(STORY IMAGE:KHQ.COM)
SPOKANE, Wash. -Pam has been running the coffee cup inside the US Bank building in downtown Spokane for five years. This month, she learned another business in the building has demanded she make a change that would take down the majority of her menu… all because of the smell of food.
"I have seriously for five and a half years put my heart and soul into this business," Pam Gassaway, the owner of Coffee Cup, said.
Pam and her family cater to loyal customers who said they adore the "homey-feel" the food provides. The Coffee Cup serves chicken wraps, turkey croissants and Pam's homemade soups, which some customers describe as legendary.
"I love her chicken curry soup, I could eat it everyday," Stephanie Gregory, a customer, said.
But despite the positive reviews…
"I get a call from the property management that says all of a sudden there is one person who is complaining about the smell of food," Gassaway said.
The owner says in early July she agreed to the property manager's request that she would no longer serve those delicious soups or cook bacon. But, she tells me she was caught off guard by another email later in the month that, according to Pam, included changes she never agreed to.
"They want to take away about seventy-five percent of my business," Gassaway said.
Pam says with the new changes, she would only be allowed to serve cold sandwiches, salads and items that could be found at a coffee stand. Pam and her customers are not happy about the changes, and now there's a petition to keep her business as is.
"We know most of our customers by name. hundreds and hundreds of them. we love them all, and they love us," Gassaway said.
The managers who contacted the Coffee Cup about their menu items said they have no comment because it's a tenant issue. KHQ reached out to the commercial property agent for the building, and they have not responded.