Local music, kids, coffee, art, .and, oh yeah, beer. bela dubby ... Coffee, Beer and Art, located at 13321 Madison in Lakewood, cultivates a sense of community that is hard to find in Cleveland outside of a church. It could be the kids, the art, or dare I say, the beer. This little hole in the wall, reaches across the Lakewood community and serves as a depot for a very diverse group from every defined and undefined demographic in Lakewood.

Bela is simply the best Wi-Fi hotspot in Lakewood. So a broad range of humans call it home. Realtors sit next to graphic artists who sit next to a forensic architect. Periodic conversations jump across the tables of people who would remain strangers in any other setting. . The place has never been about meeting people, but that is what happens.

A laid back atmosphere and relaxed meetings are a hallmark of bela. The owners intentionally created a smoke free environment where, over a coffee or a beer, you can have a conversation without competing with a blasting sound system. Bring the kids. Bela is family friendly, (really). Groups meet for free. One of the groups that calls bela home is, "Stitch and Bitch". Populated by a nest of quick witted women and one dreadlocked male, they are true to their name; they meet, knit and bitch. On another night the Lakewood Observer might be having an editorial meeting, or it may be an artist planning a show, or it may be a suit in for the free Wi-Fi and a Dortmunder. Every day is different.

Behind the counter, owners John and Jill keep a New York co-op club feel to the place. Often it seems like you have dropped in on a very interesting person's living room. Part creative club house, part grounding of those bound to the internet, bela seems to be developing a sense of creative communion in Lakewood. Let's hope it stays that way.

bela dubby is located at 13321 Madison Avenue in Lakewood and is open Tuesday through Thursday till 10ish and Friday and Saturday till Midnight.