Sam Stephen and her mother Joyce (Coady) greet customers on opening day in Amesbury.
They had the training to open a spa and the eye for a good location. Toss in a talented family member and somehow it all turns into owning and operating two area coffee shops, one of which recently opened in the old Amesbury train station.
Back in 2004, Sam Stephen and her mother Joyce (Coady) had finished the training required to open a spa. But where to locate?
“Sam was taking a shortcut (in Newburyport) along the waterfront between Michael’s and the Black Cow and spotted a Space Available sign next to Hilton’s,” recalled Joyce. “She took a look at the space, called me, and told me that she had found a space but it wasn’t for a spa.”
What Joyce found needed all the help the two of them could give it but, “It did have a little window on the water side and the light was just hitting it.” For Joyce that clinched the idea that this was a space worth having.
The big question was, if not a spa, what should they do there? One call that Joyce made was to her son Rob. “He suggested that we do coffee since he was already in that business and could help.”
So began nearly nine months of renovations and the Plum Island Coffee Roasters opened on the Newburyport waterfront on March 1, 2005. “Sam lived on Plum Island for a long time and loved it there so that’s where that part of the name came from,” Joyce told me.
Now nearly four years later they have opened up a second Plum Island Coffee Roasters.
Why a second one? “Our spot on the Newburyport waterfront is tenuous, at best,” explained Joyce. Billionaire Stephen Karp now owns the waterfront property and his plans are a mystery. “We do know that our building will be the first one to come down.”
Concern for their future led Joyce/Sam to Amesbury and the former J Bucks Expresso and Wine Bar (address is Elm Street but the front door faces Water Street). “We started renting in December 2008 and were pleased by how little needed to be done before we opened,” said Joyce.
Again, son Rob was involved. He is the president and founder of a company called, Coffee Solutions. A check of their website will quickly reveal the expertise he brings. Let me put his expertise another way, try to imagine having Bill Belichick available to help you draft and manage your 2009 fantasy football team! “We’re the only people he actually roasts for,” said his mom. “It gives us a real niche as far as what we get in quality.”
The shop opened in late February and its hours are currently 6:30AM – 6PM. Joyce/Sam hope to have a liquor license in two or three months and then the hours will expand.
“During the daytime we’ll be a coffee house like the one in Newburyport,” said Sam.
For the coffee connoisseur 23 different coffees are available. “Even if we’re not brewing what they want they can get their coffee here in a French press,” said Joyce. “We’ll make it for them.”
“We’re sure that the average coffee drinker will like our light roast,” added Joyce.
“At night we’ll become more of a wine bar,” Sam explained. “This will be an on-your-way-home place and provide the alternative to a big meal.”
“We have put together an impressive staff,” said Sam. “We had fifty people come to an open interview. The core of five that we hired all has restaurant experience.”
A cozy setting, skilled staff, and a variety of coffee flavors await visitors to Amesbury’s Plum Island Coffee Roasters.
( Prepared to appear in The Town Common on March 11th. )
McClelland Miscellanea 