Local eatery Café at 407 unveiled its new menu and welcomed coffee-drinkers and crafters alike at its fifth anniversary celebration on Dec. 5. Community members gathered for $0.05 coffee and a “handmade market” of several Central New York artisans who shared their locally made wares.
The café was founded in 2009 as a funding source for Ophelia’s Place, an organization that supports people suffering from eating disorders and their loved ones.
Mary Ellen Clausen, executive director of Ophelia’s Place and CEO of Café at 407, said the café’s “farm-to-table” approach has been very important to its mission of living local. She said much of the café’s menu items come from local farms, such as Abbott Farms in Baldwinsville.
“The farmers we work with have been great,” Clausen said.
Clausen said the café’s new menu will cater to a variety of tastes. The anniversary specials included goat cheese crostini, beet sliders and
“We want everything to be an experience,” Clausen said. “We’ll change it throughout the year to reflect the seasons.”
Clausen said she was pleased with the turnout for the anniversary celebration.
“It’s great to see the community come out and support it. It’s an integral part to the sustainability of Ophelia’s Place,” she said.
She added that customers have played a “huge part” in spreading the mission of Ophelia’s Place of redefining beauty and health.
“Having a cup of coffee, having your meeting here … having a different conversation about health and wellness supports the work we do,” she said.
As for Café at 407’s next five years, Clausen said she’s dreaming of planting a rooftop garden and branching out into the budding world of food trucks.
“We’d love to take the food truck across the country and raise awareness [for eating disorders],” she said.
