Jim Fair
Susan and Les Burgess are frequent visitors to the Stomping Ground. The expanded menu give visitors more options. Susan is a guidance counselor at Chapman High School and Lee is a behavioral therapis at Project Hope.
Jim Fair
Seth, 6, and Abigail, 5, get to play while their mother studies after work. The kids-friendly menu offers lunch and dinner options and speciality milkshakes and desserts.
Jim Fair
The Chocolate Toad Bakery is near completion with the hole cut out connecting the main part of the coffee shop with the bakery kitchen.
Jim Fair
The Stomping Grounds opened in January 2012 with two menu boards. It has three boards touting its wide assortment of beverages and specialty drinks, to breakfast/lunch/dinner food offerings and in July a wide assortment of in-house produced bakery items.
Sheila Springfield will become the baker in residence at the popular downtown coffee and wine bar in mid-July. It won’t be hard to find her. Just look for the cutout wall in the back of the shop that gives a view into the bakery.
The bakery was formerly a dining room reserved for customers hosting associates or meetings.
“I went with the name to build off ‘Toads On Trade’ that Jason (Clark) promoted downtown,” Springfield said.
Springfield will offer a menu of favorite pastries, cakes, pies and other desserts. Already featured are cinnamon buns, cherry kutchen, ginger apricot scones, chocolate espresso brownies, Morning Glory muffins, pecan pie and chocolate chip cookies. She will also take specialty orders.
Lisa Garland, proprietor and manager, said Springfield will dazzle customers with her signature tomato pie.
Garland has expanded the menu at Stomping Grounds, offering more diverse lunch and dinner items.
Regular customers are honored with sandwiched named after or have personal significance to Garland.
• Grey’s Grilled Pimento on ciabatta or Texas toast & side. $5.75.
• The Davenport: Homemade chicken salad on a grilled pita with lettuce and tomato & a side. $6.85.
• The SG Club: Turkey, cheese and mustard on the bottom layer. Bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayo on the top. Toasted & a side. $6.95.
There are a half dozen wraps – ham, turkey, roast beef, chicken salad, grilled chicken Caesar and veggie – that are offered in combination.
Interestingly, when Garland opened the coffee shop in January 2012, the menu fit on two menu boards positioned behind the counter. Now it takes three boards with no writing space to spare.
Stomping Grounds is at 208 Trade Street. Call 801-1555 or visit here.