The Daytime Café That Operates Out Of Port City Royal Is Closing
SAINT JOHN – Marjorie’s, a daytime café that operates out of popular Saint John restaurant Port City Royal, announced earlier this week that it was ceasing operations after almost one year in business.
“We would like to thank everyone that supported us this past year. We had a grand time serving you all some truly creative and inspiring dishes. We especially want to thank those that used our space to build upon their own original ideas. Saint John is certainly a melting pot of creative minds,” the post on the business’s page read.
“But don’t fret. There are plenty of independently owned cafés in the region to support.”
Marjorie’s was launched last March by Port City Royal owner Jakob Lutes, who was looking to find a new way to utilize the restaurant’s space during the day. Since the winter months are generally slower for the restaurant, they decided now was the time to try it out. He ran Marjorie’s along with coffee enthusiasts Tom Spencer and Charlie Conn.
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“In some respects, we had a bit more time on our hands. We get bored easily, so we felt it was a natural progression,” said Lutes in a previous interview with Huddle. “We felt that the use of our space throughout the day isn’t really being utilized, so why not do something?”
Though there are several other places to grab a coffee within a two-block radius of Grannan Street, offering that café experience is what Lutes said sets Marjorie’s apart.
“We’re not a coffee shop. We’re a café. Although in the North American mindset a café might be a coffee shop, in a traditional European setting, a café is all-encompassing. It’s morning until night, hitting every meal and in-between meal you might be able to hit,” he said last March
“Also acting as a springboard for creativity. Some of the oldest cafés in Paris were stomping grounds for the most prolific artists in history. If we consider ourselves and artistic community, it would be nice to have a place where you can sit and not be bothered and stay and enjoy a cup of coffee and not feel as though you need to purchase something just to stay.”