A central perk of Winter Park

Austin’s Coffee has a front door, but not everyone enters that way. Frequent customers often enter through the back, comfortable in the welcome they’ll receive.

There’s no marketing strategy, no advertising budget, no real plan.

Austin’s is just what it appears to be, a happy accident that has over the years attracted a cult following of those who are just as quirky and creative as the coffee shop itself.

Some come for the open mic nights that have been voted the best in Orlando multiple times over. Others come to write, draw, paint or socialize with those who do. Of course, who could forget the coffee: organic, fair trade and masterfully crafted.

And then there’s the pie.

Mile high, crowned with whipped cream, dusted with powdered sugar and sized for sharing, this mini-mountain of peanut-buttery deliciousness has its own cult following, a sub-culture within the community that is Austin’s.

And it was all concocted by mishap, said Austin’s owner Sean Moore.

“It was all an accident really. I was making a pie for a restaurant I worked for at the time and I grabbed the wrong ingredient from the shelf. By the time I noticed, it was too late. In an attempt to cover up the mistake, I added peanut butter and it just sort of worked.”

When Moore bought the struggling coffee shop back in 2004, he brought the pie with him, perfecting it over the years to become the fluffy, addictive confection that it is today.

“The first pie sold out immediately and I knew I had something.”

“Like the shop, it defies logic,” Moore said.

Moore began his connection to Austin’s as a customer, regularly stopping in for coffee and conversation with his brother who is now his business partner.

When he heard Austin’s was about to close, he took a risky leap and offered to buy the place “for a promise.”

It’s been a love affair ever since.

With its checkered floors, mismatched furniture, board games and books, Austin’s is as eclectic as its owners and clientele.

Located on Fairbanks Avenue just down the street from Rollins College, Austin’s is open 24 hours Thursday through Saturday and from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. Sunday through Wednesday.

In addition to its famous open mic nights, Austin’s also hosts a Hip-Hop night, Jazz night and a never-ending stream of live performances that are always free and open to the public.

On the walls, local artists display and sell their works, some of which were created right there in the shop.

Jason Missal, a longtime Austin’s patron, is currently showing his work on the gallery wall.

“I’ve been coming here for over seven years,” Missal said. “The entire place has a constantly spontaneous feel to it that I love.”

Missal said Austin’s owners have just the right mix of ingenuity and happenstance to make the coffee shop a success.

“Sean’s gotta be a little bit crazy to make all this work, I think it’s his lack of planning that makes it so good.”

Austin’s means different things to different people, but the one thing everyone seems to appreciate is the sense of community and creativity that hangs in the air there.

It’s a place where friends drop in unexpectedly, ideas are shared and judgment is left at the door.

“Coffee draws all types, and rich or poor, they check their egos at the door.”

For Moore, “It’s become who I am, not just what I do.”

“Sometimes I feel like a neutral observer here,” he said, “just a witness to everything that happens within these walls.”