The Clarion

Issue date: 1/27/10 Section: Entertainment

Returning home after a hard day's work or school is wonderful. Joy from hugging the kids and playing with the pets, accomplishment from doing work in the garden, comfort from putting on sweats and cozying up to the fireplace with a good book are feelings that everyone can relate to.

In much the same way, going to a favorite restaurant can elicit similar feelings. This is one aspect that Daisy Café and Cupcakery, located at 2827 Atwood Ave., accomplished in their transition from concept to restaurant.

Kathy Brooks and Darryl Sissons, co-owners of the Daisy Café, made the community feel right at home in all aspects of their business; from the comfortable decor and delicious food, to the sense of accomplishment through their support of local outreach programs.

These core values are epitomized in the "Four C's" that outline the goal of Daisy. They include café, cupcakes, coffeehouse and community. To fully understand the owners' dedication to these concepts, one must start at the beginning.



Origins of Daisy

Sissons moved from Seattle to Madison because Madison is where his wife, the love of his life, is from. After working at Monty's Blue Plate Special for numerous years, Sissons decided to partner with Brooks, with dreams of starting their own restaurant.

The success of cupcakeries in cities such as Austin, Texas, Tallahassee Fla., Trenton N.J. and Sissons's hometown of Seattle and the lack of one in Madison made Sissons and Brooks believe that there was a market for one here. Due in part to Madison being a smaller community than the aforementioned cities, Sissons knew that the long term health and success of a cupcakery would stem from a "community café that served specialty desserts."

For this reason they specifically chose the Atwood community due to its diverse social, economic and cultural background as well as Atwood's support of local businesses. While building Daisy Café, Sissons and Brooks looked to create a warm and inviting atmosphere. They accomplished this by going to local artists and businesses to help decorate and furnish Daisy's interior.

Daisy's warm environment comes from the beautiful wood furniture found throughout the restaurant and the spectacular artwork that adorn the walls. The furniture was procured from local businesses and people from around the Madison area.

According to Sissons, this was one of Brooks's favorite experiences in setting up Daisy. "She enjoyed looking for the pieces, but loved the stories behind the furniture that accompanied them even more," he said. Included in the furniture is a coffee table that sits in the front picture window of Daisy and dates to the turn of the twentieth century. As far as the art goes, all of the pictures were taken in and around Madison by local artists. There are also two gorgeous paintings of daisies found on the back wall of the café in the front and the back wall of the dining area in the rear. These paintings are especially meaningful to Sissons because his mother-in-law painted them. Adding to the friendly and inviting ambiance of Daisy is the smell of freshly baked cupcakes. This is because all of the cupcakes are made on the premises by one of four bakers, which increased from one at the opening of Daisy due to customer demand.

Continued...

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