By LIZ ANDERSON

The café, which is located just 10 minutes from downtown Washington in Mt. Ranier, Md., is housed in the first building created as part of the Gateway Arts District revitalization project. The Gateway Arts District is a two-mile section of Rhode Island Avenue, and includes the cities of Mt. Ranier, Brentwood, North Brentwood and Hyattsville.

Like a lot of new businesses, Artmosphere had a bittersweet first year.

“It’s been sweet in that we’ve been able to actualize and see to complete fruition something that we’ve had a vision for,” said Andaiye, who lives upstairs from the café in a loft with her husband and children.

The bitter part is trying to balance business, creative and family life. Now throw staying in shape and eating right into that mix.

Despite the difficulties involved in running a new business, there is satisfaction for the couple.

“It’s been very rewarding that we actually made it a year,” Andaiye said. “A lot of food establishments don’t make it their first year, but we’ve managed to stay in it a year and still be friends, and our kids and everyone is healthy and well, and nobody’s left or broken up, so it’s been blessed.”

Those blessings may sometimes appear to be at odds with the amount of customers they see. “For some reason the support just isn’t there, and it’s kind of painful, and it’s really been a struggle for them to stay afloat,” said Bill Madison, Dyrell’s father and one of the café’s financial backers. “During the day the patronage is very limited, but they sort of make up on the weekends.”

At its one-year anniversary weekend celebration, the café had a steady stream of customers, all bobbing their heads to Andaiye’s honest and soulful renditions of classics by artists such as Al Green. Later in the set, she performed a couple of her original songs.

“It’s a very community-oriented facility,” Bill said. “They have open mic [nights] to encourage young talent, especially young poets, whose work would never be heard if they didn’t have a place like this.”

The café is not financially lucrative right now, but word from the customers is still positive. It’s possible that the café will have strength to run in years to come because of the Artmosphere’s unique atmosphere.

“You can come in, you can dance, you can sing, you can just voice your own creativity, and it’s welcome,” said Yolanda Dandridge, a frequent customer and one of Andaiye’s good friends.

One customer, Eric Suggs Jr., enjoys the positive energy, the good music and the artwork. “To me, it’s a great place to just come and just ease your mind from the stress of the day,” he said.

Artmosphere is the stress-free kind of place where folks can relax and be themselves. Curtis Mays considers hang-outs, such as clubs, to be fake. But people at Artmosphere keep it real, he said.

Everyone at the club has “a mask on of the person they want to be, so they play it out in the club,” Mays said. “But when you come to a place like this, you get to see them for who they are, you know. That’s the beautiful thing I like about up here. You can meet friends who got more to talk about than rap.”

The Artmosphere Café is located at 3311 Rhode Island Ave., Mount Ranier, Md. Enter at the corner of the building that is near the traffic circle. Find out more about Artmosphere at artmospherecafe.com.

After one year of operation, the Artmosphere Café’s legs are still somewhat wobbly. But its owners, Andaiye Scott-Madison and Dyrell Madison, are hoping the establishment can secure better footing in the near future.