Great Barrington — The Chatter Box Café will open on Monday, May 5, at the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 8348, located at 800 South Main Street.
The café will be open every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, from 7 to 11 a.m. All sale proceeds will benefit Post 8348, along with its programs to assist local veterans. The café will be operated by volunteers from the Friends of VFW group.
The 3 Sisters Harvest Café previously operated from the Chatter Box Café location. ”While the Friends of VFW were planning the Memorial Day parade, it came up in conversation [with other Friends of VFW group members] to try to do the café again,” said group member Nadine Foster. “There are 10 members from our group who are volunteering to work at this café, and we are doing what we can to support our veterans. This is also one of the ways we are revitalizing the VFW property.”
”Our group has organized several events this year that helped raise money and bring people together,” said group member Jeremy Thompson, who will be one of the cooks at the café when it opens, along with David Gidlon. ”We are all finding ways to bring people together,” Thompson said. “We will have a variety of breakfast sandwiches that people can either sit and enjoy or grab and go if they are coming through. The café will also have pancakes, eggs, and fries. If you want to sit down and eat, or if you want to grab something and go, we have you covered.”
”People want to go somewhere where they can grab an affordable breakfast,” Foster said. “We all know how challenging it is to go out for breakfast, lunch, or dinner with a family today. Our prices are $9 or under, so we think that will be pretty reasonable for customers.”
Foster said the name “Chatter Box café” came easily to the group. ”Because the café is all about coffee, conversation, and bringing people in the community together,” Foster said. “This will be a place that will have a nice and relaxing type of atmosphere.”
Foster added that the café is cash only for now. ”But we are looking into getting [credit and debit card] devices, and we have an ATM in the building,” Foster said. “We hope that people will come out to support us. We want everyone in the community to come out to the café, including adults and children.”
Foster added that other members of the group include Liz Shaker and Terry Chamberland.
For more information about Chatter Box Café, email nfoster1954@gmail.com.
