Hello, Joe here from Charlevoix, Michigan, though I've lived much of my life in NYC.
I will be opening a bakery, cafe and coffee bar in Spring of 2020. We recently completed a trial run between summer seasons.
I am a doctoral psychotherapist, ordained Interfaith minister and chef/baker. I am retiring from the first two and focusing almost exclusively on the latter.
Even though I am older, I am hoping to find a mentor or even an accountability partner with whom I can learn and share, especially as it relates to bread and pastry.
If this strikes a chord within you, please contact me!
famous baker, author, teacher Peter Reinhart has 3 books on the spiritual aspects of baking and cafes that might interest you. Your background as therapist/minister immediately brought him and these three books of his to mind.
Sacramental Magic In A Small-town Cafe: Recipes And Stories From Brother Juniper's Cafe. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201622599?tag=froglallabout-20
Bread Upon the Waters. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0738201839?tag=froglallabout-20
Brother Juniper's Bread Book: Slow Rise As Method and Metaphor. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0201570769?tag=froglallabout-20
Those books are old enough that you can get them for very low prices on the used market at Amazon, like around $2 plus s/h.
Thank you for the suggestions! I appreciate your thoughtfulness and look forward to reading them.
That's a pretty small town. Are there enough tourists year round to support a cafe/bakery? Do you plan a baking volume large enough to ship artisan bread to the ski resorts?
That's cool that you did a trial run between summer seasons.
(I remember skiing at nearby Boyne Mountain and Boyne Highlands many moons ago.)