Cole Mountain Cafe Brings Farm to Table
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Cole Mountain Bakery and Cafe recently opened its doors on West Main Street to serve breakfast, sandwiches, and baked goods.
Owners of Cole Mountain Farm in Adams, Stephanie and Steve Melito, have taken their farm to the table.
Stephanie Melito wanted a change of pace and to get out from behind a desk after 30 years to follow her passion of cooking and baking.
"I was in the world of finance, and I had a love for cooking, love for baking. We have a small hobby farm in Adams, that's where the Cole Mountain name came from, so I was doing some baking and the fudge and everything else out of the house," she said. "I decided that I just had to get out of my house, and I had to get out of the desk job."
Melito started looking for places late last year and came upon the historic West End Market building, which was up for sale again. There have been a number of businesses in the building over the years, including most recently two eateries, but the "West End Market" moniker on the front facade has remained there since 1924,
Melito said she spent months working on the inside and had had a soft opening on May 30, which brought in an abundance of patrons.
"It's time to just open the doors and turn the lights on, and get it rolling," she said. "So it was super busy, super exhausted, but yeah, I've got a small crew, and we're all learning our jobs. It's everybody's first week on the job."
She said they are still finding their footing and what will work and what won't. Currently, customers will come up to order instead of a waitress coming to the table. This might change down the line or when they get more people, as she is still hiring.
"We're still finding our ways, figuring things out, figuring out what's going to work, what's not going to work. Everybody's come in has been super nice and helpful, and you know, just like anything, every business has growing pains."
Melito said they use ingredients from their farm and try to do organic and pesticide-free food, while modeling her space as a place she would want to be in.
"We've already seen it kind of morphing into a nice little community spot, decent vibes, decent food, good customer service. Those are all the things that I look for if I go out somewhere, fresh ingredients, sourcing some really good stuff from the food distributor, so I'm trying to keep things more natural and organic as possible."
She said people who have come in have been a great support and have had kind words to say. The cafe's already has some regulars.
"Just keep growing, deliver the product, and enjoy the community as it comes in," Melito said. "Had some nice people walk through the door a week into it, and I've had people that come in every single day for breakfast, same people come in every single day for breakfast."
She said, since opening, they have been having a great time as it is something she loves, and although it's been busy she has been happy seeing the community enjoy their food.
"We're having a lot of fun, you know? I guess when you enjoy what you do, it's not like work, right."
Melito partnered with Downeast Coffee Roasters after her son and his wife did a coffee tour through Rhode Island and sent her their favorite places.
"So on their tours, they would send me pictures of menus, telling me about different coffees that they tried, and they found Down East Coffee, which is kind of an organic coffee supplier," she said. "They found them and they loved their coffee, so I reached out to them, and they've been fantastic to deal with."
You will also be able to get a taste of Melito’s homemade fudge cut right in front of you to enjoy along with some of her other pastries including muffins, cupcakes, and more.
Cole Mountain Bakery and Cafe will be open Wednesdays from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Thursday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. with the hours subject to change.
Melito said the grill is turned off at 2:30 p.m. and she will sell ice cream and cold sandwiches until close. They currently have vanilla and chocolate soft serve and are awaiting a machine that will have nondairy options.
Tags: new business, bakery, cafe,
