The Coffee Cup- Brewing flavors of home & community

When you walk the streets of Downtown Perry, you will find a variety of shops offering different styles and flavors. One shop in particular is brewing old and new flavors together to bring guests an experience they will never forget. That shop is The Coffee Cup.

Stated on the Coffee Cup website, the restaurant came about in the 1950s and existed through the 1970s. Over a year and a half ago, owners Gary and Charlene Moulliet brought new life to the Cup.

“We started coming to the Coffee Cup over two years ago,” said Gary. “We met the owner Marty Myers through our visits and through our first business Moulliet Productions events. He liked what we did, and in 2014 he came to us with an opportunity about going into partnership with the Coffee Cup.”

Gary served in the military for more than 30 years, and retired with the Air Force in 2010. Being active duty military, he said his family was stationed at 14 different locations with Robins Air Force Base being their last. The Moulliets have now lived in the Houston County area for about 16 years.

“Three years prior to my husband retiring from the military, we started our first business Moulliet Productions,” said Charlene. “Through that we offer DJ service, sound support, and an event coordinator. It was something that we wanted to try out. We never advertised for it, and here we are today by word of mouth over the years being completely booked each year.”

Gary said he did a lot of sound support with the Air Force at recruiting conferences along with DJ work at ceremonies. He said it has been successful and they continue on strong today with Moulliet Productions. Fast-forward to October 2014, the Moulliets became the sole proprietors of the Coffee Cup with Myers being the silent partner.

“We were hesitant at first in going into this business,” said Gary. “We had food and beverage experience working part-time through Walt Disney World, but it wasn’t something we were looking to do full-time. Well, before committing my wife and I took a Route 66 road trip stopping at little diners on the way. Each one was giving us ideas so when we came back. We re-engaged with Marty, worked out a deal, and bought into the Cup. Here we are almost two years later.”

The Moulliets so far have established quality guest service, cleanliness and “regulars”/permanent guests who visit the Coffee Cup each week. Charlene said they also get a lot of travelers from different states and some different countries. She said it has been neat because they have received post cards from the travelers saying they look forward to seeing them again soon at the Coffee Cup.

“We pride ourselves on what we have established so far,” said Gary. “We always say and train our staff that it’s all about the guest’s experience. If you wouldn’t eat what you’re serving or in the place you work then how can you expect the guest to. It’s a privilege to have our guests dine with us. They are not customers; they are guests in an extension of our home.”

“We, when starting here, only had to tweak a few things and get the staff to march in the direction of our vision,” said Charlene. “Like my husband said, the Coffee Cup is an extension of our home and we don’t want our guests to have a bad experience. Each month we have several meetings with our staff just to make sure everyone is up to date on training and what is going on in our community.”

The Coffee Cup offers a variety of hand crafted espresso drinks, signature breakfast and lunch sandwiches, wraps, salads and soup. Gary said majority of the menu has not changed, but both him and Charlene are originally from New Orleans and they wanted to bring some of that unique flavor into the Cup.

“On Tuesdays we have red beans and rice and Fridays we have chicken and sausage gumbo. Both are my own recipes,” said Charlene. “Growing up in New Orleans was amazing and we wanted to bring some of that to Perry. We are also in the works of debuting a New Orleans style sandwich. It will be an New Orleans Italian Muffuletta, so be on the look-out. We hope to debut it real soon.”

The city of Perry has recently developed a brand, and with that branding initiative Gary said they are trying to create items that are Perry specific. For example, he said they have recently created the Dogwood Smoothie in tribute to the annual festival.

“The Dogwood smoothie is the Dogwood yellow with flavors of pineapple and orange that are really refreshing,” said Gary. “It was such a hit that we now offer it daily. We also have ‘The Perry’ which is our chicken salad sandwich. And our coffee is organic and is locally roasted right up the road at Cleveland Organics.”

“It comes in fresh every week in whole bean form, never grounded,” said Charlene. “The owner Beth roasts the coffee on Monday and Tuesday and we get it by Wednesday. You can’t get any fresher than that. We really do keep it fresh by never ordering more than a week’s worth of coffee as well. Our guests love it so much that we now sell it by the pound in our store.”

The Moulliets also buy their produce locally through Georgia Grown. Both said they are all about supporting the community. Another staple item they pride themselves on is their pimento cheese. Gary said they offer a sandwich called the Spicy Rose, which is a BLT with the pimento cheese spread.

“I would have to say that is our biggest hit,” said Gary. “In fact, last weekend Perry had some special guest celebrities Al Roker and his wife Deborah Roberts, who is a graduate of Perry High. They came and had lunch with us, and Al tried our Spicy Rose and loved it. He said it had just that right bang.”

The Coffee Cup is not only about their coffee and food. No, the fun doesn’t stop there. They offer a variety of events and services. Charlene said she is a history fanatic, so when first starting at the cup she wanted to know the history of the building.

“I got in touch with the Perry Area Historical Society and one thing led to another. We now offer a Cup of History once a month,” said Charlene. “This town and the Coffee Cup building is rich with history dating back to the 1800s, and so our guests can come the third Thursday of each month usually around 3 p.m. to learn more about Perry.”

Gary said he is a huge music lover, so with that he decided to feature local musicians on every other Friday night at what’s called a Cup of Music.

“It has been such a fun atmosphere here on Friday nights,” said Gary. “Our hours are extended that day until 9 p.m., and guests can come have dinner and enjoy the local sounds of music. It’s mostly been acoustic guitar groups, but we welcome all. I even have a speaker that is set-up outside so the people walking down the streets can enjoy and possibly attract them into the Cup.”

Last but not least, the Coffee Cup has an upstairs that can be rented out for business meetings, bridal showers, birthday parties, reunions, and much more. Charlene said they also have a tearoom for little girls that has princess dresses, tiaras and jewelry.

“We offer different plans to fit your budget,” said Charlene. “You don’t have to purchase food through us, but it is an option. We offer free wifi and have a projector upstairs. We can also rent the space after hours and the days we are closed, Sundays and Mondays.”

The Coffee Cup is open Tuesday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can go online to see full menu and services at www.thecoffeecuponcarroll.com, and to keep up with daily offers and events through their Facebook page.

“Please, if you haven’t visited us come by and try us out,” said Gary. “We promise to give you an experience you will never forget.”

“And be in no rush,” said Charlene. “Again, this is an extension of our home and we want guests to relax and enjoy during their visit at the Cup.”

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