[It's what he loves about it. It feels more like being welcomed in someone's home than in a cafe.]

It's nice, isn't it? Unfortunately, I can't offer you a coffee. The taste seems to be off.

[Which bothers him but it isn't enough to ruin the peace he feels.]

I like to sit at the counter. Here, actually. [He puts his hand on the back of his regular seat.] It never really had many customers. I'm not sure how, financially speaking, it operated. But that added to the charm. The coffee was fantastic, though the curry was too spicy for me. It didn't taste bad but it was just not to my tastes.