As a college student, a diet of dining hall food and Ramen noodles can get old quickly. However, it’s quite comforting to know that, right on Main Street, there are a variety of different restaurants to indulge in, and your taste buds will certainly thank you.
This week, I decided to try out The Works Bakery Café, located at 120 Main Street. The big open windows and dim lighting create a calm and peaceful atmosphere. There are lots of tables, booths and couches so customers can sit down comfortably and enjoy their meal.
When I first went to The Works, I was in awe of the large menu, which offers a variety of different kinds of food. They serve breakfast all day, and the options for breakfast food seem endless; from bagels, breakfast sandwiches and eggs to baked breakfast goods and fruit.
I decided to be simple and order a poppy-seed bagel with cream cheese, and it was delicious. A few days later I went and ordered a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich on a bagel, and it was cooked to perfection.
Karina Barriga Albring / Senior Reporter:
A sign displays specials featured at The Works Bakery Cafe on Main Street.
This past week, I went there for lunch and got a BLT. The bacon was crispy, the lettuce was crunchy, the tomatoes were fresh and the sourdough bread was toasted perfectly. After having three successful meals at The Works, I decided this would be the perfect place to write about.
I sat down with Amy Christiansen, manager of The Works Bakery Café and asked her some questions about this popular restaurant. Not everyone knows what restaurant to go to on Main Street, but no matter what you’re craving, The Works likely has it. The menu includes breakfast items, sandwiches, paninis, wraps, salads, smoothies, bread, baked goods, coffee and additional beverages.
What makes this café unique is that everything from the bread to the meat is all natural, the produce is local, they carry gluten-free bread and have remained health conscious since they opened over 25 years ago.
What keeps customers coming back? Christiansen said, “I think mostly it’s the customer service that you get, it’s not an assembly line, it’s not like a get-you-out, we know our customers, we know a lot of their local orders.”
She also added that customers would never come in and be able to notice that any of her staff members have had a bad day.
“We have very high expectations of what we want to serve and what it should look like and what they should be tasting, and so we’re very big on that as well as being part of the community.”
What makes this place unique from the other restaurants on Main Street? Christiansen said that she feels the company standards of offering quality food at a reasonable price in a timely manner make The Works stand out. I agree one hundred percent.
It’s not often I can get a quality, healthy meal within minutes, but The Works enables one to order lunch and leave quickly if they don’t have time to sit down and eat.
Though the answer varies by the day, Christiansen said the most popular item on the menu is generally the smoked salmon sandwich, as well as the super chicken panini—aside from their bagels, of course.
There are six other locations throughout New England, with a seventh restaurant opening just next month.
Karina Barriga Albring / Senior Reporter: An employee at The Works Bakery Cafe prepares food for a customer.
They also offer catering for breakfast and lunch. The Works is an excellent place to go if you’d like to sit down and have a relaxing breakfast or lunch, or even to grab a quick and delicious meal on the go.
This is also a great place to grab a cup of coffee and get some schoolwork done, or even just to meet with some friends to get away from one’s hectic life for a bit.
There is also a small section for children to sit at and play for those parents who want to keep them entertained.
The Works not only has great food, but they also have an excellent staff.
I have always been greeted with a smile, nor have I left unhappy.
If you’re looking for a little escape from school work and want to enjoy some good food and quality service, The Works Bakery Café is the place for you.
Brooke Stall can be reached at bstall@keene-equinox.com