior. Evidently they don’t put the fresh stuff out until all the old stock is gone… :/

I’m from out of state and visiting family here. I’ve heard a lot of good things about Sozo and finally I get a chance to check it out myself. Well my visit did not disappoint. I was excited to see that they roast their own beans. My drink was made perfectly and the espresso was smooth and not bitter (A +++++)! The owners were working behind the counter and were very friendly. The space is laid out nice and with plenty of outlets, free wi-​fi, a mix of tables/​chairs and soft-​seating. There’s also a room for private gatherings. I look forward to visiting at least once more before leaving town.

Love this place good coffee and a quality staff. If you’re a coffee junky it may not be the «hippest» place around but it will more than get the job done. My favorite roasts are the «beast from the east» and «the Mexican». Also their cinnamon rolls are phenomenal with a couple other baked goods as options as well. Thumbs up

Still ever so fond of Sozo! The more I learn about coffee, the more I love this place. Although I do have to complain that I don’t like cheap coffee as well as I used to.
Looking forward to all of the updates they’re doing on the building in 2014!

Who would have thought there would be such a great coffee shop in tiny Ionia? This place has it all, from perfect cappuccino for the coffee purists, to flavored lattes for those who like their coffee to taste, well, a little less like coffee. I only wish they had been open more hours so I could have gone a few more times while I was in town.