Business & Tech

Fischerville Coffee House and Bella Boutique Grand Re-Opening Starts Thursday

New owners will celebrate with the Henry Sibley marching band, a new menu and a new space for younger adults and teens.

The new owners of and are throwing a grand re-opening party starting Thursday and running through Sunday.

Mendota Heights residents in November.

They’ve been busy updating the coffee shop and boutique to reflect their own ideas, incorporating some changes inside the historic Fischerville building.

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Bella Boutique will be freshly painted when it re-opens Thursday. Susan brought in some new clothing and jewelry lines to the store, and will be hosting a trunk show and . 

,  and Cretin-Derham Hall bands (marching, jazz, drumline) will be also be performing throughout the grand re-opening. For the full schedule of events, see Mendota Heights Patch’s . 

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The coffee shop will have a new menu and a bakery counter, which required some countertop and cabinet work. Susan said they want to add a European café vibe to reflect some of their travel experiences abroad.

But the couple said they were careful to preserve the building’s history.

“It’s an established business,” said Susan Engelhart. “People like many, many things about it, and out of respect for that, we didn’t want to change so much that those who were already loyal wouldn’t want to come back anymore.”

SouthEnd Garage

The Engelharts are also experimenting with an additional space next door designed for the younger crowd. The new SouthEnd Garage will serve bubble tea, soups, sandwiches and treats, and will host a band and an open mic night during the re-opening festivities.

Susan said they have an 18-year-old at home, who goes to the Tea Garden in St. Paul to hang out with friends. The Engelharts wanted to make a space in Mendota Heights where younger patrons would feel welcome, with a little more privacy from the all-ages clientele.

The SouthEnd Garage can only be temporary, said Susan, due to restrictions from the bank that owns the property and the city, but it might be able to open for periods of time in the summer, when more music and open mics are planned.

Special Guests

Caroline and Nancy, the daughters of Frank Fischer, will be on hand at 2:30 p.m. Friday to mingle and talk about the history of the building.

Caroline Schoch, who now lives a few miles away in Eagan, remembers working at her father’s general store, which stocked everything from groceries to hardware for the rural community.

 “The store became a community gathering place,” said Schoch. “On the spur of the moment if someone was interested in a checker game, my dad would play checkers at a little round table that sat in the store.”

Schoch said she’s happy that the building has stood the test of time, and is being maintained.

“Nancy and I are so pleased with way the building looks now. It makes me so happy.”

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