We talked to: Casey and Kyle of Nourish Wellness Cafe

We recently had a great conversation with Casey and Kyle of Nourish Wellness Cafe! Learn more about the past, present, and future of this welcoming and delicious business. (Hint: they are growing!)

Could you tell us more about Nourish Wellness Cafe--how it began and how it has evolved?

This September will be the 10th year since Nourish opened. It previously opened in Thornes in 2015, then moved to the current location on Bridge Street in 2016. I was working there for a while before starting to manage the restaurant in 2020. Then, on 2/22/22, I took over ownership. Since then, we’ve really been growing and becoming busier, which led to us thinking of expanding. People ask for new menu items and we’re always excited to receive feedback and to test new things out. Now that we're about to open our second location in the Eastworks building in Easthampton, we’re planning to keep the same menu, but add a full espresso bar so people can get their coffee fix on a daily basis as well!

What do you appreciate about having a business in downtown Northampton?

We love the community here. Everyone is so locally-focused, supporting nearby farms and other businesses. A huge part of our mission is to source the majority of our ingredients from local farms/businesses—we’re always trying to get food that’s as close as possible so it’s at peak freshness. We’ve gotten so much support in Northampton and people really want us to succeed.

As time goes on, more and more people develop food allergies and we love being able to cater to their needs with a clean menu that doesn’t contain much sugar or any seed oils. People don’t realize how much seed oil they are consuming every single day and how it can contribute to illnesses. We recently did a deep dive into testing different brands of oatmilk to find one that does not contain any seed oil and still tastes great. We love our loyal, sweet customers and we are committed to giving them the best possible additive-free food and drink offerings in both locations.

What are some of your current best-selling food/drink items?

Both our Squash Bowl and Harvest Bowl are super popular. There’s also a huge demand for keeping lentil stew on the menu at all times, so we make huge batches of that weekly. The Daily Greens smoothie is another go-to for many people. It consists of banana, kale, juiced apple and lemon, almond butter, ginger, and house-made coconut milk.

We also recently got rid of our nitro cold brew and kombucha on tap and are switching to espresso with an espresso machine we bought from The Roost as they were closing. People have been requesting espresso for a while now, so we’re very excited to be able to offer organic espresso and be another go-to spot for a morning/afternoon coffee! We are also envisioning people regularly enjoying cozy drinks when the weather turns cold again, especially since business can be a bit slower in the winter months.

Another exciting new machine that will be in the Eastworks cafe is a cold press juicer, which will allow us to bottle juices and wellness shots. These will be part of our “grab and go” offerings and will make it easy for people who are in a rush to enjoy their favorite fresh juices without the wait.

Anything else you’d like to share about the business, including about the second location in Easthampton?

We are just thrilled to be opening the new space and filling a gap when it comes to fresh food and coffee offerings in Eastworks. We’ll be on the first floor, near the RMV and The Lift salon, so we expect to get a good amount of foot traffic. We’re still so beyond grateful that we were able to hold a fundraiser and raise $20K—this is an enormous part of being able to make this new space happen, especially since the new space was not turn-key and needed everything from electrical to plumbing done.

Kyle and I are just so grateful to our community for showing up and supporting us both financially and as cheerleaders! We see the type of food we’re providing as preventing people from spending more money in the long-run on chronic health issues. As a business owner, we often have to make tough decisions when it comes to pricing, ingredient availability, and giving our customers what they want. But at the end of the day, we’re committed to making our cafes safe and welcoming [nbsp]spaces where people can order a healthy meal, snack, or drink and leave feeling good about what they just ate or drank. We’ll often have people lick their bowls clean because they enjoyed it that much. We love being a place that’s putting out good vibes and getting them back in return.

What’s your current favorite food or beverage at Nourish?

Casey: My current favorite is the Squash Bowl, which consists of butternut mash that’s steamed and seasoned, massaged kale, shredded red cabbage, avocado, pumpkin seeds, cashew ginger dressing, and black beans. We cook up pots and pots of squash! On average, we go through 200 pounds of squash per week.

Kyle: I love the Coffee Cacao Smoothie. It's filling and great for coffee lovers. It consists of house-made cold brew with YUP Coffee Roasters' coffee—they roast the beans fresh for us on Thursdays, which is amazing.