Tartine too - How It Came To Be

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TARTINE too... is open for business!

Yes, with many false starts and delays, we have opened TARTINE too...

Our goal was to open before the Chuseok Holidays and we made it by 3 hours.  While the new cafe was not 100% complete, many of you, our valued customers enjoyed the sneak peek at what was to come.  Both our cafes were filled to capacity along with our alfresco seating during the holidays.  After the holidays, we closed again to finish the work and opened for the weekend but had to close once more for two days because of unexpected delays.

It seems that maybe I have in some small way provoked the weather gods in this lifetime or in a past one.  I spent most of my first 45 years in the Pacific Northwest [USA] with its constant rain, drizzle, moist fog and its unvarying overcast and damp climate and I rarely complained.  I must admit, that after moving to Korea, I have mentioned on occasion that I am uncomfortable in the heat and cold that envelopes the peninsula on a fierce and regular bases… and maybe, I have said I don’t see how it could get any worse. Good gads, maybe that what did it!

Well, anyway, just as we started the renovations of TARTINE too... the weather gods all got together to show me that it truly can get worse.  On the day we started removing the entire interior, the skies started to weep and then thundered down on us.  Every leak possible was shown to us in shocking detail, I guess we should be thankful for the knowledge before we were finished.  Two old roofs had to removed and the latest one was rebuilt, rain water was diverted and new walls installed.  Another plus was that the deluge kept down the dust as we loaded the trucks with debris.

Finally the heaviest rainfall and temperatures in a centaury descended upon us and it was like working in a tropical rainforest where every breath was like breathing in hot damp cotton.  Paint wouldn’t set, wood swelled and tempers were short and in my sometimes delirium, I was afraid an anaconda would jump out from the misty shadows and squeeze the last bit of moisture from my body.

Of course, we had our air-conditioner in our bakery & cafe cranked to the maximum, so our valued customers could sit in refrigerated bliss. Our walls and windows were weeping with condensation as was the vents to the air-conditioners.  The differences between the outside and inside temperatures were astounding. Even with all this, workers and customers were fanning themselves as if they weren’t sitting in a huge cooler.  Our workers would wipe a bit of the condensation on the windows and wave salutations to us across the alley while they sipped on an ice cold beverage, never thinking that the old man with the pink complexion and clothing soaked through with sweat, which clung to his amplitude, might need a cool and refreshing beverage.  

To bring me a cool and refreshing beverage would mean that they would have to wade the torrent that filled the alley and risk getting their hair wet and braving the almost 99.94% humidity… looking at their cool and refreshing faces in the frosted window brought me a bit of despondency and despair, but there was always more painting to do.

Finally, we were able to open for Chuseok and when we closed for two days to finish up, wouldn’t you know that the weather had delayed the delivery of my primer paint and the day was wasted.  The next day the primer paint arrived along with a record heat wave and we had rolling black outs and another day was wasted as I stood dripping wet in the dark with a fully charged paint brush in my hand.

There are still small things to do, but for the most part we are ready to offer our valued customers, more seating, both inside and out.  The decor is updated country French; sponge painting, rustic walls and flooring.  Country French blue and yellow are the anchor colors and red and navy blue have been added for contrast.  Original artworks adorn the walls; all collected over my lifetime and it adds not only a personal touch but is a bit eclectic, not to mention what was once new is now an antique.

We hope to start offering BRUNCH in October.  Now that most of the remodel is over and our staff is settling in it is time to work on our BRUNCH MENU.  Our Sous Chef Marie and I will be setting up the kitchen and perfecting the recipes so that we can offer you, our valued customers, the best breakfast possible at a reasonable price.

At long last, Luke has realized his dream of owning a fully automatic espresso machine and not any fully automatic espresso machine, but the Swiss made, Schaerer Fully Automatic Espresso Machine [at the cost of a small car, I might add] and we are offering espresso based beverages along with our regular coffee drinks you already know and love. This machine offers everything one would expect from the Swiss; on time; precision components; exact measurements and not embarrassed to charge one for all this and more.  Oh my goodness, let me check my un-named, un-registered, un-numbered and complete fantasy Swiss Bank account for my balance and transfer numbers.

Charlie has returned from his one year work / study stint in Australia and will be working at TARTINE too... on the weekends serving BRUNCH.  Charlie’s English skills have improved to a point where he will be able to take even the most detailed breakfast order from a good number of meticulous customers. Charlie’s one goal he didn’t reach in Australia was to become a ‘barista’, well, with our fully-automatic ART Plus espresso machine, we will have Charlie trained in no time and his finger can press the appropriate buttons with speed and confidence. AND yes, this is the same Charlie that our Charlie Memorial Bread Slicer is named after you don’t have to be dead to be memorialized. 

While many of you, our valued customers, will form an attachment with TARTINE Bakery & Cafe or TARTINE too... BRUNCH and Pie Cafe both offer the same high quality, hand and home made goodness.  Our desserts and beverages are all made on premises.  Both cafes will offer the same delicious desserts and beverages, except TARTINE too... will have BRUNCH from 9am to 3pm everyday, 365 days a year.  Our BRUNCH offering will be limited at first and we will add more as our kitchen staff adjusts to the new menu.  High quality is more important to us than quantity.

Luke and I would like to personally thank all of you, our valued customers, for making our expansion possible.  It is your patronage that enables us and our staff and helps to make our dreams come true.  We hope you will like TARTINE too... and continue in your unwavering support. 

P.S. We will be decorating our now famous Chocolate Biscuit Cake for Halloween and it is BOO-A-Luscious.  This is the perfect small gift to give during this most scary of holidays.

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