Dreams and Magic Beans
Katy Mitchell is the proprietor of The Magic Bean along with her silent partner and mother, Kitty Mitchell.
“I needed a place to put my creativity into, somewhere that wasn’t home and wasn’t a bar,” Katy stated on the subject as to why she chose to start a business.
Like coffee shops of times forgotten, Katy wants to see the space grow as a place of congregation where people can exchange and build ideas, talk, write and be creative with one another in groups or individually. The interior is designed to be inviting with plenty of sitting room, and as an added surprise for any building on Ocracoke, there are plenty of outlets located along the seating areas for charging your computers, phones or other devices while working and sipping the daily brew. Patrons will be able to enjoy the seating on the front or rear porches (which are both dog-friendly) or enjoy indoor seating in one of two rooms – the Art Gallery/Community Room or the Edison Room.
Of course the space is only a small part of the equation, what about the coffee? Katy is brewing up certified organic coffee, roasted by Synchronicity Coffee Roasters located in Greensboro, NC in order to keep the freshest possible brew available for her customers. Because of a recent run of cancer in her family, Katy is adamant in providing health conscious options with her food and beverage choices, offering smoothies with moringa powder, and Certified Organic and Non-GMO milk and soy milk for coffee and tea. Freshly-baked goods will be provided by David Tweedie and Amy Howard, as well as breakfast breakfast burritos from the ever-popular Eduardo's.
The Magic Bean is slated to open May 15th, if all goes well.
“The hardest part has been the general business end. I’ve never owned a business so the paperwork and jumping through hoops has been a challenge,” Katy told us about her endeavors to open on time. “I never thought I’d be able to do something like this, but I’ve been handling it quite well and it’s turned out easier that I had expected."
Katy emphasized that she wants to keep Ocracoke a community, and not start any coffee wars between the Magic Bean and their competitor, the Ocracoke Coffee Company, “I don’t think they have anything to worry about. They are an established part of the island and community, and we aren’t out to steal their business. There is enough room for us all, well at least the two of us."
The Magic Bean will be open year-round, so coffee lovers can now rejoice as they will finally have a spot to grab a cup of joe regardless of the season, from 6am until 6pm, seven days a week! Katy put emphasis on her plans to be open during the winter, “we have a fantastic wood stove right in the main foyer which is going to be fantastic to sip coffee around while it’s chilly outside. There hasn’t been a spot outside of a bar for people to come together for a long time here.”
Join the Magic Bean crew, anytime between 6am and 6pm, for a cup of joe and some tasty snacks!
Correction: the story originally stated that the Magic Bean would offer the island's only organic coffee. In fact, Ocracoke Coffee Company also offers certified organic, free trade coffee.
