A few tables inside Crave and Co., where you may one day enjoy homemade soup and home-brewed beer.
If you walk into Crave and Co. in downtown Harrisburg, you’ll be asked right away for your food and drink order–but you also may be asked for your signature.
Recently, owner Kristin Messner-Baker has been gathering signatures in support of a “nano-brewery,” a craft brewery that will produce no more than 1,000 gallons of beer a year.
If her effort is successful, her customers will be able to enjoy artisanal beer brewed on site in her snug café to go along with her menu of organic and vegetarian soups, sandwiches and salads.
“Harrisburg is undergoing a real Renaissance,” she said. “I think this would add to the excitement downtown.”
Tonight, Messner-Baker and her future brewer, Kristen Richards, are slated to make their case before the city’s Planning Commission, as they need a variance in order to set up a beer-making operation in the building’s basement. They also need the approval of the city’s Zoning Hearing Board.
Richards, who lives in Midtown, just blocks from Crave & Co., said that it’s been her dream to commercially produce beer, ever since she first was “bitten by the brewing bug” about 20 years ago.
She’s been active in local homebrew clubs and has entered many beer competitions, even winning the first-place prize for her pumpkin nut brown ale last fall at the Brewery at Hershey’s annual competition for home brewers.
“When people go to a bar, they ask for a craft beer menu,” said Richards. “This isn’t a fad anymore.”
Richards makes her beer in an all-in-one, automated brewing system, which she said she simply would relocate to the eatery’s basement.
That, however, may not happen for a while, even if the nano-brewery is approved this month by the city planning commission and zoning board. The empty basement must be outfitted for brewing, and the operation has to receive federal and state permissions, likely pushing its debut into early next year, said Richards.
Both Messner-Baker and Richards don’t believe that the tiny brewery will impact the immediate neighborhood, already home to several high-volume restaurants along the 600-block of N. 2nd Street. To start, Richards plans to brew just once a week.
The pair see a great fit between their products.
“We make everything with whole ingredients without sacrificing quality,” said Messner-Baker. “She has the exact same intentions with beer as we have with food.”
The women also share a love for Harrisburg and hope that the addition of a high-quality, small-batch brewery will bring more people into the city.
“We want to attract people into Harrisburg,” said Richards. “We really want to help make Harrisburg a destination point.”
Crave & Co. is located at 614 N. 2nd St., Harrisburg. www.craveandco.com
