PHOENIX -- Despite a slowing economy, business is booming at one Arizona coffee shop.

Though the food at Next Coffee Company in Glendale, Ariz., is nothing to be shy about -- the chef once cooked with Julia Child and Wolfgang Puck -- coffee is king.

Customers have no problem shelling out $4 for a 12-ounce cup of joe; then again, owner and "java mechanic" Steve Kelly's caffeinated creations aren't ordinary coffee.

"I want coffee to be an experience," Kelly said.

Ingredients such as Diet Coke, Dr. Pepper, rose, pistachios, goat milk, Horchata and lemon-lime soda become exotic creations like Café da Vinci (dark chocolate and rose), Emerald City (white chocolate and pistachio), the Portlander (chestnut praline, chocolate, caramel and spice) and the Banana Bread Latte.

"Anyone can put a flavor in a cup, [but] can you make a drink out of it?" Kelly said. "Can you make something that is memorable?"

Kelly said he dreams up his creations -- literally.

"I'll wake up [with] the recipe right in my head," Kelly said. "I write it down, then I come to work and make it."

At first, some customers are unsure about his coffee flavors.

"It's kind of frightening at first until you try it," customer Mindy Will said, "then it's actually really good."

A San Diego native, Kelly learned awhile back he had a knack for mixing flavors with coffee. Since then, he has entered a number of national coffee making competitions.

"Everyone has a talent," Kelly said. "Mine just shows itself every time I touch coffee."

Kelly said he has about 100 more recipes that are not on the Next Coffee Co. menu -- yet.