Espresso Express looks like any other independent coffee place in Seattle. Behind a counter, an espresso machine steams milk for a nonfat, extra hot cappuccino and a stained microwave heats up an unusually large croissant. A glass display case holds a variety of baked goods begging to be eaten. At tables, people make use of the free Wi-Fi, checking their e-mail and surfing the Internet.

Customers stream in and out; some are regulars, some are just stopping for a quick pick-me-up, and others are paying to fill up their cars with biodiesel at the pump outside the café.

Thirty years ago, this coffee hub was a gas station on the corner of Northeast 65th Street and 15th Avenue Northeast. After the station went out of business, Doug Barnhart bought the place and turned it into a café.

Recently, Espresso Express has returned to its roots, adding biodiesel to its menu of lattes, americanos and mochas.

As one of Seattle’s first espresso joints, it’s only apt that years later, the café is one of the first places serving biodiesel in the Emerald City.

Barnhart was approached by Dan Freeman a few months ago. Freeman, creator and namesake of Dr. Dan’s Biodiesel in Ballard, was looking for a place in the north end of Seattle to sell the environmentally-friendly fuel.

“We have an awful lot of customers in that area and [we] put out the word that we wanted to partner with a company that had three parking spots,” Freeman said.

Barnhart jumped at the chance to be a part of the growing biodiesel business.

“It’s a good idea because we want to promote the green concept as much as possible,” he said. “We wanted to do it because we’re so visible—we’re near the University, in an area where there’s more enlightenment toward green aspects.”

Freeman started Dr. Dan’s Biodiesel in October 2001 just as the tensions in the Middle East heightened and consumers began looking for alternative fuel sources. Prior to opening the shop, Freeman established a Web site that prompted an e-mail a day from people looking to buy biodiesel.

“Then the war happened and it was all I could do to answer the phone,” Freeman said. “People don’t want to use foreign oil.”

Combined with the growing environmental concerns, biodiesel has grown as a viable alternative to gasoline.

“Biodiesel is simply the most perfect way to clean up our air,” Freeman said.

Unlike ethanol, which is produced from a crop itself, biodiesel is produced from agricultural byproducts.

“You can make it out of any fat,” Freeman explained. “Ideally it should be made from the byproduct. You want to use 100 percent of what you have.”

Most biodiesel is produced from soybean oil, a byproduct of soy crops grown for animal feed. The soy oil is drained off the feed and refined as biodiesel.

Refining biodiesel is also remarkably energy efficient. Unlike ethanol, which can require a lot of machinery to produce, the biodiesel process is similar to making soap, Freeman said.

“You take your oil, add a catalyst, usually methanol and lye, drain the glycerin off and refine it,” he said. “It’s about as difficult as making beer.”

As with any fuel source, there is some controversy surrounding biodiesel. As Freeman pointed out, it’s best to produce biodiesel from the byproduct of a crop. However, in some parts of the world, areas have been deforested to create room for palm oil crops.

“Conservation is always the first best step,” Freeman said. “Burning down forests in Malaysia just adds more units of carbon dioxide [to the atmosphere].”

Still, Freeman says biodiesel is the way to go.

“Biodiesel is the best political, economical and ecological answer,” he said.

So far, selling biodiesel has been beneficial for Barnhart’s coffee business.

“We get questions every day. What is biodiesel? We’re getting new customers as people learn about it,” Barnhart said.

Biodiesel is more expensive than traditional gas, priced at about $5.60 a gallon. However, diesel cars often get about 40 miles per gallon and the price per mile works out to be about 14 cents. Paying $3.40 a gallon and getting an average of 20 miles per gallon ends up costing about 17 cents a mile.

For many consumers, the extra cost of biodiesel is worth it, and Barnhart is excited to take part.

“Right now people are doing it because they want to,” he said. “It’s being a part of a good movement culture.”