Mike Salvatore carries a lot of titles these days: local business owner, returning Chicagoan, and — perhaps with a slight wince — a self-admitted bike snob.

“It comes off so wrong, it’s not really what I mean,” he said. “It’s an intimidating culture if you’re not part of it — and to clear the air, I’m friends with a lot of the so-called bike snobs,” he said.

Salvatore, 30, is a founding partner at Bowery Lane Bikes, a New York-based online bicycle manufacturer that since launching in 2008 has caught its stride selling handmade, simple models reminiscent of a time before lightweight speed frames and double-digit gear systems.

“I know exactly how the average consumer wants it — we’re not talking about the bike guys,” he said. “For someone who just wants to ride and not be pressured into the performance stuff, it’s so easy to tell them that this is the bike.”

The Rogers Park native recently left the Big Apple and returned to Chicago with wife and newborn son to add another moniker to his list — that of a coffee snob.

Last Monday, Jan. 23, Salvatore opened up the doors at the Heritage Bicycles General Store, a hybrid cafe and bike shop in south Lake View.

Located at 2959 N. Lincoln Ave., the storefront space offers an experience that is sure to please the casual cafe cruiser and the prospective biker alike. Customers can kick back and enjoy a cup of joe from Portland-based Stumptown Coffee and pastries from nearby Southport Grocery while watching mechanics assemble and tune up bicycles in an open shop set in the back of the store.

Salvatore said he drew inspiration for the shop’s elegant black and white decor from cafes in Amsterdam. The shop’s booths and long table were built from reclaimed wood, and the storefront is lit by bare Edison light bulbs on chandeliers made from bicycle wheel rims.

In addition to sipping java, cyclists can bring in their wheels for maintenance jobs, or — if the mood strikes — buy a new bike.

The shop currently carries three vintage-inspired models; the step-through “Breukelen” and the diamond frame “Bronks,” from the from the Bowery Lane line, as well as Heritage’s flagship bicycle, the mixte “Daisy” (named after the cow storied to have sparked the Great Chicago Fire). The bikes are all priced from $695 and come with a one-year warranty.

The production of the Heritage line is truly a cross-town affair; the frames are welded at an Uptown fabrication shop, painted on the South Side and assembled in-store.

“I didn’t want anyone to pick up my trail,” joked Salvatore.

The shop also offers bike wear and accessories, and Salvatore said he’s working out production designs for racks and fenders.

The switch from distributing online to being the proprietor of a physical space — in a different city, no less — is an exciting one, said Salvatore.

As CEO of Bowery Lane, Salvatore said he learned the ins and outs of product branding and direct consumer marketing.

“I feel the pulse of the online community, and I feel like I know how to navigate that,” he said. “What we were missing is the day-to-day interactions, he said. “People really want to hear our story and see the bikes being built.”

The decision to produce his bikes in-town comes with a sobering price point, he said.

“I’ve done the research — I’m an idiot, my margins suck, I know that,” said Salvatore. “But it’s important.”

Even in a town that spawns cycle-geeks every spring, Salvatore has set modest goals for his first year as a bike seller.

“I’m not anybody right now, no one knows my brand from anything else,” he said. “If I sell 10 bikes [this year], I’ll be happy.”

Between the bike shop and the cafe, Heritage currently has a staff of 10 people, with a few more expected to come on as the warm weather approaches. The shop is also offering paid internships for mechanics who go through a training program at West Town Bikes in Humboldt Park.

“[West Town founder Alex Wilson] has been a big proponent of me coming back here and starting up,” said Salvatore. “He’s put in a lot of hours, making sure that I know the right people.”

Though he was originally hoping for an August 2011 debut, Salvatore said that the post-Christmas opening has given him time to get settled before the biking season starts up again.

Salvatore believes that his brand will appeal to those who fall somewhere in the middle of the ever-expanding culture of bicycling.

“There are bike shops for bike enthusiasts, then there’s Walmart for people who just want to pick up a cheap bike and go,” he said. “Then there’s this clientele that want to invest in a brand and ride.”

That, said Salvatore, is where Heritage comes in.

“I just want to fill that gap,” he said.