Bakery-Cafe Coming to Edgartown Books

Big changes are on the way at Edgartown Books, beginning with a little coffee shop called, appropriately, Behind the Bookstore.

By Memorial Day, if all goes as planned, customers will be able to stroll down the brick walk to the new cafe for a cup of coffee or an espresso drink prepared in the former home of Henley's Needlepoint and Fibers.

Behind the Bookstore will also have fresh housemade pastries including scones, muffins and traditional French croissants, said cafe manager and baker Rachael Fox.

"They'll all be handmade," said Fox, who moved from Los Angeles to take the Edgartown job.

"We'll also have a selection of cold-pressed juices — a product that is healthier for you, because it hasn’t been heated in any way. It has all its enzymes and flavors as well," she continued.

The cafe's hours will be 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, Fox said. The bookstore will begin opening at 9 a.m. Memorial Day weekend.

The house  coffee brand — again, aptly named — is Intelligentsia, but Fox said she would be featuring other coffee roasters as well, including Chilmark Coffee.

"I want the community to know that we are interested in incorporating local businesses into our business model from day one," she said.

Year-round business planned

Bookstore manager Susan Mercier said this summer's incarnation of Behind the Bookstore will be strictly to-go, with outside seating available but counter service only.

Over the winter, however, the bookstore building will undergo an ambitious remodeling project — just approved by the town's cultural commission this week — that will result in a larger cafe with indoor seating and service, Mercier said.

The renovation will tear off the building's rear addition — from about where the mystery novels are located now — and rebuild it with a larger footprint for a year-round bookstore and cafe that potentially will include a meeting room for community groups.

"We really want to create a space for the community," Mercier said. "That's our goal."

The bookstore's owners, Joyce and Jeffrey Sudikoff of Los Angeles and Edgartown, have also purchased the 46 Main Street building behind Behind the Bookstore, currently the offices of attorneys , Mercier said.

That building could house the bookstore while its permanent home at 44 Main Street is being remodeled over the winter, she said. 

"Who knows what the future holds for us? But I can tell you: When we open next spring, we will be open year round," Mercier said.

What would you like to see happening at Edgartown Books and Behind the Bookstore? Tell us in the comments, and click "Keep me posted" to get an email when we publish more news about this business.

Stay Patched in! Follow Martha's Vineyard Patch on Twitter | Like Martha's Vineyard Patch on Facebook | Sign up for the daily email with links to the latest news | Got something to say? Start a blog and share your views.