Operating the Kineo Coffee Station in Greenville is a dream come true for owner

GREENVILLE — For more than a year Laurie Muzzy has been living her dream coming into work every day.

On June 21, 2016 Muzzy opened the Kineo Coffee Station atop Indian Hill coming into Greenville near the south end of Moosehead Lake. Muzzy and her staff serve coffee and homemade breakfast and lunch menu items Tuesdays through Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. with residents and visitors to the region alike stopping to enjoy food and refreshments.

“I dreamed about having a place that was just comfortable and relaxing for family, friends, and those ‘from away’ to have a gathering spot, and coffee is always a good place to start,” Muzzy said after the conclusion of the day last week. “I love to get up and go to work — it’s an interesting mix season to season. Every day is new and that’s a gift.”

“I am really proud of this place and how it has evolved into a place my friends and neighbors are excited about and are supportive of,” Muzzy said, adding she is having the most fun she has ever had at a job.

“My two kids are grown and they each have their dream jobs,” she said. Muzzy said she began to think about how she always enjoyed going out for coffee and how she would like to have her own shop.

“So I had an opportunity here,” Muzzy said as the building on the Moosehead Lake Road/Route 15 and right off the ITS was built as a McDonald’s in 1994. After a few years McDonald’s moved on and few occupants were located on the property before Muzzy had the structure renovated “into what I thought would work as a coffee station.”

“I did research, traveled throughout Maine to find what works and find out what the community needs,” she said. “I can’t come in and dictate what my shop is going to be — it all comes from your community.”

She said the results include indoor seating and an outdoor patio — the original McDonald’s structure was designed to house 16 customers — with tables and chairs for pairs as well as seating arrangements that can be pushed together. “We have groups that plan events over coffee up here and it can be a gathering spot before heading into the woods,” Muzzy said, mentioning the Kineo Coffee Station has a view of Squaw Mountain across the road and a partial view of Moosehead Lake can be seen from the property.

She explained because of the close proximity of seating “everybody leaves knowing everybody, it is a fun dynamic to watch happen.” Muzzy said a wall TV will display a rotation of screen shots promoting upcoming events such as public suppers, the mid-August Forest Heritage Days, September International Seaplane Fly-In and more.

She said if someone may not be familiar with the annual Forest Heritage Days weekend, “odds are someone in here will know what it is” and this can spark a conversation between strangers.

“I wanted the term station, because Greenville is a stopover point,” Muzzy said about the origin of the business name. She said the word station is more fun than shop or house and it is an ode to the railroad, which is further emphasized by her father-in-law’s 1950s-era Lionel model train on display behind the counter next to the menu.

“Kineo is such a beloved term” Muzzy added about the first word.

The Kineo Coffee Station renovations include a complete interior makeover with warm, dark stained wood walls, a five-foot bakery display case, full water filtration system to provide the purest coffee taste and a baker’s kitchen.

Muzzy said she added a “plug-in station” with outdoor recreators in mind. Muzzy said recently a family with three teens came in while on a camping trip and each took advantage of the offering to charge their devices and use the free Wi-Fi after having no service in the wilderness to catch up on what they had missed.

“They really come in for coffee, our coffee is Coffee By Design in Portland,” Muzzy said, with each cup freshly ground in-house. “I can’t say enough of Coffee By Design, they are wonderful to work with, ” she added as the company now has a Kineo Station Blend for the Greenville establishment.

She said in addition to coffee and espresso drinks, made to order and served hot or cold, Kineo Coffee Station’s “smoothies are so popular” as these beverages are made with fresh fruits and vegetables.

“Everything is baked from scratch right here,” Muzzy said, with the drink, breakfast offerings, sandwich, baked goods, and soup and salad items served continually across the hours of operation. “You can order a turkey sandwich at 7 and you can get an egg sandwich at 1.”

Muzzy said the Kineo Coffee Station takes orders in advance “from people who don’t want to take a chance we run out.” She said accommodations will also be made for those with specific dietary needs, such as a sandwich featuring slices of lettuce instead of bread.

“Our signature sandwich is the egg and cheese panini put together on a homemade buttermilk biscuit,” Muzzy said. Patrons can then add their choice of meat and/or vegetables. “People can get very creative,” she said about their sandwich contents.

“The panini press is real seller for us,” Muzzy said as the device can grill a sandwich or a customer’s order can be served cold if they prefer. She said egg sandwiches taste great off the press and the Kineo Coffee Station also serves pressed wraps “which are just out of this world.”

“I currently have five that work with me,” Muzzy said, including one college student home for the summer. She said all but one of the Kineo Coffee Station employees grew up in Piscataquis County.

“They are wicked happy people, they are all so friendly,” Muzzy said about those who work with her. She said many customers know the employees’ names and the staff have gotten to know many patrons’ drink preferences.

“A lot of people enjoy having us remember their drink, such as latte with whole milk and decaf espresso,” Muzzy said. She said those stopping by can “leave with a great cup of coffee and a smile on their face.”

“We do encourage comments, we do encourage questions and that’s how we get better,” she said about postings to the Kineo Coffee Station Facebook, Instagram, and Yelp pages.. “I am all about listening to the constructive feedback if we have hit the mark or we have got further to go.”

“We are looking forward to a wonderful August, last year was our first August and this year we are much more well known,” Muzzy said. She said many vacationers are in the region during the last full month of summer and she hopes they and regular customers will pay the establishment a visit.

Kineo Coffee Station is located at 142 Moosehead Lake Road in Greenville and is open Tuesday to Saturday from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information, please call 695-2167, go to www.KineoCoffee.com or see the establishment’s Facebook page.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
LIVING THE DREAM WITH HER KINEO COFFEE STATION — Since opening in June 2016, Kineo Coffee Station owner Laurie Muzzy says she enjoys coming into work every day at the establishment on Indian Hill in Greenville. Kineo Coffee Station serves Coffee by Design beverages, sandwiches, baked goods and more on Tuesdays through Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. with local patrons and visitors to the region alike stopping by.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
RENOVATED INTO THE KINEO COFFEE STATION — A building on Route 15 at the top of Indian Hill in Greenville originally built to be a McDonald’s in the mid-1990s has been the home of the Kineo Coffee Station for the last year. The Kineo Coffee Station offers indoor and patio seating with a view of Squaw Mountain.

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