Boston Globe - January 30, 2011 - Stephanie Schorow, Globe Correspondent -

It’s an eye-opener, no doubt. High windows that take maximum advantage of the faint winter light. Brightly lighted cases jammed with pastries, cookies, and muffins. The heady scent of strong coffee. And the words Good Day Café emblazoned on a pale orange wall in huge letters that would not be out of place on a highway billboard.

A new neighbor in a restored industrial complex, the Good Day Café gives off a whiff of homey comfort and shrewd branding. The thought and planning that went into the business, which opened in December, shows in the whimsical half-sunflower logo, stamped on merchandise like travel cups and bags of coffee, and a table of sleek gift baskets. Proprietors John and Kathy Santoro worked closely with a marketer, and it shows in the care given to details.

But appearances only go so far — it will be the quality and selection of the food and the service that will draw the crowds. In this case, the café is well on its way to success, and the crowds already are showing up.

On walking in, our eyes were first drawn to the packed cases of goodies, almost all of them baked on premises, including muffins ($1.65), scones, ($1.65), cinnamon rolls ($2.50), brownies, ($1.50), cookies ($2), and something called donut muffins: doughnut dough formed into a muffin shape and baked rather than deep-fried ($1.50). These muffins have already become a signature offering of the café, and the king of the pack is (stay with me now) the maple bacon version, slathered with butter frosting and generously topped with bits of bacon ($3, served only on weekends). The sweetness of the creamy frosting blends wonderfully with the bacon bits.

Over hearty coffee that you could — metaphorically — stand a fork in, we tried the quiche of the day, quiche Lorraine ($4.50), which was light and fluffy and generously dotted with ham. It was comforting but could have spent another minute or two heating up in the microwave. There are also stuffed croissants, such as ham, turkey, or spinach ($3.50); we sampled the turkey, which was warm and cheesy but otherwise fairly bland.

The café has a fairly standard selection of sandwiches — club, BLT, and tuna salad — with some unusual twists like the Nutella and sliced banana ($5) or the grilled cheese and green apple ($5). The more basic “café sandwich’’ offers a choice of turkey, ham, chicken, or roast beef ($6) paired with a variety of tasty breads. The café cooks most of the meat on premise, and the thick slices in the turkey sandwich showed this care. Its match with romaine lettuce and tomato was filling and little else, but better was the chicken salad sandwich ($7) with its tart cranberries, walnuts, green apples, and lettuce. This is a sandwich that puts up some welcome resistance with every bite.

Those who crave more of a breakfast can opt for a bagel and lox ($6.50) or the house granola ($4). Lighter options include a variety of salads. The mill salad ($7) will satisfy a sweet tooth, with its mix of greens, glazed walnuts, apples, cranberries, and dollops of delectable goat cheese. Go easy on the raspberry dressing; it’s nicely tangy, but a little goes a long way.

An extra bonus comes from the café’s location in the former Davis and Furber Machine Co. site. Preserved in the complex are gargantuan turbines and machinery that speak of the area’s industrial past. It’s worth a peek and a chance to stretch your legs and work off some of that maple icing and bacon bits.

Read the full article here.