Gramercy Books and Kittie’s Café are just a brief walk from campus and could be a new place for students to hang out, grab some coffee and read a few books.
The building itself is split into the two businesses, which are actually owned separately but have an open doorway connecting the two, creating the unique smell of new books mixed with coffee.
The bookstore doubles as a gift shop and has a large array of books lining the many shelves. They sell everything from bestsellers and soaps to children’s books and adult coloring books. They sell a lot of local crafts and goods as well.
The store is set up with little reading nooks, so that customers can sit and flip through the pages of a possible buy in their comfy seating spaces between walls of books. There is also a whole area dedicated to children’s books, with shelves filled with some of the most hard-to-find titles out there.
According to their website, Gramercy Books was opened by Linda Kass, a native of east Columbus. She was a journalist and novelist for a long time and brings that into the business by featuring author visits and story time for children the first and third Sundays of every month.
The store features a ton of other events each week, and they seem to want to get really involved with the community, which is really important for a small business.
Kittie’s Café, the coffee shop, is a cute addition to the book store. They’re affiliated with Kittie’s Cakes, a bakery in Columbus, and serve up some of their famous cupcakes.
The café gives off a serious hipster vibe and boasts that they’re a wifi-free business on their website. A sign on their counter proclaims “Good Vibes Only,” and the soft jazz that is played in the background really adds to that.
I’ve always been critical of Starbucks, and I went into Kitties expecting the same quality coffee and snacks. The prices of the two are pretty similar, with Kittie’s being only slightly cheaper.
But even with only the slight difference in price, I would choose Kittie’s over Starbucks any day because of the feeling the café gives. The seats face the doors that look out on Main Street, which is a great place to people watch, and it’s really refreshing to just think and sip coffee without the distractions of the internet.
I ordered my usual drink from coffee shops, a chai latte, and decided to try one of their biscuits with raspberry jam. In the mornings, the cafe also serves an array of breakfast sandwiches as well as other pastries and snacks.
It was obvious by the quality of everything that it was made with a lot of care. It was also really refreshing to see real plates and cups, something that’s sadly been lost with the coming of chain coffee shops. I really enjoyed both items I tried from the café and definitely plan on coming back with friends.
Kittie’s was opened at the same time as Gramercy Books by the owners of Kittie’s Cakes, Mollie and Kelly Fankhauser, who were professional golfers before they turned their sights to baking. They opened Kitties Cakes in the German Village in 2013 and try to incorporate both family favorites and elements of their travels in their baked goods.
The cafe is open 6 a.m., to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Gramercy Books is open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. Both shops can be found at 2424 East Main Street in Bexley, and more information can be found on their websites: gramercybooksbexley.com and kittiescakes.com.
