Whimsy Tea Company has released its fall menu, which includes soups and sandwiches in addition to the drinks and sweet treats for which the downtown business originally became known.
Gordon Davis, who co-owns the business with his wife, Laura, said a menu expansion had been in the works for a while but the June 19 fire on Adams Street spurred them to finalize plans.
“We’d be working on it for a year, and we’ve had the kitchen equipment,” Davis said. “I went and got the licensure from the health department last fall. It was just getting the logistics in place.”
Davis said the downtown fire had a huge impact on many of the surrounding businesses, even those that weren’t directly impacted by the flames or smoke.
“Without (Café) Moxo there as an anchor, we knew our foot traffic was really going to suffer,” he said. “Plus, you’ve got Adams Street blocked off, and then moving the farmers market a block away across the tracks has had a big impact. Our sales have been down 70%-90%. The fire spurred us to get going. We knew there were going to be a lot of people hungry downtown without Moxo there.”
Davis said the soup menu varies but currently includes Tuscan chicken, chicken and dumpling, a vegetarian-friendly tomato bisque and a vegan autumn harvest soup.
Sandwiches, which can also be prepared as salads for a gluten-free option, include “elevated” chicken salad, a Reubenesque panini, an autumn market sandwich with seasonal vegetables, turkey and truffle cheese spread, and a fall roast sandwich that includes roast beef, ham, maple bourbon barbeque sauce and muenster cheese.
“So far it’s been great,” Davis said. “We hear comments to the effect that the chicken salad changes people’s lives. Our goal is just to get people downtown.”
This article appears in Real Estate Review Fall 2024.