St. Joseph Coffee Shop Boosts Other Area Businesses

ST. JOSEPH — At The Local Blend, drinks tell local stories, including honey sourced from former employees, locally roasted coffee beans, and baked goods made just a few miles away.

When you walk into The Local Blend in downtown St. Joseph, you’re immediately greeted by the aromatic aroma of coffee beans roasted by St. Cloud-based Muggsy’s Beans.

There’s also a bakery case filled with items from St. Cloud-based Backwards Bread Co. and The Local Blend’s in-house kitchen and bakery.

Some of these partnerships had already been established by the former owners of the business, then known as The Meeting Ground, before Stacey Stone purchased the building and renamed it in 2008.

“We continued to leverage (these partnerships), just the people in the community that I met or the people that worked here,” Stone said. “The person we use to get our honey, she worked here. The people we get our syrup from are right down the road on County Road 50. .”

More than that, The Local Blend includes humorous and thoughtful greeting cards from St. Joseph-based Bruno Press, handmade art from St. Joseph artist Joel Cherico Pottery, or art from local artists. Other local small businesses are also being elevated, such as Work. wall.

“We try to do everything locally as much as possible. That’s very important to us,” manager Astra Seitz said. “[Stacey Stone]lives her life according to that model.”

By fostering these partnerships, The Local Blend has become a hub for the St. Joseph community and students from St. John’s and St. Benedict’s colleges.

“They all seem to appreciate high-quality products, like good coffee and good baked goods,” Stone says.

The coffee shop’s partnership with Backwards Bread Co. dates back to when the bakery was known as Collegeville Artisan Bakery. Seitz said the partnership with the bakery’s famous almond croissants, breads and bagels continues.

Local Blend also boasts an in-house bakery.

Seitz said one of her products, round, shareable scones, became popular after Stone introduced her business.

“It’s cut into a pie shape, so it’s easy to make by just pulling it apart,” Seitz says. “People love them. It’s something new that we haven’t seen anywhere else, so it’s very exciting.”

The Local Blend’s in-house bakery also makes cookies, muffins, quiches, soups, pizza dough, and crackers.

But Seitz said the coffee shop’s bakery display has changed a bit over the years.

“Before the[COVID-19]pandemic, we were eating cake along with regular muffins, cookies, etc. During the pandemic and beyond, we were eating to-go sandwiches, to-go salads, quarts of soup, We’ve had success selling things like salad dressings,” Seitz said. “That’s probably the biggest change.”

The Local Blend has also tweaked its offerings, including canceling live music and open mic nights.

“COVID-19 kind of put an end to that,” Stone said. “Then we couldn’t find the staff to stay open until 10 p.m. History has proven that not many people want to go out at night and have a cup of coffee and listen to music. ”

Recently, The Local Blend expanded to include a mobile coffee truck. Stone said she found it while scrolling through Facebook Marketplace.

It was something she had wanted to buy for the store since she bought the company in 2008.

Stone purchased the trailer, which was unveiled during Hutchinson’s Minnesota Garlic Festival in August of this year.

“It’s a lot of fun because you get to get out and at least see your immediate area. You might also meet new people and see what else is going on there. No,” Stone said.

Although Jitterbug doesn’t offer as many different flavors as the St. Joseph location, Stone said they can make espresso drinks, chai tea, smoothies, hot chocolate and blended drinks.

Looking to the future of The Local Blend, Stone said she is focused on increasing the number of events she and Jitterbug participate in.

More is planned for the St. Joseph store, she said.

“We’ve got to do more remodeling behind the bars. There’s always fixing and remodeling,” Stone said. “We still have to finish the painting and the new menu. We hope to work on the menu a lot this winter and come up with some fun new sandwiches.”