My Kind of Shopping

 

We have been missing our former neighbors, the Titus and Lillian Beachy family; missed not only for the produce market and discount food store, but for themselves as individuals.

When the local Beachy congregation found it necessary to divide, this family was one of several who 'drew lots' that required relocating. [This is beyond my understanding.]

New ownership of the local venue didn't work out and we've had updates as to the Beachy's plans for a store in their new location.

We had no idea of the scope of their fresh start!

The new location is nearly an hour away, no popping in for a bag of sugar or a brick of cheese to finish a recipe.

The new store opened last week and we had word of that yesterday. 

We notified G. and M. that we were headed there and they decided to make the trip also--a shorter back road distance from their home.

The new venue, named 'The Village Cache' was a surprise both in scale, layout and stock.

We were among the earliest customers of the day--the smiles of greeting were wonderful to see.

We spent several hours--and a considerable bit of money--shopping and familiarizing ourselves with the new store.

Deli counter where custom sandwiches are ordered and served.

The head of one aisle with the case for bulk meats and cheeses in the background.

I appreciate the many hours dedicated to weighing, measuring, packaging and labeling bulk spices and baking supplies, all arranged on labeled shelves.

The front view of the store [Gina's photo] that is Gina and neighbor T. standing in front.

[photo credit, Gina]

A view into the beautifully arranged commercial kitchen. This area is off-limits to customers, but since we were early arrivals Lillian invited me in for a tour.

At their old venue all the weighing and packaging of bulk goods had to be done in the farmhouse kitchen for reasons of cleanliness. 

Lillian and her daughters are delighted with the comparative ease of accomplishing this in the airy space with polished counters and fine lighting. 

As the business grows, bread and other baked goods will be for sale daily.

[photo credit, Gina]

We were ordering sandwiches to go--J. usually responds well to the command 'smile'--I prefer to duck photo ops.

The Beachys have had limited time to devote to a personal veg garden this year, so J. picked a dozen or more of his fresh cucumbers to present to them. In turn, we were each given a free soft ice cream!

I encourage local thrift-minded shoppers to made the trip to The Village Cache.

Those bakers who make bread and other goodies will be pleased with the large selection of flours, grains and various pantry staples.

Flour can be purchased by the 50# sack [my choice] or in lesser amounts.

There are gluten-free options.

We have always kept a well-stocked pantry. It has made sense for us considering the fluctuations of income that have been part of J. being self-employed.

Yesterday's hefty purchases made the rearrangement of our pantry a priority--a task over which I'd been procrastinating!

Our freezer is full, pantry shelves are stocked, the garden is producing more than we can consume. 

We are eating well!

Lillian asked that I post an image of the notices on the front door.

Several attempts with camera and phone didn't yield a photo without glare, but you can get the idea.