House Blend Coffeehouse Franchises Mixes Well With Baked-goods Eatery In The Plaza Towers Area Of Downtown Grand Rapids.

GRAND RAPIDS (Saturday, May 01, 2004) - The aroma of brewing gourmet coffees and freshly baked breads and pastries greets visitors to a new restaurant at 247 W. Fulton St.

It's A Grind franchise has formed a partnership with the Urban Mill Bread Co. to open the Urban Mill Café/It's A Grind Coffeehouse at a site formerly occupied by Market Bella Vita, which closed almost two years ago.

Located next to Kinko's copy store and behind Plaza Towers and the Marriott Hotel, the restaurant had a quiet opening this week to get ready for a grand opening next Friday and Saturday.

Franchise owners Brent Lohrmann and Steve VanErmen have been working for several months with Urban Mill Bread owner Chad Hoffman to expand and combine the two businesses.

Based in Long Beach, Calif., the It's A Grind franchise is the first in Michigan. Five locations are planned, including in the Urban Mill Bread store at Knapp's Corner on the East Beltline Avenue NE. That expansion is expected to be completed early next year.

The restaurant features Urban Mill Bread products, all baked on the premises, a deli with sandwiches, soups and salads and a variety of espresso coffees, teas, blended ice drinks and fountain sodas. Breakfast and lunch catering service is available to downtown businesses.

Matt and Holly Lehman are partners with Hoffman on the deli side of the business.

Hoffman's stone-milled breads and all-natural ingredients are well known in the area, with his products available in 22 Meijer store, the B.O.B. restaurant and several other retail and grocery outlets.

"I was really impressed with the It's A Grind franchise program and the unique way we could co-brand the baked goods and coffee," Hoffman said. "We combined that with a deli/café to create a destination spot for our customers. We've had lines every day since we opened."

With seating for about 70 patrons, the restaurant was designed to evoke a cozy atmosphere through the use of overstuffed chairs, natural slate flooring and a fireplace. There also is an area with free, high-speed Internet connections to hook up a laptop computer for online work.

Owners said they are not worried about the short-lived success of past deli/grocery businesses in that location, including the Eastbank Festival Market.

"We feel that combining the coffeehouse and bakery has an attractive flavor and we'll be a welcomed tenant here," Lohrmann said. "We'll draw from (Grand Valley State University), the 300 apartments and condos above us, Kinko's and all the other hotels and businesses around us."

The restaurant has 15 employees and is open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 6 a.m. to11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

View all It's A Grind Coffee House Press Releases

This article has been read 295 times.

Printer Friendly