It's no secret that central New Yorkers, like most Americans,
love their coffee.
With several Dunkin Donuts locations and the new Tim Horton's
store scheduled to open next month, Cayuga County residents have
several choices when needing their caffeine fix.
Starting this weekend, Auburnians will have yet another location
from which to choose.
On Saturday, Tim Bridenbecker, owner of Riverbend Coffee in the
Fingerlakes Mall, will host the grand opening of a second Riverbend
location on the ground floor of Lattimore Hall in downtown
Auburn.
In a telephone interview last week, Bridenbecker said that he
decided to open a second Riverbend store due to popular demand.
鈥淭here's been a call from the community for a coffee shop in our
downtown area,鈥 he said. 鈥淪o I'm just trying to fulfill that.鈥
The Riverbend location in the mall, which opened in June 2004,
offers gourmet chocolates and gifts in addition to coffee.
鈥淭his new shop is going to have more of a coffeehouse feel,鈥 he
said. 鈥淭he atmosphere is very comfortable. 鈥 we have leather sofas
and armchairs that will seat about 18 people, and free Wi-Fi
access.鈥
The shop will also have a full espresso bar with cappuccinos,
lattes and frozen drinks, along with a full array of pastries,
Bridenbecker continued.
鈥淎nd we'll serve Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, which is
gourmet coffee made in Vermont,鈥 he said.
Numerous recent medical studies report that regular coffee
drinkers reduce their chances of contracting Type 2 diabetes and
colon cancer, and are less likely to suffer headaches.
In addition, a report published on stated that people who drink
coffee on a regular basis are up to 80 percent less likely to
develop Parkinson's disease.
One of Bridenbecker's goals with the new shop, he said, is to
let the community decide what - and when - the shop will offer.
For now, Riverbend will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays
through Thursdays, and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
鈥淲e'll be closed on Sundays for now, but if people say they want
us to open Sunday mornings, we'll do that,鈥 he said.
Saturday's grand opening will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.,
he explained, and will feature a ribbon-cutting ceremony with
Bridenbecker's wife, Terri, who is executive director of the Cayuga
County Chamber of Commerce.
鈥淭his weekend will also be good for us because that's when the
kids will be moving into Lattimore Hall,鈥 he said.
鈥淪o we'll welcome them, and welcome everybody in the
community.鈥
