Joe Desjardins and his wife Jodi stand in the Country Crumb bakery and cafe they opened last month. It is located on Third Street SE downtown.--NEWS PHOTO
A local bakery that opened downtown in December is already expanding.
The owners of Country Crumb bakery and cafe, located across the road from CORE Association on Third Street SE, say what sets them apart from others is they’re a home-style bakery rather than a commercial one. It is about home baked flavour.
“People appreciate something really delicious,” said Joe Desjardins. He says it is gratifying as an owner to receive that feedback from customers.
On Friday morning in the kitchen on site, his wife Jodi was making a special order of vanilla cupcakes with a shortcake icing and Joe was getting baking powder biscuits ready for the oven.
If you’re wondering why a couple would start a new business in December when COVID restrictions were already in place, they say it’s quite simple. They missed the restaurant they used to own in Innisfail and were itching to get back into the business.
For 12 years they owned and operated The Coffee Cottage in Innisfail. They missed the customer base that had felt like family. The pandemic also saw them looking around for a new place to live with more opportunities for their children.
“Medicine Hat is a big, small town,” said Jodi. “It’s the nicest, greenest and cleanest city.”
Joe says when they first started The Coffee Cottage it was a lot about treats and coffee. They slowly expanded the menu as customers expressed an interest in something more.
Lined up on shelves, in the sparkling premises of Country Crumb in Medicine Hat, there are loaves of bread, buns, cakes and treats, but there is also a cooler with home-style soups and a range of specialty coffees.
Currently the tables and chairs in the cafe cannot be used but there is plenty to take away. A soon as weather permits the Desjardins hope to have an outdoor patio as well.
Jodi says the walk-in traffic has been steady since they opened on Dec. 18. Joe is bursting with enthusiasm for plans to enlarge the kitchen and with this in mind has already leased additional space linked to the shop. There are also plans to hire a couple of staff.
Jodie says their choice to have Country Crumb downtown is because it is “the hub of the community,” where the character of the city lies and where they are hoping more and more Hatters will soon congregate.
