Café Passé is a charming, somewhat unconventional coffee shop.
The Fourth Avenue eatery boasts a fishpond, makes its own compost (and offers the raw material for free, just bring your own bucket). A basket by the register cradles locally grown fruit. Today it holds the teeniest, most perfect reddish-purple plums from a barrio microfarm. Buy three for a quarter.
And, if you'd like an original piece of art by local painter Duncan Linthicum to go with your grasshopper mocha, you can get that. Or maybe some Sia skin products. Or perhaps magnets showcasing local landmarks. Just walk around the corner and you can find all of that at The Little Village, a trio of stores sharing space with Café Passé.
Coffee-shop owner Sabine Blaese had wanted to expand her nearly 4-year-old eatery for quite awhile. When the store next door became available in March, she jumped at the chance. But, she didn't need that much space. So, three of her friends set up shop in between the front room - which has a small stage and long community tables - and an inviting back patio.
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"The idea was built-in traffic for the stores," says Blaese.
The cafe wraps around the stores, each of which occupies a hunk of space in a long corridor.
"It's almost like a European marketplace," says Tana Kelch - who owns Bohemia, 2920 E. Broadway, and its much smaller Bohemia outpost here, smack in the middle of the stores.
Kelch calls the mini-Bohemia, which is roughly 350 square feet, "an appetizer." About 20 artists are represented in the small space. Here, you can find feather-adorned jewelry, cool bird-cage lights and original art. Prices range from $5-$200.
The first store you encounter, as you round the corner away from Café Passé's sumptuous-looking scones, is The Wooden Tooth. First-time business owner Tabatha Christian, who also works at Café Passé, specializes in what she calls "oddities and curiosities." The shop sells Sia skin-care products, fossils, and clothing from local designers, along with her thrifty finds. Most of the handmade wares cost between $18-$60; only a few items are more than $100.
"I love treasure-hunting, I grew up doing it," says Christian. "My mom had us thrifty as kids when thrifty wasn't cool."
The last store of the trio is Duncan Linthicum's Ventana Gallery, which showcases his jewelry and art along with that of his friends including Chrissy Goral, who's known for her painted glass. Prices start at $20 and top out at $1,700.
In this tough climate - economically and weatherwise - the venture is a gamble but one worth taking, says Linthicum, also a first-time business owner.
"We knew it was probably the worst time in the economy and worst time of the year to do this, but if we can get through this we can get through anything."
The Little Village
• What: The Wooden Tooth Collectables & Curiosities, Bohemia and Ventana Gallery
• Where: 417 N. Fourth Ave.
• When: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily; closed Tuesdays.
• Up Next: A CD release party for Hans Hutchison (half of Duo Sonido) to debut his solo album "114"at 7:30 p.m. July 31.
Contact Kristen Cook at kcook@azstarnet.com or 573-4194.
