By Christina Scanlon
It was chilly out Monday morning, as some gathered at the front door of Edwards Market, waiting for the 8 a.m. opening.
A turn of the key and a swing of the door was followed by the glorious scent of baking bread. Measuring and pouring in the bakery was Lee Thompson. She’d been hard at work since before 6 a.m.
Behind the glass in the butcher shop was Lisa Streiber. White walls, state-of-the-art equipment and stainless steel surrounded her. The temperature is a constant cool 45 degrees. While perhaps not comfortable for a person, it always keeps the meat safe.
From the roof down, the building has been restored, since market owner Jennifer Kelley and her husband, Joe Thomas, purchased the property shortly after Tropical Storm Irene hit.
She had a vision, in part from requests from the community, and now it’s come to fruition, just one year after celebrating their grand opening.
Some are minor, but thought-out details, like quaint copper lighting that matches the interior signage. Others are huge and quite expensive, like the fully cooled butcher shop or the combination steamer-smoker-convection oven.
“I think it’s smarter than any of us,” said Kelley as she showed the staff the many options the machine gives.
Those many options are passed through to the customers as Kelley continues to expand the store’s offerings. There’s catering, a full bakery, take-out and eat-in.
Soon will be a hot station for serving hot foods. It comes just in time as the weather cools off and outdoor grilling slows down.
The fresh custom-cut meats will always be the focus, though, as that was the original request she’d heard from the community, along with fresh baked goods.
Tammy Neeson manages the front of the store, seeing customers daily, while also keeping the relationships strong with the numerous businesses where Edwards Market gets its locally grown and locally sourced products.
There’s syrup from Sheldon Farms, Country Horizon honey, eggs from Thomas Poultry Farm and produce from Fresh Take Farm, Middle Granville, Bardwell cheeses, Battenkill Creamery milk, apples and cider from Hicks Orchard and Perry’s Potatoes.
Finding a supplier for every item in house is not an easy task, much more time consuming and costly than if one delivery truck dropped off all the goods.
It’s working, though, said Neeson.
“The community really appreciates it,” she said of the local selection.
Kelley’s daughter, Bridget Colucci, has just taken over operations as store manager and is seeing the same repeat customers, along with new faces.
Soon, Pucker Gourmet, of Greenwich, will have its full line of pickles and other fermented goodies on the shelves.
“Someone suggested it and I found them,” said Neeson.
Neeson said the local suppliers have been great, only finding a consistent bread baker posed a struggle. Now, they’ve secured Rock Hill Bakehouse, of Glens Falls, and the customers are gobbling it up.
“Oh, it’s gone,” said Kelley, noticing how quickly the supply had dwindled Monday morning.
Kelley scoring Streiber as her custom butcher was a great move, too.
“She can tell you everything,” said Kelley, and Streiber, indeed, has extensive knowledge about everything meat. She can tell you why they grind their beef daily and why her brines, with no nitrates, keep customers coming back again and again. Don’t ask for the recipe, though. She’s tight-lipped on that one.
The angus carried in the market is genetically tracked, proving it’s 98 percent pure angus. That’s different than “certified angus,” which only needs to be 51 percent to earn that stamp.
Streiber’s selection is grass-fed, but has a grain-fed finish, which makes the meat marbled and keeps it from tasting gamey.
These are all little bits Streiber can tell you, but the customers notice as they keep coming back.
The store is open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.
For more information, call the market at 642-2224, or visit it on Facebook.