Tucked in the back of the Kimberton Whole Foods store (Kimberton Road, Phoenixville) is the Kimberton Cafe, an intimate watering hole which brings the community together with fresh food. Kimberton Whole Foods is largest independent grocery store in eastern PA and Kimberton is the only location (of their four stores) to have its own cafe.
Kimberton Cafe goes out of its way to work with mother nature by using solar panels, serving foods that are grown in sustainable ways (they choose biodynamic methods as often as possible) and using products that are organic and/or all natural whenever possible. They offer plenty of well balanced options for vegetarians, vegans, meat eaters or people with dietary restrictions.
In September, they started a hot bar and customers have been raving ever since. Customers include working professionals picking up a lunch, moms who don’t have time to cook dinner and kids dropping by for an after school snack. Since the cafe is attached to a grocery store, the food service coordinators have more creativity and flexibility than other places when it comes to meal planning.
For roughly the same price ($8.99) as other hot bars, customers can savor items like honey garlic glazed chicken, vegetable corkscrews and chorizo, vegan southwestern quinoa falafel, or brown basmati rice. And from Kimberton Cafe, you know the food is extra fresh and made with special attention. And for your added convenience, check their facebook to learn the delicious daily specials. The hot bar is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. during the week and until 6 p.m. on the weekends.
“What I hear a lot is ‘Thank you so much, I didn’t feel like cooking tonight,’” says Peter Belz, food service coordinator. “We have quite few a customers who come in every day. That is the most rewarding part to me – seeing the people enjoying the food and having the families in here.”
They also have a large selection of paninis, sandwiches, salads (green, grain and noodle varieties), raw foods, micro and macro options and two soups every day. Since no meal would be complete without dessert, their on-site baker has an array of cookies, cakes, fruit squares and pies for a sweet ending.
Spend a beautiful day on their outdoor patio sipping on one of their nine smoothies, or choose from the wide variety of hot and cold tea and coffee drinks.
Not only is their staff friendly and knowledgeable with a passion for food and the planet, but they are always willing to share cooking tips with customers. It doesn’t matter if it has to do with an item on the hot bar or trying out a new food, they are always willing to chat.
“We are already a community oriented store anyways, but it really allows us to further that with our food as well,” said assistant food service coordinator, Erin Strickland. “We are really conscious and try to be as mindful as possible about staying local, meeting dietary needs, and having a good array of foods to offer.”
Whether you stop by for a nutritious bite on the go or to catch up with friends in a relaxed atmosphere, at Kimberton Cafe, you will certainly be satisfied by their organic comfort food with flair.
