MONROE - Downtown Monroe attracted some more new businesses this year and some established stores have moved into new quarters.
Buehler Interiors
Buehler Interiors has been 25 years in the making, with owner Tim Buehler, Monroe, installing flooring as an independent contractor and subcontractor. Now he is expanding his services by opening his own retail store at 1900 12th St. and offering customers his expertise and a multitude of flooring choices to enhance the look of their home and businesses, whether new or remodeled.
The business will offer carpet, wood, laminate, tile, cork and vinyl flooring, including luxury vinyl tile flooring that's made to look like natural materials, such as plank, stone and blocks.
Opening Monday, Buehler Interiors, housed in the historic Bruni-Miller lumber yard, features two show rooms of flooring and almost 5,000 square feet of warehouse on site, with room to expand near downtown Monroe.
Buggyworks Restaurant and Pub
Come for the food and stay for the game or just bask in the history of one of Monroe's oldest commercial buildings restored on 18th Avenue and 10th Street.
Buggyworks Restaurant and Pub serves up a menu of lunches and dinners made from scratch by chef Chris Jackson, co-owner with Jeff Ewald.
Customers will recognize dozens of local labels, from beers and sodas to breads, cheeses and sausage, featured in or paired with the dishes prepared by Jackson, who has 20 years of experience.
Dishes served up creative in name as well as flavor include Moody Blue and Bacon burgers with Roth Kase Moody Blue cheese and Swiss dip (not French) with Depplers Baby Swiss cheese. Even Buggyworks' historic home, The Fitzgibbons, has a salad named after it.
"We have fun with names," said Ewald, who manages and "ties up the front end" of the business. "We want to have fun and create that casual, fun environment."
Ewald and Jackson have re-created what they found to be their "favorite kinds of eating places" with a pub-like atmosphere.
"We didn't feel like Monroe needed another bar, but a restaurant," Ewald said.
Local is the focus, according to Ewald. That includes the economy, the food, the history and the owners; both men have childhood connections to Monroe.
The building housed the thriving buggy manufacturer until the early 1900s. Buggyworks has a genuine Fitzgibbons side spring buggy on display, along with laser-etched reproductions of the company's catalog of other buggy models. Near the back, its famous 1948 fire is depicted in word and art by those who were there.
Open six days a week, Buggyworks offers daily specials with seasonal foods, a traditional Friday fish fry, Saturday prime rib dinners and a full bar. A private dining area is available.
PG Comics and Toys
PG Comics and Toys opened this summer at 1010 17th Ave., lower level. Open Monday through Saturday, owner Patrick Gagliano has been wishing for a store just like this for most of his life. It's more than a comic book store, which makes it better than the Bat Cave.
"My whole vision is to allow children today to enjoy what I did back in the '70s," Gagliano said.
There are no boundaries to the superhero and supervillian selection PG carries. Collectors and consumers can purchase thousands of comic books, from Alf to X-men, for $2 or less apiece. A subscription to a new comic series gets a hearty discount. PG carries action figures that can't be found at discount stores, with some as low as a dollar. And for the right offer, you could pick up a life-sized action hero or villain, like, wise, old Yoda or the creepy, blue Watto. Star Wars and Star Trek figures abound, but D.C. and Stan Lee would not be disappointed by their featured merchandise. Any movie hitting the theaters, PG likely has their figures. If you don't want to display them or read about them, you can wear your superhero or villain on a T-Shirt ... or be a Star Trek "blue shirt."
Yes Coffee Roasters
If there's an art to roasting coffee beans, Yes Coffee Roasters owners Tony Ciske of Monroe and Daniel Finkelstein of Madison are making a science out of timing.
Yes Coffee is another of Monroe's down under, downtown Square businesses, located in the lower level of 1005 16th Ave. The wholesale partners don't need a store front, but they do appreciate the even temperature and humidity of their basement facility.
Both Ciske and Finkelstein have been in coffee roasting businesses for about seven years and met through family networks. They each found the other wanted to "connect more with the coffee," Ciske said, and to bring the essence of the coffee closer to its consumers, instead of slamming coffee in paper cups to go.
They began their own business a couple years ago in their homes, sampling before importing the beans from individual small coffee farms worldwide - never blended, and roasting in small specialty batches. They work with just three to four coffees at a time to ensure the freshest, raw beans and roast them only when the orders come in. From the Ethiopian, Mexican or South American farm to U.S. consumer's cup, time can't get much shorter.
Roasting requires undivided attention to heat and moisture content. Timing is of the essence, and recording those details is essential, according to the owners.
"If we happen to hit an excellent batch, we want to be able to reproduce it," Ciske said.
Yes Coffee Roasters coffee is sold at Stonehall Bicycle repair shop at 921 15th Ave. in Monroe, and in Madison and Chicago, and online.
Other moves
• Babbletown Children's Store and Nicolette Lynn Photography moved to 1111 16th Ave. Opening Tuesday, owner/photographer Nicolette Dreikosen is planning a grand opening for the new location on Oct. 11. Look for new hours of operation.
• JoAnne's Dress Shop moved to 1618 11th Street. Open seven days a week, owner JoAnne Leuenberger is carrying some new local products.
• Max's Threads moved to 1020 17th Ave. Owner Amanda Wendler is reopening soon for the busy, best-dressed men in town.
• Orange Kitten Yarns moved onto the Square at 1620 11th St. Open Wednesday through Sunday, Jocelyn Kline's shop of fine yarns and knitting accessories has a Grand Opening on Saturday with yarn spinners and an antique sock maker demonstration.
• Thrifty Nifty moved to 1128 17th Ave. and is adjusting to owner Stephani King's newborn. The store is closed Sunday and Tuesday.
Buehler Interiors
Buehler Interiors has been 25 years in the making, with owner Tim Buehler, Monroe, installing flooring as an independent contractor and subcontractor. Now he is expanding his services by opening his own retail store at 1900 12th St. and offering customers his expertise and a multitude of flooring choices to enhance the look of their home and businesses, whether new or remodeled.
The business will offer carpet, wood, laminate, tile, cork and vinyl flooring, including luxury vinyl tile flooring that's made to look like natural materials, such as plank, stone and blocks.
Opening Monday, Buehler Interiors, housed in the historic Bruni-Miller lumber yard, features two show rooms of flooring and almost 5,000 square feet of warehouse on site, with room to expand near downtown Monroe.
Buggyworks Restaurant and Pub
Come for the food and stay for the game or just bask in the history of one of Monroe's oldest commercial buildings restored on 18th Avenue and 10th Street.
Buggyworks Restaurant and Pub serves up a menu of lunches and dinners made from scratch by chef Chris Jackson, co-owner with Jeff Ewald.
Customers will recognize dozens of local labels, from beers and sodas to breads, cheeses and sausage, featured in or paired with the dishes prepared by Jackson, who has 20 years of experience.
Dishes served up creative in name as well as flavor include Moody Blue and Bacon burgers with Roth Kase Moody Blue cheese and Swiss dip (not French) with Depplers Baby Swiss cheese. Even Buggyworks' historic home, The Fitzgibbons, has a salad named after it.
"We have fun with names," said Ewald, who manages and "ties up the front end" of the business. "We want to have fun and create that casual, fun environment."
Ewald and Jackson have re-created what they found to be their "favorite kinds of eating places" with a pub-like atmosphere.
"We didn't feel like Monroe needed another bar, but a restaurant," Ewald said.
Local is the focus, according to Ewald. That includes the economy, the food, the history and the owners; both men have childhood connections to Monroe.
The building housed the thriving buggy manufacturer until the early 1900s. Buggyworks has a genuine Fitzgibbons side spring buggy on display, along with laser-etched reproductions of the company's catalog of other buggy models. Near the back, its famous 1948 fire is depicted in word and art by those who were there.
Open six days a week, Buggyworks offers daily specials with seasonal foods, a traditional Friday fish fry, Saturday prime rib dinners and a full bar. A private dining area is available.
PG Comics and Toys
PG Comics and Toys opened this summer at 1010 17th Ave., lower level. Open Monday through Saturday, owner Patrick Gagliano has been wishing for a store just like this for most of his life. It's more than a comic book store, which makes it better than the Bat Cave.
"My whole vision is to allow children today to enjoy what I did back in the '70s," Gagliano said.
There are no boundaries to the superhero and supervillian selection PG carries. Collectors and consumers can purchase thousands of comic books, from Alf to X-men, for $2 or less apiece. A subscription to a new comic series gets a hearty discount. PG carries action figures that can't be found at discount stores, with some as low as a dollar. And for the right offer, you could pick up a life-sized action hero or villain, like, wise, old Yoda or the creepy, blue Watto. Star Wars and Star Trek figures abound, but D.C. and Stan Lee would not be disappointed by their featured merchandise. Any movie hitting the theaters, PG likely has their figures. If you don't want to display them or read about them, you can wear your superhero or villain on a T-Shirt ... or be a Star Trek "blue shirt."
Yes Coffee Roasters
If there's an art to roasting coffee beans, Yes Coffee Roasters owners Tony Ciske of Monroe and Daniel Finkelstein of Madison are making a science out of timing.
Yes Coffee is another of Monroe's down under, downtown Square businesses, located in the lower level of 1005 16th Ave. The wholesale partners don't need a store front, but they do appreciate the even temperature and humidity of their basement facility.
Both Ciske and Finkelstein have been in coffee roasting businesses for about seven years and met through family networks. They each found the other wanted to "connect more with the coffee," Ciske said, and to bring the essence of the coffee closer to its consumers, instead of slamming coffee in paper cups to go.
They began their own business a couple years ago in their homes, sampling before importing the beans from individual small coffee farms worldwide - never blended, and roasting in small specialty batches. They work with just three to four coffees at a time to ensure the freshest, raw beans and roast them only when the orders come in. From the Ethiopian, Mexican or South American farm to U.S. consumer's cup, time can't get much shorter.
Roasting requires undivided attention to heat and moisture content. Timing is of the essence, and recording those details is essential, according to the owners.
"If we happen to hit an excellent batch, we want to be able to reproduce it," Ciske said.
Yes Coffee Roasters coffee is sold at Stonehall Bicycle repair shop at 921 15th Ave. in Monroe, and in Madison and Chicago, and online.
Other moves
• Babbletown Children's Store and Nicolette Lynn Photography moved to 1111 16th Ave. Opening Tuesday, owner/photographer Nicolette Dreikosen is planning a grand opening for the new location on Oct. 11. Look for new hours of operation.
• JoAnne's Dress Shop moved to 1618 11th Street. Open seven days a week, owner JoAnne Leuenberger is carrying some new local products.
• Max's Threads moved to 1020 17th Ave. Owner Amanda Wendler is reopening soon for the busy, best-dressed men in town.
• Orange Kitten Yarns moved onto the Square at 1620 11th St. Open Wednesday through Sunday, Jocelyn Kline's shop of fine yarns and knitting accessories has a Grand Opening on Saturday with yarn spinners and an antique sock maker demonstration.
• Thrifty Nifty moved to 1128 17th Ave. and is adjusting to owner Stephani King's newborn. The store is closed Sunday and Tuesday.