Athens Duo Expands Rising Business

by Danielle Zeisler

Christine Hughes wasn’t born in Athens, but she’s assimilated like the best of them.

Drawn to Athens by a treasure-trail of business success stories, Christine, along with her business partner Bob O’Neil, moved to the area roughly 10 years ago. They didn’t start by launching a restaurant, though. Instead, they sold bread. They sold so much bread that they had enough money to start their first business together, Village Bakery & Café, about eight years ago.

With the Village Bakery, Christine and Bob get to flex their organic muscles, reaching to the Athens Farmer’s Market for the majority of the restaurant’s ingredients. What doesn’t come from there comes from other farms in the area, and making an impact through serving natural food is something their adamant about. It says it right on the menu: “What you choose WILL CHANGE THE WORLD!” Joined to the Bakery is the Undercover Market, a small bazaar of local meats, cheeses, fruits and vegetables, along with miscellaneous trinkets such as mugs, canteens and tea-brewing products.

From the sprouts of Village Bakery grew a burgeoning organic empire. Just six years later, the partners opened the Della Zona pizza shop. The decision was simple: the two loved to make and eat homemade pizza and they wanted to share that love with the Athens community. The two restaurants are located next to one another and the two facades combine, each with hand-drawn looking business signs, to form an imposing block of natural business.

The pair continues to build its family of businesses, opening the Catalyst Café a little over a year ago. For the most part the café abandons the food aspect of the pair’s previous operations and instead focuses on espresso-based drinks, smoothies and sweets. And though these businesses are impressive on their own, what’s more impressive are the duo’s aspirations.

Their future plan is to start their own small, local farm that can produce food for their restaurants. Their goal of “Striving for the ‘Triple Bottom Line’ – measuring the success of our business based on our social, environmental, and financial impact in the local and global communities,” makes these partners a one-of-a-kind duo, and an influential part of the Athens and Southeast Ohio communities.

Purple Chopstix

by Steve Zeisler

Opening the door, it seems as if I have stepped into a different world. Buddhas of various shapes and sizes smile at me as multi-colored dragons, flowers, and starfish dot the ceilings and walls. I actually learned that the majority of the artwork made for the restaurant is donated by Passion Works, which is an art studio in Athens that allows mentally handicapped adults to express their creativity through painting, ceramics, etc.

French jazz music radiates through the restaurant as my friend Jess hits the gong to signal that we’ve arrived and need service. This is the eclectic environment that you will experience at Purple Chopstix. A quaint restaurant located just minutes away from campus on Richland Avenue, it is actually an old house with an addition constructed for more space.

Jess and I sat down at the table, and soon realized that we were the only customers in the restaurant. I noticed that beyond the multi-colored artwork hanging on the ceiling and walls, other aspects of the restaurant were multi-colored as well. Our tablecloth was purple, the carpet was bright blue, and the chairs were an electric red.

The menu is as eclectic as the environment. Choices range from vegan sushi, Greek pizza, veggie tofu, Indian curry, and many others. It typically reflects a Mediterranean to Southeast Asian cuisine. Having been to Thailand, I was extremely excited. Jess and I decided to start out with Tom Yum Soup, which was beans and rice in a spicy Thai coconut broth with scallions and fresh ginger. After that, we ended up splitting the Greek pizza, which was creamy pesto spread on warm flatbread, topped with kalamata olives, fresh tomatoes, and feta cheese. We were both completely satisfied with the results.

Overall, our dining experience was lovely. If you’re looking for a nice sit down restaurant that serves non-traditional cuisine and plays funky French jazz music, this is the place for you. Support this local business. I promise you that you cannot go wrong.

Check out the website at www.purplechopstix.com.

The Athens Foundation: A Novel Approach to Supporting Communities

BY PY Tsikata

The Athens Foundation is a nonprofit community foundation created in 1980 by eight Athens women with great vision.

What started with fifty dollars from each of the women, has blossomed, like an acorn seed with a modest beginning, into an impressive financial portfolio currently estimated at 3 million dollars.

True to its mission, The Athens Foundation has supported myriad of charities, religious organizations and other community based groups in its efforts to improve the quality of life for the Athens community and its trajectory. Since its inception, it has disbursed over one million dollars of grant money to 140 local charities.

It recently brought together the leaders of nonprofit organizations to discuss ideas about how to assist their communities in keep their heads above “the economic downturn”. It also organizes leadership classes with the aim of helping groom community leaders who will provide leadership on community issues. Its access to Health Care for senior citizens initiative launched in 2007 is a spectacular way it connects with its senior citizens. All these services and others in support of education and other welfare services underscore its relevance to the community in these harsh economic times.

Community based charities and organizations which are finding it difficult to fund projects they consider very crucial to the well-being of their communities may consider contacting the Athens Foundation with their proposals for considerations.

Individuals and companies who feel connected in one or the other to the Athens Foundation’s values and wish to donate their widow’s mite to its course can also contacts the foundation for directives.

Club Dave

BY Brittany Timmons

David Hostetler, 83, combines his passion for art and music at his home outside of Athens. Once a week friends gather at Club Dave, a lounge connected to his workshop where he plays drums in his band. Friends and visitors mingle and sip wine while listening to the music and discussing David’s art. Walk into Club Dave and you are transported from rural Ohio to a swanky New York City jazz club hidden among the Appalachian hills.

Chili Abounds at Brown Town

BY Nicki Yowell

On a brisk, sunny October day, dozens of famished chili fans crammed into the backyard of “Brown Town,” a private residence at 35 Brown Avenue in Athens that plays host to community group the Action Committee. Lining the countertop of the estate's kitchen was an array of bean-laden and hearty concoctions, some 14 individual chili recipes in all. While it may have looked at first like a group of enterprising pals doing nothing more than ladling steamy stew, the “That's What's Up Chili Cook-Off” was in fact a community event whose obscurity was only rivaled by its creativity.

Contrary to Athens mayor Paul Wiehl’s suggested belief, Brown Town was not chosen due to its unique position as a west-Athens "suburb," but because the event was hosted by the Brown Town-based Committee, a group devoted to community involvement and camaraderie through music and other artistic endeavors. Andru Okun, one of the members of the group and a Brown Town dweller, helped organize the event, bringing in Wiehl and local musicians Jesty Beatz and Josh "Pencil" Hatfield as chili judges.

In the end, two chunky, savory recipes were chosen as winners, one selected by the judges, the other selected by the nearly 80 attendants. Pulling in favor from the judges was Justin Cousino's entry, while the throngs of tasters opted for Piper Avalokita's tasty bowl. The event was considered an overwhelming success for the Action Committee, having enabled the group to raise an ample amount of funds through donations during the afternoon. Jesty Beatz even treated the sparse remainder of the audience to an impromptu performance after the judging and sampling was complete.

Judges Josh "Pencil" Hatfield, left, and Jesty Beatz came prepared with their chili bowls.

The "That's What's Up Chili Bowl Cook-Off" crowd at "Brown Town"