The mural features the profile of man wearing a brimmed cap and a wide grin. One bear cub is perched on the man's head, another is clutching his right arm and shoulder.

The image is a painter's rendition of a 1940s photograph of Dalen Sargent's grandfather. A logger in the Northwest, the elder Sargent one day came upon the two abandoned cubs. He temporarily raised the cubs before they were given to a zoo in Washington.

The original photograph captured the freeze-frame of the cubs and their surrogate parent, and its endearing qualities have since been a treasured family keepsake.

The painted image is also the large indoor wall logo for Sargent's House of Coffee, a new husband-wife owned small business that teeters the border of East and Midtown Sacramento.

Located at 1121 Alhambra Ave., Sargents is owned by Dalen and Javawn Sargent. The couple, both in their early 30s, is immersed in the world of coffee beans, expresso drinks and the pursuit of offering what they believe is the best roast in town.

"A lot of the people who've come in are looking for something a little different in their coffee," says Dalen Sargent. "Not to name any of the main (coffee) players, but we're getting a lot of the anti-corporate place type of coffee drinkers. And I hope that we're able to give them an experience, a cup of coffee like they've never had before."

Married for 13 years, the Sargents lived in Washington for several years where coffee is embedded into daily life. Dalen Sargent studied coffee and the people who passionately drank it, and he now makes coffee with the same enthusiasm. Sargent discusses measured and time expresso shots, and he and his wife are skilled in creating images in coffee drinks known at "latte art."

"My focus is strictly on coffee; you won't see a lot of pumpkin-spiced lattes or a lot of flavored drinks," he explains. "I'm just here with an emphasis on coffee and to sell a quality drink. The goes from the process of roasting to securing the beans from the importer."

Sargent describes selecting coffee beans as similar t
o attending a wine-tasting. The process is called cupping, and when a new supply is needed he  travels to San Francisco.

"A lot of the terminology in selecting coffee comes from the wine industry," he says. "You actually sit around the table and slurp the coffee from different roasts to see how different lots are going to taste. That's how I get my beans."

The Sargents, who serve only French-pressed coffee, have a roasting facility in Elk Grove and a corresponding web site (www.sargentscoffee.com) for their wholesale and e-commerce business.

The couple entered the coffee business in 2002. They've owned three coffee kiosks, one via a state contract in Elk Grove, the others at Kaiser Hospitals in Roseville and Rancho Cordova. But the Sargents sold those enterprises and then opened their retail location last Dec. 19 in the former home of Red Square, the funky yogurt and crepe shop.

The location's former business had a conspicuously disshelved decor. But a streamlined remodel now offers a comfortable retreat. Dark wooden tables and chairs and corner couches complement solid-colored walls and wooden shelves and trim. There's a minimalistic wall menu above the front counter offering coffee drink choices. And there's a small glass case featuring pastries, cakes and mini pies.

Like other small businesses, the Sargents, parents of three school-aged children, work long hours. 

Sargent's House of Coffee is open 5:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 6 a.m. to noon Sunday. That's 99 of a week's 168 hours.

"Sometimes your mind is just overloaded with stuff you want to talk about," explains Javawn Sargent. "But we try to make business, business and home life, home life. Because otherwise, it just gets too much and it can get to you. But we've had family and friends who have also been very supportive."

And, of course, there's the omnipresent aforementioned mural of the Sargent's grandfather and his affectionate orphaned bear cubs.

"The values my grandfather stood for were honesty and integrity and that's something we wanted o carry over into our company and so we chose that photo," Dalen Sargent says. "I think it's been a good choice for a logo. People don't forget the picture. I've had people tell me they've seen it in malls and all over the place. But I know it's never been in malls. But people see it, they like it and they remember it."