“The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry,” wrote Scottish poet, Robert Burns, centuries ago.
And such was the case for the “case” ahead. This blog or some variation like it was to run exactly two years ago to the day. It has been changed, updated and is now even more to the point since the pandemic sidelined the original blog on March 13, 2020.
Elementary Coffee Co. had opened its doors a mere six months before to standing-room-only crowds, and, for 3rd in The Burg Fridays, patrons spilled out onto the city blocks surrounding it. We could not even get close to the “scene.” My trusted friend and constant companion, Dr. Watson (actually my photographer and wife, Jana) and I wanted to track down the mystery and allure of Elementary. All we had to do was follow our noses to 256 and its North Street headquarters. It’s a café that beckons early morning “need my caffeine-ers” until it closes at 3 p.m., all seven days of the week. And that is just one of many reasons why Elementary stands apart from the pack.
When life handed owner Andrea Grove lemons, she felt it was time to expand every aspect of what goes in to brewing a superlative cup of Joe. Having to close its physical building for some time proved to be a challenge. Andrea shared from the heart, “The team was headed home to their own corners of the city, and the key was how to keep that Elementary spirit going.”
Elementary videos provided tutorials on a wide array of coffee-related topics, from home-brewed methods to stove kettle brewing to the variations in grinders. Using those videos as a jumping off point led to options beyond beverages. A new series encompassed interviews with city personalities represented from every field. Even City Council candidates were part of the process. This blog is as much about the human spirit as it is about anything else. It is defined by the perseverance and resilience that one person holds within, demonstrating the wherewithal that Andrea embodies in overcoming obstacles. In other words, there would be no art without the heart at Elementary.
Back in November 2019, when Elementary Coffee opened, art was one of the many components offered, highlighting local artists and their creations. With guest artists changing the scenery within on a regular basis, the art makes for great conversation and is much more than just a pretty face. The art has resurfaced now that the café is back in full swing.
Recently, Luis Cuevas brought his recycled materials fantasy masks to its walls. Currently, Michael Julian D’Ambrosio, abstract expressionist painter, offers explosions of ideas, ink blots of colors left for exploration, explanation and interpretation. Describing his art, Ambrosio states “working in layers of paint, time and space…in acrylic and ink and water color and ink that speak to nature and the human form. The paintings reflect chaos as well as an organized sense of space with a residue of mark making, serving as a time line and a visual map of memory.”
Looking back to that March two years ago, Andrea learned the importance of taking service to the next level through product innovation and commitment to her customers. Delivery to the customers’ doors may be her best marketing plan yet. It’s a service that is hard to beat. Andrea spoke to its coffee continuum.
“Talking to people over coffee is truly what makes the world go round which gets smaller by the moment,” she said.
As for us, Watson was hankering for a cup of their Teapigs Chi tea, while I recalled a quote from Sherlock Holmes: “It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important.”
Just ask Andrea Grove about the little things; they all add up to success. And she is the first to acknowledge the operation is percolated to perfection due to the team at North Street and The Broad Street Market outpost, brewing on all four burners. After all, it’s Elementary.
Art March Events of Note
Arts on the Square at Market Square Presbyterian Church features the work of Beth Hager as one of its 3rd in the Burg highlights this Friday, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., and again on Sunday, March 20, from noon to 1:30 p.m. Beth is an accomplished photographer as well as the museum director for the State Museum of Pennsylvania. Works on paper, canvas and glass speak to her diversity-capturing images that “tell a story which allow for an appreciation of the commonplace.” In addition, Kari Hultman, craftswoman extraordinaire, will showcase exquisite examples of woodworking, leather making and miniature houses with her wares. The church provides parking in the Market Square garage by entering the church at 20 S. 2nd St. from the garage’s first level.
March Madness at the Art Association of Harrisburg runs through March 31. No basketball but an incredible art show, and you would be mad if you missed it. Probably as mad as a March hare. Artists Pamela J. Black and Jessie Waite bookend their amazing paintings around the potent and powerful photography of Ashley Moog Bowlsbey. Black and Waite manipulate proportion and color in their own stylized manners. Bowlsbey creates a genre by photographing models and friends swathed in used makeup remover pads. The sensation is heightened to a hypnotic state in her visual presentation as the resultant photographs are two-dimensional in scope and scintillation. Bowlsbey’s works prove that true beauty goes well beyond skin deep as the audience peels away the layers in its mind.
Wearin’ O’ the Green through March 26 at 126 East King Street in York. No need to be green with envy, there is still time to catch the HIVE artspace latest exhibit for the month, aptly named “Shades of Green.” Owner Susan Scofield waxed enthusiastically about the pot o’ gold artists represented that include Jen Simon, Mark Broomell, Andrew Smith, Michael Hower, Charlie Hubbard and Kelly Nevin.
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