Two new eateries had soft openings Wednesday, June 21 in Evans Towne Center.
Rooted Coffeehouse is opening its second location in the shops across the street from the Evans Towne Center Park, and Alumni Cookie Dough is sharing the space.
Rooted’s first location is at Riverwood Town Center shopping center on Washington Road. The menu at this second location is similar but does have some differences, according to Alison Kocher who owns the coffeehouses along with her mother Heather Needles.
The smoothie and toast offerings have been expanded but sandwiches are not currently available at the second location, Kocher said.
Sharing the space between the two eateries was Alumni Cookie Dough owner Jenifer Harpley’s idea.
“I called up the people at Rooted and asked if they wanted to share the space,” she said, adding that the offerings of the two shops — cookies and coffee — compliment one another.
Harpley said she ended up owning the franchise when she approached the former owners about having a cookie dough food truck.
“Somehow, it ended up with me buying the who franchise,” Harpley said.
In addition to sales at the shop, Alumni Cookie Dough participates in fundraisers for schools and other organizations. They also wholesale the product to other retailers like Green Earth, a fruit and vegetable shop on Davis Road in Augusta.
The most popular item on their menu is the Trifecta, Harpley said. It’s a treat that consists of mini-scoops of three flavors of safe-to-eat-raw cookie dough.
The grand opening for both shops will be June 30, though they are presently open for limited hours.
