More Than A Market: A Sneak Peek At Mike's Organic In Cos Cob

GREENWICH, CT — After two years of anticipation, Mike's Organic is finally opening its first retail location in Cos Cob at 600 E. Putnam Ave.

The official opening will be on April 29, but owner Mike Geller provided a special sneak peek inside the 2,000 square-foot space on Thursday evening.

"We're incredibly excited and very grateful to be able to open up something for the town, the community, our farmers, and all of our great customers. It's a very happy day for us," Geller told Patch.

A small-format grocery store with a big impact, the brand’s mission is to reinvent shopping through careful curation and interactive experiences that connect the community with their food and the people behind it.

Mike's Organic sources fresh local produce, pastured meats and eggs, grass-fed dairy, wild fish, pantry selections, local baked goods, vegan and gluten-free options and more.

Customers can find a streamlined shopping experience. Knowledgeable and passionate staff serve as tour guides for shoppers along their journey, offering samples, meal tips and insight into the sourcing of products.

"We support hundreds of small local farmers, artisans, and producers. The whole business is really predicated upon supporting local agriculture, so when people come here they can find incredible products that they probably won't see in other stores," Geller said. "It's a really different way to shop. It's kind of like the treasure hunt model where you come in, you discover something new, you meet a farmer and get to try something delicious."

Customers can also find a selection of ready-to-eat prepared foods from the Made By Mike's line, fresh from the kitchen.

Breakfast items include options like chocolate overnight oats, vegan parfaits and egg white/spinach wraps. Lunch and dinner options include freshly made seasonal salads and soups, glazed Ora King salmon, eggplant parmesan and grilled seasonal veggies.

Featured kids items are dishes like pastured chicken tenders, turkey meatballs and mac and cheese.

The market will also feature a variety of freshly prepared local offerings, like sushi made fresh daily by Hinoki (Greenwich Avenue) or fresh baguettes from Raphael’s Bakery (Mason Street). Outdoor seating is available to enjoy a bite.

Connecting people with the food they eat is an important pillar of Mike's Organic, Geller explained.

"The whole premise of our industrial agricultural system is to distance people from their food. You're lucky to know the country it comes from, let alone the farmer, what's on it, what's in it. Our whole business is predicated upon transparency and authenticity," Geller said. "The saying we use all the time here is, 'We don't sell food, we tell stories,' and those stories are of the people who grow, raise, catch or make the food."

In 2009, Geller, a lifelong Greenwich resident, launched Mike's Organic as one of the first farm-to-home delivery services in America.

What began as a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) delivery business grew into an online farmers market servicing Fairfield and Westchester Counties. In 2019, Mike’s Organic opened a storefront out of its delivery headquarters in Stamford.

In 2021, the Cos Cob retail location on West Putnam Avenue was announced after the Patio.com brick and mortar location closed.

"Everyone in Greenwich has been waiting for such a long time for the opening of Mike's Organic," said Greenwich Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Marcia O'Kane during Thursday's sneak peek event. "I think this is going to re-energize this whole area of town, and certainly get a lot of people here. It's just part of Cos Cob being the food mini capital of Greenwich."

Mike's Organic is hosting several events this weekend to celebrate their grand opening, although the schedule is subject to change depending on the weather.

The current schedule is as follows:

Saturday, April 29

• Visit farmer Sheila Patinkin from VT Wagyu and meet her Wagyu calves
• Bring the kids to plant seedlings to take home from Gilbertie’s Farm (Easton, CT)
• Enjoy complimentary: baguette samples from Raphael’s Bakery Greenwich; cold brew coffee from Rise Brewing Company; artisanal charcuterie from Hudson Valley producer Jacuterie; small-batch waffles from Lopaus Point
• Take home complimentary Get Joy dog treats for your furry friends
• Grab some hot breakfast and lunch from Mike’s Outdoor Mobile Kitchen

Sunday, April 30

• Check out an observation hive buzzing with honeybees in action and sample local, raw honey from Beekeeper Ray Dubois of Bee Love Apiaries (Wilton, CT)
• Enjoy complimentary: cookies by REAL Cookies - the best healthy cookies around; popcorn from LesserEvil, sustainably sourced coffee + chocolate from GoodSAM; locally brewed kombucha by Cross Culture Kombucha
• Take home complimentary Get Joy dog treats for your furry friends
• Grab some hot breakfast and lunch from Mike’s Outdoor Mobile Kitchen