This summer, Authentic Seacoast (@AuthenticCoast) welcomed two new businesses into its growing family. The Harbour Belle Bakery and Full Steam Coffee Company (@fullsteamcoffee) had their official launch on August 11th. Sharing in the grand opening was the newly renovated Skipping Stone Cafe, the first customer for the newly formed bakery and roastery.
The Skipping Stone Cafe has an ideal location, right on the Guysborough Harbour. While we didn’t seen the Skipping Stone Cafe pre-renovation, the new space is warm and welcoming with lots of woodwork and unique features like this canoe table.
The space feels like a luxury log cabin with lots of light, thanks to the loft opening to the second floor and the many windows. Upstairs there is a shop filled with local goods, artwork, music gear, and canoe and kayak gear.
If you’re up for a little adventure, you can rent a canoe or kayak to explore the harbour, or rent a bike to take a look around town. They have great rental prices starting at only $4 an hour for bikes and $18 an hour for kayaks. They also have full day and week long rental options.
At Skipping Stone, we tried five of the seven roasts made at Full Steam. While each blend was distinct, they all had notes of rich chocolate, something we both liked. Following the tasting, Christian Dufault, the resident roaster and gelato maker, took us across the street for a tour of the roaster and bakery. The two businesses are both housed in one open space, coffee on one side, baking on the other.
The equipment is top of the line. It is how I picture the kitchen of Cake Boss must look, large, sleek, clean and stainless steel. The beans are fair trade and certified organic. These imported beans are roasted on-site. Christian told us that each batch takes between 45 minutes to an hour, beginning to end, and produces about 25-30 bags.
After working up an appetite we returned to Skipping Stone for lunch. Between the large selection of pastries, desserts, breads, chocolates and gelato, making a single decision was hard. Drew opted for an oversized ham and swiss sandwich and I ordered some chili and a Chocoffee (blend of hot chocolate and coffee with a lot of whipped cream).
The chili was the perfect choice for the cool, rainy fall weather. We also purchased some coffee beans and a loaf of sundried tomato bread to go.
When we first visited in 2012, Full Steam was only available at a few places in Antogonish. Since then, Full Steam has been picked up across the province. You can find it at many coffee shops across Nova Scotia and to take home in many boutiques and Sobeys locations. As for Harbour Belle Baked Goods, you’ll still have to head to Guysborough for those.
Location:
Skipping Stone Cafe
72 Main Street
Guysborough, NS
Website: http://www.skippingstonestore.com/
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