Rogue squadron

For proof of Rogue’s charms, we turn to an unimpeachable source: Mom.

One day, unprovoked, my mother jubilantly announced that, at long last, the north side had a bakery. And, she reported, it was delicious.

ROGUE COFFEE, CRAVINGS AND CABERNET owner Daneille Dickson had also noticed a dearth of pastry-pushers in north Spokane. And she thought she knew the perfect spot: a mini-shopping center between Whitworth University and the North Spokane Library.

Dickson already had a reputation as a brilliant baker — friends offered to pay good money for her lemon cheesecake — so when Leonardo’s Coffee went under, Dickson bit. She teamed with her sister, Sophia Rosenbaum, and her best friend and tennis partner, Tracy Christensen, and they have turned their long-running dream to start a bakery into tangible — edible — reality.

Walk into Rogue, and you’ll see a warm European aesthetic similar to the Service Station or Gelato Joe’s. You can drink coffee from local brewer Café Avion, sip Hedges CMS wine ($7), or slurp tomato-basil soup ($3, cup; $5.50, bowl) made thick and creamy with milk, Gorgonzola and parmesan. You’ll find their popular Morning Glory Muffins ($2) waiting in the front.

And then we come to the cheesecake. A single bite of the Lemon Curd Cheesecake ($3.80) contains three distinct sensations. First, fittingly, you’ll taste lemon — serene, consistent and unflappable. Then you notice the cool, soft texture, almost more like thick whipped cream than cheesecake. Suddenly — bam — a second wave of lemon hits, this one strong, bold and in-your-face.

“Have you tried that cheesecake? Holy Moses!” Dickson says. That’s what she’s going for.

You’ll also find a few samplings from other bakeries. Dickson says Europa, Rocket Bakery and Bittersweet Bakery helped Rogue learn the ropes of the food business. Rogue — and the community that supports it — is a far cry from the stereotypical cutthroat corporate restaurant world, says Dickson. That’s why it’s called Rogue: They’re the opposite of corporate coffeehouses. They’re rebels.

Of course, their rebellion comes in the form of free wireless Internet and spur-of-the-moment muffin giveaways. It’s an uprising that says, “Hey, try the cheesecake.” That’s an insurrection worth fighting for.
— DANIEL WALTERS

Rogue Coffee, 10208 N. Division, is open Mon-Fri 6 am-7 pm, Sat 7 am-7 pm and Sun 7 am-3 pm. Call 465-5100.