This past month we participated in the Holiday Open House hosted by all the Clarksville downtown small businesses. November 18 saw hundreds of residents and visitors flood the main street to shop and socialize. Some businesses had music, some were visited by Santa and the Cottage Barn had a face painter come! The crew at Rooted served up cold brew coffee and Hot Cocoa for free to all the shoppers who braved the cold weather. It was great to have the doors open and meet with all the folks who have been so patiently waiting for us to open. My family remarked after the event that I must have been asked at least 200 times when we are going to open. I had to laugh because it was very true, that is the #1 question on everyone’s mind these days and mine as well! Despite giving the answer so many times I never mind. I love that people are looking forward to our opening with as much enthusiasm as I am. I myself am not a patient person so completely understand the ask as well. All along I have made predictions and schedules that were passed and blown by due to factors outside of my control. Looking back, it was probably a tad ambitious (and naive) to think we could complete our whole build out in 3 months. But I have my patient husband to thank for keeping us both with a positive outlook. As a couple we have tackled many long projects in the past and where I get impatient, he is quick to remind me everything takes as long as it takes to be right. I overheard a shopper during Holiday Open House that reminded me of my WHY and confirmed the wisdom of my husband. The shopper was describing our Cafe to a friend and said, “their putting a real coffee shop here”. It made my heart so happy to be described in that way and I know all the work we are putting into giving Clarksville a “real” coffee shop will 100% be appreciated by our community. I look back and see all the ways we could have done things faster/cheaper/less and I’m encouraged that despite not being able to answer the question of “when will you open” TODAY. I know when we do open it will be with a REAL coffee shop doing things the right way for our customers.

Fall is in full swing now in Clarksville. The last month saw the main street transformed into a scary spooky street full of wonder at every lamppost. The town kicked off the season with the annual Harvest Fest and Barktoberfest and the Rooted team was so excited to participate in both. We set our tent at Barktoberfest to share our Doggie menu with the community. We served pumpkin puppachinos, doggy macarons, Good Boy and Good Girl Dog Beer, and even Charcuterie Boards for our furry friends. The event was a great way for us to introduce this menu as it is directly attached to one of our stretch goals for the Cafe. We love our pets and especially enjoy allowing our dogs to accompany us when we relax and spend time in town. We would ideally allow all pets inside the cafe but due to Health code regulations cannot allow animals (except service animals) in areas where food is served or prepared. The building layout of the cafe is such that we can have a second entrance with a dedicated Pooch Parking area in the back. Right now, the back entrance of the cafe is a gravel driveway connected to an enclosed gravel porch area. It is a very convenient spot being right next to the Clarksville Shuttle and Ruritans thrift store but is unseen. The plan is to remove the gravel inside the enclosed area then remove the top portion of the red metal walls and replace with full screened framing. The pooch parking space will be constructed complete with astro turf, running water, and shade. The space across from the pooch parking will have a floating deck constructed with couch and table seating. Lights and an outdoor fan will hopefully allow us to utilize this area year-round. All proceeds from the sale of our dog menu are being “dog eared” for the Pooch Parking Patio Project. I expect the total project to cost $5,000 so we are on our way to our goal by raising $350 at Barktoberfest alone! Please consider supporting our stretch goals when we open by purchasing from our Doggy Menu <3

Pumpkin Puppachino

Fall is coming in wet and windy in our little town and bringing a crisp chill with it. This weather is making me wish for hot coffee and chai and a comfortable couch. But there is too much to do getting ready to open! This past month has seen us finish up some plumbing, move in more furniture and start to receive our custom coffee cups. Electrical and finishes are coming up next and I am so anxious to start hooking up equipment and start training our staff! Speaking of our team, we have grown by 2 this past month! We will announce our whole team when we open and are currently accepting applications through email at rootedcafeva@gmail.com

It’s been 26 days since we got our keys to 307 Virginia Avenue and started the very long process of turning what was a fabulous furniture/Ice cream shop into a working Coffee Shop. The building we moved into was built almost 100 years ago and sits on Clarksville’s Historic Main Street. We fell in love with the architecture and history of Clarksville and this building embodies all that charm. We’ve also been learning some of the quirks of the space, did you know there is a whole false wall?? Its giving Haunted Mansion and makes me want to hang spooky portraits but I digress…were not getting sidetracked!

Moving in has also meant meeting our neighbors! We’ve always had great luck with neighbors whether it be for a business or our homes and I am so pleased to report that trend seems to be continuing! The Hites rolled out the welcome mat for us big time and have been continual sources of positivity and hope. We’ve begun meting some of the new business owners and not so new business owners (but new to main street) and the energy is certainly contagious amongst the group. Whew I cannot wait to see what all these passionate people create in our little town.