‘Glow Up: The Campaign for new Glo’s’ will fund new Broadway home for Capitol Hill favorite

Some will do it to skip the head of the brunch line. Others, to help a much loved part of the Capitol Hill food and drink community get off to a strong start in its new, bigger and broader life in a new neighborhood home.

Glo’s has launched its “Glow Up” crowdfunding campaign in a quest to raise $350,000 from the community to help power the construction of its new home above Capitol Hill Station.

“We’re trying to be a good member of the community and take care of folks,” owner Julie Reisman tells CHS. “Money does talk, unfortunately. I’m just hoping there’s a lot of goodwill out there towards Glo’s.”

“I’ve also done that,” Reisman says of investors, bank loans, and debt. Reisman has already raised $125,000 from friends and family. Other establishments sometimes get their cash by finding investors. For Glo’s, Capitol Hill will hopefully provide all the 35-year-old diner will need. Continue reading

Activist teaming up with performer for planned Capitol Hill vegan coffee shop

CHS has news of yet another vegan food+drink project coming to Capitol Hill. What this one is missing in specifics, it makes up for in character and radical sociopolitics.

“It’s about more than just ethics. A lot of people just aren’t aware of their food choices,” Ashton Gearhart tells CHS.

The vegan activist and Charlie Paws –porn and sex performer — and Gearhart’s roommate — are teaming up on a venture to create a vegan coffee shop on Capitol Hill. Continue reading

As Harry’s Fine Foods finishes with Capitol Hill crowdfunded boost, Galerie 23 seeks $325K

Harry's Fine Foods is opening... soon (Image: CHS)

Harry’s Fine Foods is opening… soon (Image: CHS)

How much does it cost to open a “gourmet restaurant” on Capitol Hill? $325,000. More, actually. But that’s the total chef Rob Sevcik is looking to raise in a crowdfunding campaign to open Galerie 23 on Capitol Hill:

What I need is a sum of $325,000 dollars to purchase a local restaurant that is for sale. I have searched and searched and this opportunity is perfect. It is the right size, has the correct equipment and is located perfectly. I know I will be able to accomplish some truly amazing things with this space if contributors can help me achieve the purchase.

Sevcik’s “founders” won’t walk away empty handed, of course, for their act of generosity. The Thierry Rautureau protege will present his donors with equivalent gift cards and dinner experiences in return for their cold hard cash.

We heard back from Sevcik about his project but, at this point, can’t say what existing restaurant he has his eyes on. Plenty are available. Sevcik was originally looking at a space on E Pine in new development but tells CHS the price was out of his league. He’ll have his work cut out for him raising enough via the campaign. After about two weeks, he has around $2,300 of his goal pledged by backers. Continue reading

Capitol Hill’s Ghost Gallery raising funds for online store

Art space Ghost Gallery is trying to crowdfund its online expansion.

The Capitol Hill gallery, located at 504 E Denny Way, announced an Indiegogo campaign with a target of $10,000 by early July to fund the completion of the online expansion by fall 2016.

Gallery founder Laurie Kearney says she is expanding her online store to keep up with the an increasingly digital market, both for art collectors and more run-of-the-mill shoppers looking for handmade items. “Taking the website to the next level will enable the gallery to reach a wider national/global audience, which in turn will of course create a positive impact on the artists and makers I work with,” said Kearney. “More people shop online out of convenience, and it’s time for the gallery to embrace that.” Continue reading

Capitol Hill food+drink | Juicebox and Hot Cakes owners team up for ‘plant based’ ice-cream shop

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Autumn Martin and Kari Brunson making your dairy free ice cream dreams come true. (Image: Frankie & Jo’s)

F&J_IceCreamConeWhat do you get when you combine the owner of a decadent dessert shop and the owner of a healthy juice company in Seattle? Nut milk ice cream, fresh fruit sorbet, and a future customer base willing to loan out cash to make it happen.

This week Autumn Martin of Hot Cakes Molten Chocolate Cakery and Kari Brunson of Juicebox Cafe launched a fundraising campaign to close their budget gap on plans for their “plant-based” ice cream shop Frankie & Jo’s. The duo are scouting two possible locations, including one on Capitol Hill, with plans to open this fall. But don’t let geography be the only thing that sways your investment.

“We’re just a dynamic team,” Brunson said. “We created an ice cream that is amazing and is not using any animal products at all.”

Continue reading

What happens when your crowdfunded neighborhood bakery has to find another neighborhood?

Pocket Bakery won’t be opening in the Central District anytime soon. Josh Grunig, the baker behind the bakery said he would still love to open a retail location in the area, but financial realities have forced him to alter his plans from a year ago.

“Maybe I was a little naive, but I also try to be as optimistic as possible,” Grunig said.

He had been operating Pocket Bakery as a pop-up in Magpie, a toy and clothes shop on 20th and Union with plans to open his own retail location in a new building near 23rd and Union. He explored bank loans but ended up raising about $25,000 from crowdsourcing. He has about 100 participants in the loan program, about a third of whom were from the neighborhood, he said.

But $25,000 doesn’t even come close to funding the startup costs for a retail bakery. Building out the dining space alone can run into the six figures, and then there’s still the kitchen. After his fundraiser finished, he found his would-be landlord was not as optimistic as he about his plans to come up with the capital.

“Literally, a week after that was done, they offered the space to someone else who was fully funded,” Grunig said. Continue reading

The Central District crowd rallies to help E Union pop-up Pocket Bakery build a permanent home

Grunig makes another sale (Image: CHS)

Grunig makes another sale (Image: CHS)

Screen Shot 2015-05-19 at 2.36.09 PMEvery Saturday for the past nine months you could find Josh Grunig selling a changing array of treats. He sets up shop from 10 AM to 1 PM in Magpie on E Union and 20th in the Central District and uses this very direct interaction with customers to hone his menu and get it “to a truly exemplary place.”

These Saturday morning “pop-ups” have been an opportunity for Grunig not only to expand his menu while helping raise his newborn daughter but also to create relationships with the businesses and residents of the Central District. He wants to give back to the “extremely supportive” neighborhood by providing a delicious food made from sustainably-grown, nutritional, local ingredients.

IMG_8154-600x400But frequent customers want access to his vegan sourdough, croissant-donuts, pistachio shortbread and cinnamon rolls for more than three hours a week, so Grunig has started a fundraiser to put his bakery in a brick-and-mortar home in the Central District.

CHS talked with Grunig last fall as he started his pop-up service. At the time, he was hoping to find a location within a few blocks of Magpie — possibly in new construction coming to the area. “There’s a huge amount of opportunity around Union,” Grunig said. “It’s really an opportunity for me to be in a real neighborhood.”

There appears to be plenty of support for the campaign based on the Community Sourced Capital system of crowdfunding in which investors can provide a no-interest loan to small business owners and organizations $50 at a time. The Pocket fundraiser launched on May 15th, and has already raised more than $8,000 of its $10,000 minimum goal.

The ultimate goal, Grunig says, is to raise “$50k for bakery equipment, furniture and all the small things needed to get open. Every little investment is one step closer to our goal.”

For more information on how to help Grunig get his bakery up and running, visit the Pocket Bakery Community Sourced Capital page.

Plan for a Capitol Hill doughnut bar gets one last push with Pettirosso pop-up

Screen Shot 2014-10-30 at 2.31.40 PM Screen Shot 2014-10-30 at 2.30.46 PMThe plan to bring a doughnut bar “inspired by Tom Waits and New Orleans nightlife
to Capitol Hill will get an extra push this weekend with a 9th & Hennepin pop-up at 11th Ave’s Cafe Pettirosso.

CHS told you earlier this month about the early plans from Justin Newstrum to create a joint serving fresh, hot doughnuts, coffee, and booze on Capitol Hill. The fundraiser behind the project stands at just under $5,000 with only a few days left to go on the $16,000 goal Newstrum is hoping to raise to fund the start-up of 9th & Hennepin. You can make your contribution here if you’re interested in helping get the business started and scoring one of the backer gifts.

Sunday night from 6 to 10 PM, you can meet the doughnut entrepreneur and sample his creations — and, hopefully, get inspired to add your dollars to the kitty:

As one last hurrah before my kickstarter ends, the fabulous ladies at Cafe Pettirosso have agreed to host a pop-up up night of fresh-fried donuts at their space on Capitol Hill this Sunday, November 2nd. Cafe Pettirosso will be open for their normal business hours Sunday night, serving their normal menu with Happy Hour all night long. In addition to that, we’re crafting a short menu of our donuts to fry to order. Donuts will be free, but *cash* donations will be accepted, to be donated to the kickstarter project. For those still on the fence about supporting the project this will be an excellent opportunity to come try a taste of what you’ll be getting when we open.

Capitol Hill theater group crowdfunding special effects for first production at 12th Ave Arts

Last week, we showed you inside the major Capitol Hill theater and development project opening this fall at 12th Ave Arts. One of the companies that will be resident in the 12th Ave Arts theater facilities is looking for community support for the high-concept live theater special effects planned as part of its first show in the Studio Theater. The $3,210 pitch from the Washington Ensemble Theatre is above. You can learn more and pitch in here:

Screen Shot 2014-09-08 at 2.48.00 PMIn January 2015, The Ensemble will open the 12th Ave Arts building with the world premiere of Josh Conkel’s darkly hilarious Sprawl. Cornish alum and writer of The Ensemble’s eighth season smash success Milk, Milk, Lemonade, Conkel’s Sprawl nestles a group of friends and frenemies in a Washington suburban model home for a book club meeting only to have them witness the brutally campy end of the world. Part Mars Attacks and part Serial Mom, Sprawl reminds us that beneath suburban tranquility there are nasty secrets that are wickedly laughable. This production continues and expands The Ensemble’s legacy of big, wild design elements as it requires flying alien insects, battle robots, and crystals that sprout from the ground before our eyes! The questions is: how do we make this playwright’s vision come to life in the most thrilling way possible for our community? This November, the Ensemble will spend a week in a warehouse space experimenting with giant puppets, remote control robots, and motion capture video projection technology. Our goal is to develop new methods of integrating cutting-edge technology with existing theatre traditions, and we can’t do it without your help! With $3,000, we’ll be able to pay for the space, purchase robots, small drones, and reimburse our artists for their time.

 

Nuflours turns to the crowd to finance Capitol Hill cafe

The Nuflours crew (Image: Nuflours)

The Nuflours crew (Image: Nuflours)

In the wake of the successful SIFF campaign to reopen the Egyptian Theatre in what may have been the biggest crowd-sourced financing drive ever for a Capitol Hill project, 15th Ave E’s Nuflours gluten free bakery is also turning to the crowd for a much smaller loan.

We’re seeking community support in a form of loans which will be paid back based on revenue from our business. Your loan, in the form of a Square will supply the financial support needed for the construction and equipment for opening the retail portion of our store. Here is a link to more information about Community Sourced Capital and how you can help. Our campaign page is http://www.communitysourcedcapital.com/nuflours/

The community loan process is done in $50 chunks — you put up $50 to help Nuflours finance its buildout and you get back $50 from the bakery’s revenue sometime over the next 18 to 36 months, according to the site’s documentation. Continue reading