According to John, the customers always returned. This coffee shop is not located in the center of downtown, but rather sits nicely next to the ship canal in Ballard. The people who come through are very often locals and they value their ethics and reputations, thus return to pay back. A buddy of mine, who lives 30 minutes away, once forgot his wallet and had to pay $2.50 with the IOU. He returned a week later and payed back. This approach would never work in Manhattan, but Seattle folks are much friendlier and value small businesses over large chains.

In terms of baked goods, they weren't low quality, they were just home baked. John used to work with a local bakery, but no one particularly cared to get their slightly above average quality.