Image courtesy of Sugar & Twine
[Update: As of Nov. 5, Sugar & Twine is now open! Go eat some sweets.]
Carytown's Capital Coffee & Desserts has a brand new bag, or at least a new owner, menu and name. The coffee spot, which opened in 2007, was purchased on Aug. 1 by Beth Oristian, who'll be closing up the shop after the UCI World Championships Races and reopening it under its new moniker, Sugar & Twine.
"I really wanted to have the first month to six weeks to see how things go, especially in Carytown," says Oristian. "I have [hired] all the [original] staff and added team members. We are going to close after the race, rebrand and renovate. Our goal is to only be closed two weeks.”
Oristian recently launched a Kickstarter to raise funds for some of the upcoming renovation costs, and expects to be fully open as Sugar and Twine by the end of October. The menu makeover will offer sweet and savory baked goods like cakes, cookies, muffins and danishes along with biscuits, focaccia and dinner rolls. (Don’t fret, regulars! Sugar & Twine will keep Capital Coffee’s cheddar biscuits recipe in its rotation.) Also, expect hand pies, those sweet fruit turnovers of all our dreams. The coffee program will be simple and solid with lattes, cappuccinos, espresso and macchiatos, featuring locally roasted beans from Trager Brothers Coffee of Lovingston, Virginia.
Oristian, a transplant from Portland, Oregon, worked with Kim Boyce, a former pastry chef at Spago and Campanile, at her whole-grain PNW bakery, Bakeshop. After moving to Richmond, Oristian camped in the kitchen, helping Billy Fallen of Billy Bread. The two threw around opening a spot in Williamsburg while Oristian supplied pastries for The Daily Kitchen in Carytown, but once she became familiar with the area, she decided she wanted to bring her craft to a space of her own, and approached Capital Coffee with an offer.
“I love our local coffee scene, it is fantastic," she shares. "I, also, like the idea of bringing more great products to Richmond. Their coffee is a great pairing to my pastry style. I am a butter girl. There is 100 percent butter in my pie dough, no shortening. We will hand-laminate our pastries.”
Why Carytown? Oristian points to the sense of community and spirit of the neighborhood, and lauds the successful independently-owned shops in the area. Sugar & Twine, she hopes, will compliment those existing spots sweetly.
Capital Coffee & Desserts is located at 2928 W. Cary St. This business will close after the UCI World Championships Races, and reopen as Sugar & Twine near the end of October.
