Trail Head Coffee Co. to celebrate grand opening in historic downtown Concord

What’s happening: After operating under a “soft opening” for the past four weeks, Trail Head Coffee Co. is ready to celebrate. A grand opening party for the newly opened specialty coffee shop in downtown Concord is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17, and will include live music, an appearance from the Dirt Road Donuts food truck, and a grand prize drawing.

Trail Head Coffee Co. is located at 118 N. Main St. in downtown Concord.What it is: Trail Head Coffee Co. is located within the Concord Village Historic District of downtown Concord along the Falling Waters Trail — hence the name. The building, like the buildings that surround it, dates back to the 1800s, and historic photos of the original structure now help decorate the coffee shop, the renovation of which exposed the brick walls and restored the original floors. The shop itself features coffee and espresso beans from Les Chêneaux Coffee Roasters in Cedarville, a small town in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Pastries come from Bliss Bakeshop in nearby Brooklyn. Brewed coffee, espresso-based drinks, smoothies, and pastries populate the menu.

Backstory: Becky Raut owns and operates Trail Head Coffee; she sees the shop as much a service to the community as she does a business. Raut, whose family moved to Concord when their daughter was in high school, says that there were no coffee shops or bakeries in the small village when they first moved here. Providing both quality coffee and pastries has proven good for their bottom line, but also the community, she says.

What they’re saying: “For me, the most important thing has been to sit back and watch people come through the door, to see people whose families have lived in Concord for generations and watch them reconnect with each other,” says Raut. “My goal is for this to be the place where the community comes together. That’s our motto: Where locals go for good coffee.”

Trail Head Coffee Co. is located at 118 N. Main St. in downtown Concord.

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