New Cafe Returns to its Roots

By Kellyn McNamara

People are buzzing about Roots Cafe, a new bistro on West Gay Street that opened last July. On the surface, Roots is a cozy stop for breakfast and lunch, with everyday favorites, delicious daily specials, homemade soups, sauces, and sides. But something bigger is going on at Roots: they’re building a model for sustainability that may be the wave of the future for food service.

On Monday, March 26, 2012, students from the WCU Food Lab visited Roots for a talk and cooking class with Head Chef and co-owner, Dan Cellucci. It was a tight fit, but the class of 20+ students listened intently as Dan described how Roots started, their current practices, and plans for the future.

Roots Café essentially sprouted out of nowhere. According to the owners, the whole process was very spontaneous. “I was actually surfing Craig’s List late one night after work. I saw that Nick’s Café was up for sale, and thought it wouldn’t hurt to inquire the next morning. That set in motion me taking over about a month later,” Dan said. As the team started researching more options, all the pieces fell into place. “When I told my co-workers we were opening a café, they thought we were crazy!” Roots Café co-owner, and Dan’s fiancée, Keyana explained.

The idea for Roots may have been spontaneous, but the daily routine is well-grounded.

“Our philosophy is sustainability and supporting local farmers,” Dan explained.To that effect, Roots carefully selects its products. Everything from produce to meat, bread to honey – even the biodegradable to-go containers and cutlery are chosen with sustainability and organics in mind.“It’s 24/7. Everyday, running to a different farm. But you build personal relationships with the farmers, and it gets easier,” Dan said.

Recently, Roots has teamed up with West Chester’s own Thornbury Farms CSA program. Dan explained, “You buy shares, which allow the farmer to buy seeds, or to pay farm hands to help harvest. You’re rolling the dice a little bit, hoping for a good grow season, but it builds community and allows that farm to do better… by providing financial support.

”Organics are another cornerstone of the Roots Café philosophy. “[Organic farming] is good because you can farm the same land for a long, long time – not like some methods.” Commercial farming uses so many chemicals – fertilizers and pesticides – to ensure a bountiful harvest that, after a while, the soil becomes toxic. Growing food from toxic soil is not only hazardous to our ecosystem, but also our health, and the health of future generations. Plus, “without pesticides, it just tastes better!” Dan adds.

Roots is still evolving. “It’s a work in progress,” Dan explains. “Someday, [Roots] would like to use all local and organic products, but it’s tough.” During the spring and summer, Oak Shade Cheese, an Amish creamery out of Lancaster, provided Roots with homemade cheeses through the West Chester Grower’s Market. But in the winter, it’s too cold for the horse-and-buggy producers to travel. Last winter, Roots had to supplement their cheese with commercial distributor US Foods. Still, with less than a year under its belt, Roots has made significant strides toward a working model for local, sustainable food service.

Dan left us with a recipe for homemade mayonnaise.

“It’s really simple… one egg yolk to one cup of oil.” First, Dan separated the egg yolk into a bowl. Then, he slowly whisked in canola oil, adding air. The egg and oil began to emulsify, and the familiar mayo texture began to emerge. I watched in amazement as something that, until now, I thought could only be purchased in jars from a supermarket, was made in less than five minutes, using only two common household ingredients.

Dan also explained how you can spice up mayo by infusing oils. “You can infuse oils with anything – herbs, peppers, spices.” For a spicy mayo, you can pour a cup of oil into a jar with a few chili peppers, and let it sit for a few days. The oil will take on the flavor of the chili peppers, and you can use that oil to make your mayonnaise.

The first thing I did when I arrived home was grab a friend and make a batch of mayo. Within five minutes we had fresh, delicious mayonnaise without dyes or preservatives. We paired the mayo with homemade, sweet potato French fries, and, from the first taste, agreed that it was the best we’d ever had.

Roots Cafe is located at 8 W. Gay Street, West Chester, PA 19380, right across the street from Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant. They are open Monday through Wednesday, 7 am to 3 pm; Thursday and Friday, 7 am to 6 pm; Saturday, 8 am to 4 pm; and Sunday 8 am to 3 pm. They are reachable by phone at (484) 887-8290. Find out more about their sustainable, local mission HERE. Make sure you LIKE them on Facebook as well.

Article credited to Kellyn McNamara, a third year Nutrition and Dietetics major with a Journalism minor at West Chester University. Photographs are credited to and courtesy of Roots Cafe. View more scenes from the course by clicking here.

Photography courtesy of Roots Cafe and credited to Joe Krauss