Whether it's brunch or just a hot cup of premium coffee, folks in Ada know where to go to satisfy their taste buds, MudPenny.
MudPenny serves more than tasty brunch and hot coffee, they also serve the West Michigan community by donating a portion of their earnings to non-profits. Every quarter, they donate 1 percent of their sales to neighborhood efforts and organizations.
The name MudPenny comes from 17th and 18th Century England when coffee houses were called Penny Universities. They were a gathering place for people of all different classes and the only place in town where the rich and the poor could rub shoulders. With an entrance fee of just a penny, visitors gathered to listen to lectures on politics, religion, literature and hear news reports. The word "mud" comes from the slang word for coffee.
What's now a successful restaurant started off as a small coffee cart inside the main lobby of the Waters Building in downtown Grand Rapids in 2012. Coffee sales took off, and soon he recruited friends to help behind the counter and do milk-run errands to fill up his supply.
The brand continued to expand, where Matthew tired a small crew to start selling food, created a menu, serving customers in a venue called Grace Coffee Bistro in Forest Hills.
In 2016 they rebranded to MudPenny, and in 2018 they moved to their current Grand Rapids location at 570 Grandville Avenue SW, with a full coffee bar and two dining spaces.
Mudpenny in Ada Village is located at 496 Ada Drive Southeast. They also have a location on Grandville Avenue in Grand Rapids.
To check out their menu, go to mudpenny.com.
Taste of the Town is sponsored by Berger Chevrolet.
