We are excited to welcome you to the new Zest Garden Cafe!
We mentioned when we closed down back in October that we had come across a community of fairies that had moved into the back garden patio in the time it has been undergoing repairs. You may believe it is only a joke, but we were not surprised at all considering the magic we know flows through these walls. These nature spirits brought our attention to the simple truth that waste is a purely human creation and does not exist in nature. They knew of our Zero Waste goal and our aim to procure local, organic ingredients and pointed out how much better we could do. We spent the last month not only remodeling the space but clarifying our mission and core values and finding creative, engaging ways to implement them into our daily practices.
Here are some changes you can be expecting for sure…
- We are radically implementing our existing “Zero Waste Goal” by making eliminating waste in every way imaginable one of our core values. Our first big steps are assessing our purchasing and making packaging a priority factor in our procurement, finding creative alternatives to food waste including composting, and we will no longer be purchasing disposable takeout containers of any kind! We are currently exploring reusable systems that prevent waste rather than creating more, but plan on bringing your reusable containers, or paying a deposit or fee. We are also playing with the idea of a program for locals for a monthly flat rate membership that comes with a discount on all purchases. Let us know what you think!
- We believe community, and friendships, are built through common interests, and Building Community through Food is our mission! Our vision is to primarily use our cafe space to host new in-house clubs our team creates, other local small interest groups, and community-oriented events and be the go-to community hangout in Lincoln City. We plan to have an open calendar for any small groups in our community to reserve a space for 5-25 people at an affordable rate that will offset by any purchases made.
- We will soon me announcing the new platform we will be using as an alternative to Facebook, as we will no longer maintain a presence on that platform. This new app will allow common interest groups to form naturally around topics we are passionate about and will not be filled with advertising or limit who sees which posts or events.
- Our “Everybody Eats!” community day is being replaced by a new “Kindness Token” program created in partnership with Coastal Support Services, our compassionate next-door neighbors. This program will allow anyone to purchase meal tokens they can share with friends, coworkers, anyone in need, or add to the pool to be distributed by local non-profits.
- We are seriously debating whether adding alcohol to our offerings in in alignment with our mission and are open-mindedly researching more healthy sipping, or social beverages (like Kava, Kratom, or CBD, fresh juices, smoothies, nutritional shots etc.).
We are open to the community’s feedback around what offerings you would like to see!