No more wishin’ and hopin’ and thinkin’ and dreaming for downtown coffee connoisseurs.
The old Ani DeFranco song says it all when it comes to Books & Company bringing back a coffee shop where people can once again enjoy delicious baked goods and specialty coffees in the relaxed atmosphere of everyone’s favourite bookstore.
The good news came out on social media Friday, April 18 and it kinda blew up, Caitlin Pedde, owner of Cait’s Sweet Bites & Beanery, said when she and Books & Company owner Owen Lubbers made the recent announcement about their latest collaboration.
Mid-May is when the café will open but as construction is still taking place at the bookstore there is no grand opening date set as yet.
Caitlin said she couldn’t be happier about taking on this new project.
For a year she worked in Café Voltaire that was in Books & Co. before Lubbers made the tough decision to shut it down during the pandemic.
Caitlin said she has had her café in the Hart Mall for the last three years and as things started to slow down when other coffee shops came into the Hart area she knew it was time for a change.
“It just wasn’t busy enough for me up here,” Pedde said.
At first Pedde was going to have a popup in the bookstore but then she approached Lubbers with the idea of making it more permanent and he agreed.
Pedde started baking because her mom and grandmother were great bakers, she said.
“But I actually went to pastry school in Vancouver,” Pedde said.
“I lived there for almost a decade and I have been in the hospitality and food industry since I was 16. Going to pastry school really opened a lot of doors for me. The goal was to open a bed and breakfast but since then things have evolved. I worked in lots of restaurants and cafes. I love the coffee and I love the treats and I love them together.”
Everything is made from scratch Pedde said about her baked goods.
Her most popular items are her pecan sticky buns and a variety of scones.
She creates her own syrups for her specialty coffees whenever she can.
“And we actually do coffee flights and I think we’re the only place in town that does it but I could be wrong,” Pedde said.
“So we do four little mason jars and you get to pick anything off the menu you’d like to try.”
Coming back to Books & Company is full circle for Pedde.
“People are so excited the coffee shop is coming back,” Pedde said.
“But I do want people to know that it’s going to be different than Café Voltaire. There’s not going to be a kitchen. I have a commercial kitchen that I rent off-site. So there will be a little kiosk, a little barista area and lots and lots of seating.”
Along with baked goods and a variety of specialty coffees Pedde will be offering lunch items as well.
There will be some similarities between Café Voltaire and Cait’s Sweet Bites & Beanery, Pedde said.
“I have been asked for open mic nights and trivia nights so if we have more butts in seats we will absolutely do special events,” Pedde said.
“I just want to ask people to support local as much as possible. I am putting my whole heart and soul into my business. I want it to be very successful. I love to bake, I love feeding people. I love making people happy. So I just hope people come out and support and if you don’t like my stuff I know there are four other coffee shops downtown - just support local.”
Books & Company owner Owen Lubbers knows Café Voltaire was missed.
“But in food service there’s a lot to not miss,” Lubbers laughed.
“However what we lost when we closed the coffee shop was being a meeting place and a hang out and our unofficial nickname back then was Prince George’s living room. So what we missed was being the place people came to hang out and bring visitors from out of town to spend the afternoon. Now it’s time to bring it back to the way it used to be.”
Lubbers said the idea to bring back the coffee shop started pretty quickly after Café Voltaire was closed because so many people would talk about how much they missed it.
“So it was always kind of in the back of my mind,” Lubbers said. “But I also knew I didn’t want to own it and run it this time around. So I knew if it was going to work out it had to be someone coming in to run their own business. So I kept that in the back of my mind and then in November I went up to visit Caitlin and pitched the idea to her.”
They figured out pretty quickly that they could make it work.
The special events will be a welcome addition to the downtown vibe once again.
“That was another part of what made our place special before,” Lubbers said.
“We weren’t open late every night but having events in the evening typically free to the public I think contributed to being a community hub so I don’t know if we’ll launch all of that right away because we’ll need to let the dust settle from getting the coffee shop open but we know there’s a desire for it in the community.”
Caitlin is probably one of the most qualified bakers in town, he added.
"So people can expect delicious baking and food,” Lubbers said.
“And we’re excited to welcome people back into the store because that’s really what it’s all about.”
Keep checking Books and Company Facebook page for updates on when the coffee shop will open.
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