When Jackie and Stephen Sanders made changes at CooperElla this winter, they did more than simply change the name of their Maplewood coffee shop to Artisan Caffé. The proprietors wanted to transform the moms-with-toddlers hangout into a more upscale, artsy gathering place, so they brought in chef Steven Baumgartner to create a menu featuring bakery items, sandwiches, soups, salads and other standard café items but used fresh, local, organic and gluten-free products. This week, more changes are debuting at Artisan Caffé; most notably, a switch from counter to table service. Why the change? “The better to serve you,” replied Baumgartner. “We want to make our establishment a little more streamlined so you don’t have to wait in line to order. And if all you want is a coffee to-go, you don’t have to wait behind a dine-in customer who can’t figure out what to order.”
Other changes include a new spring menu, new hours, live music on both Friday and Saturday evenings, a 5 to 7 p.m. happy hour that runs Tuesday through Saturday, and events such as wine tastings, movie nights and open mic nights.
– Ligaya Figueras
This article appears in Apr 1-30, 2010.