Yes, yes, we know: we’ve had more renovations than Elizabeth Taylor had husbands. We will wear that as a badge of honor, thank you very much. Why? Because it means we’re growing, we’re evolving, we are keeping things fresh and we are finding more ways to serve our community.
This may sound a bit conceited, but we kind of like what we do. Hey, if we don’t toot our own horn, who will? Our employees are fantastic, we think we treat them well, and it shows in how long some of them have worked for us. You know who they are. We partner with so many incredible vendors, we are always looking for ways to support the myriad small, family-owned businesses we work with. And there is you, dear customer, who has supported us for so many years. I’ve been here nearly 19 years, and I continue to see some of the same faces from all those years ago. Fantastic!
So why a bakery? Why coffee? First, it’s been my dream to run a coffee counter since I was 16. Yup, want to come talk coffee with me? I am here for it. We know lots of interesting and fun folks in coffee and we’re ready to stun you with our coffee flex. The bakery part is a little more complex, but I will distill it down. We have some very talented humans working for us right now who are poised to deliver some of the best bread and pastries in the Twin Cities. Oof, I guess I am being unMinnesotan and bragging again. Just calling balls and strikes, they are objectively very good at what they do.
Since I’ve been around, we have been making as much from scratch as we possibly can. From our condiments, to our charcuterie, to all of our own deli meats, to our soup stocks. Bread is the final frontier. So in addition to new pastries, we will eventually be serving 100% France 44 baked bread. Buddy, let me tell you that we buy a lot of bread. Give us some time on this part.
Benjamin! What should we expect? I can share a few things with you now, but just know there will be more to come. We’re working with a pal to roast our own proprietary coffee blend for our drip coffee. For espresso we are interviewing about a bazillion different roasters. Our syrups and flavors will all be made in house (of course) and the menu will be curated to reflect the constraints of our space. For the bakery component, Magic 8 ball says the future is midwestern. We have lots of stunning French bakeries in town, we want our menu to reflect the place we inhabit. So maybe a croissant with Uplands Pleasant Ridge Reserve?
We are excited to welcome you into our new space. Construction begins in the building January 4th. It’ll be, um, interesting around here but the Cheese Shop should remain open (if compromised in space) for most of the construction. Hopefully we are all wrapped up by the Ides of March, otherwise beware. Got questions/comments/concerns/requests? Feel free to shoot me an email, I always love hearing directly from folks.
