"We know people enjoy the place and we want to keep that quaintness that is so special here," says Steve Pattison, owner of the Darling House Pub and one of the new owners of Poppy's Caf and Pinehurst Sundry.

Steve and Liz Pattison and Matt and Tabitha Crider are the new owners of the popular caf in the village of Pinehurst. They purchased the shop from Larry and Debbie Rupp, who owned the shop for nearly two years.

"We were very interested in preserving this shop for the village -- it's so much of what Pinehurst has been for so many years," says Steve Pattison. "It's important to us that people can still come here, find a place like this, and enjoy the step back into an older era."

Folks go to Poppy's not only for the nostalgic atmosphere, but also the sense of community.

"It's a gathering place," says Matt Crider, pointing to the coveted red leather chairs in the corner that have the view of the village center. "Every morning we have a regular group that arrives at 6:30 when our doors open. They sit there and catch up on the news and enjoy the morning with friends."

One of those regulars, Mike Henitz, says the group has been gathering at the coffee shop for years.

"We kind of came with the place since we've been here for so many years," he says with a laugh.

"We have a lot of fun watching Pinehurst each morning and occasionally offering our advice to anyone looking like they might need it. But, it's the people who come in here -- they make it interesting and special. Most of us are retired, or close to it, and this place is a repository of information and a bit of gossip."

As the day progresses, a hodge-podge of familiar faces and the first-timers come in and out the doors. Folks come for their favorite latte and fresh muffin in the morning or soup and a sandwich at lunchtime. It's a standing-room-only crowd on many warm days for the hand-dipped ice cream. All the food items are prepared from scratch in the very tiny, one-person kitchen, tucked into the rear of the caf.

"It's workable, though a bit short on counter space," says Liz Pattison, the caf's new chef. "It's a one-person kitchen so you can't get into much trouble in here."

The kitchen area includes a small commercial oven, refrigerator, and the ice cream machine, which has a Bailey's Irish Crme bottle sitting on top of it.

"That was for an Irish Crme frosted carrot cake that I just made for St. Patrick's Day," she adds with a glint of joy in her eyes.

"I like to bake, so this is natural for me -- but I still need recipes and the time. I'm working on trying to recreate some of our customers' favorites, including the Hollywood pastry and a raisin cookie that Debbie made famous."

Consistency is a key objective for the new owners and according to Crider they do not plan any big changes.

"Poppy's has a loyal following and that's important," he says.

They plan to nurture their customers by adding some more comfortable chairs and perhaps a few more chess and checkerboards for the old-timers who like to play board games later in the day.

But they also want to make visitors to the village feel welcome, so they are working to make Poppy's an integral part of the community by offering some products often sought.

When the Pattisons purchased the old Pinehurst Sundry to build the Darling House Pub they also purchased the sundry's name and added many of the items that used to be offered there -- plus a few more -- to Poppy's.

"So many people come into the Darling House Pub looking for a place in the village to buy a disposable camera, batteries, beer, or tobacco products -- and most don't want to drive a

mile and a half to the shopping center, or they can't," Crider says. "So we offer these things as well as over-the-counter beer and wine sales, too."

He does emphasize that Poppy's retains its nonsmoking policy, however.

In addition, they are the only place in town to offer a variety of newspapers.

"We have people calling to reserve their New York Times Sunday edition," says Steve Pattison.

In addition, they offer the New York Post, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Barron's, Financial Times, and the Financial Daily.

"It's a comfortable place to enjoy one of those newspapers," Liz Pattison adds.

"We don't have a flat-screen TV so there's no Fox or CNN feed, but we do have free Wi-Fi and quiet music."

If the friendly ambience, homemade ice cream, including the sugar-free variety, or cappuccino are not enough of a reason to visit Poppy's, the new owners plan to introduce a popular line of handmade chocolates from Pennsylvania -- just in time for Easter.

The enticements are many -- sundry items, good food, chocolate, coffee, and friendship and that is just what the Pattisons and Criders intended.

"We're really trying to serve the needs of all our friends -- those we know and those we hope to meet," says Crider.

And, yes, there's a jar of dog treats at the cash register and a water bowl outside -- to meet and keep all kinds of friends.

Claudia Watson is a Pinehurst freelance writer and may be contacted at cwatson87@nc.rr.com.?