After seeing success through her five years owning Cafe Milo, Susan Freeman is excited to open a second location inside Ames Fitness Center South mid-July.

The classic cafe feel will meet the fast-paced gym feel with the original menu being modified as a grab-and-go menu accompanied with a small seating area. The new menu will also feature items that are healthier and higher in protein.

“We’re going to have a little less selection of the sugary flavors in espresso,” Freeman said. “We’re going to have a little bit more of the fresh fruits and vegetables and more choices as far as smoothie flavors go.”

Incorporating protein powders in smoothies—creating a beneficial treat for those using the gym—is something Freeman is trying to perfect before the cafe opens.

“That’s my biggest learning curve,” Freeman said. “There’s so many out there. I haven’t decided what I’m going to do as far as that goes because I can’t please everybody and I can’t have 20 different kinds in the shop. You got to pick one, so I’m working on that.”

These smoothies will also be made with real frozen fruit, something the West Ames location was unable to do because of the lack of freezer space.

Freeman is passionate about health and wellness, as she graduated from Iowa State in dietetics. For over 20 years, she worked with the Iowa WIC program through the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.

Her daughter, Abbie Zahn, is a chef who will be creating items for the new location.

“She’s kind of our creative genius behind our flavors,” Freeman said. “Our summer flavors feature two syrups that she makes herself.”

Zahn also bakes all of the cookies from scratch, leaning away from depending on pre-made frozen pastries.

“That’s been one thing that we’ve changed—less reliance on frozen stuff and more reliance on making them fresh in-house,” Freeman said.

Freeman’s goal for the new location is to maintain a homey Iowa barn theme, complete with reclaimed barn doors and weather tables.

Brett Halverson, Ames Fitness Center South manager, said the cafe will fit in with their other health services: NuCara Pharmacy, IV Therapy Services, Ames Cycling Center and Complete Connection Chiropractic.

“We tried to develop kind of a wellness destination,” Halverson said. “[With Cafe Milo we are] adding one more element as another service to benefit our members so we can be kind of a one-stop wellness destination.”

Online ordering will provide a take-out option, and parking spaces will be reserved for customers picking up orders.

Halverson and Freeman decided to work together after discussing their businesses and agreeing that opening a new Cafe Milo location in the gym would be beneficial to them both. According to Halverson, a gym membership will not be required to visit the cafe.

“This is something that will be open to the public,” Halverson said. “There aren’t a lot of options for food down in this area, so I think it’ll be a great addition to the Research Park.”

Even with the new location being about half the size as the West Ames location, 1,300 sq. ft., there will be double the staff because of how busy the gym gets. Freeman will be hiring new employees as well as transferring some current employees.

“With a lot of traffic over there, just like we have traffic here, we have to have more bodies,” Freeman said.

Where many Ames businesses see a lack of customers in the summer, Freeman believes the gym will still see students throughout the next few months, making it a great location for the new cafe.