By Christina Leadlay (This article originally appeared in the December 2021 edition of the New Edinburgh News)
Coffee showroom opens in old bank
After almost five years sitting vacant, the former Bank of Montreal location at 14 Beechwood Ave. has the lights back on and soon will have the doors open, thanks to the arrival of Advanced Coffee Solutions, set to open on Dec. 1.
But rest assured that this is not just another coffee shop!
Advanced Coffee Solutions is a showroom for high-quality coffee equipment, supplying coffee-related products to businesses and directly to consumers, according to managing director Nikhil Rath, who founded the company with his wife Karawan Ahmed.
“We were naturally attracted to this site, as we are long-time residents of the neighbourhood and we have been operating our business out of the offices upstairs at 6 Beechwood Ave.” Nikhil explains in an email to the New Edinburgh News.
“[The site] had many challenges, as it had been purpose designed for the bank,” he said. “We are very happy to see the space open again.”
Advanced Coffee Solutions is a new division of Acacia Tree Farms, a four-year-old business focussed on sourcing the best green coffee beans directly from farmers in Ethiopia’s Harar region. Nikhil notes: “the Harar bean is one of the storied coffee beans in the world, and, as yet underrepresented in North America,” and that he and Karawan looks forward to introducing it to coffee lovers.
Also behind Advanced Coffee Solutions is the Ottawa-based Happy Goat Coffee chain and leading coffee equipment companies (such as BUNN, Nuvo Simonelli, San Remo and others) to offer “advanced coffee solutions” – products and machines – to both consumers and businesses, explains Nikhil. Until now, Acacia Tree Farms had been importing, roasting and processing the coffee beans for other businesses. But with Advanced Coffee Solutions, they will be offering their products directly to consumers.
In addition to selling coffee equipment (which includes servicing, installation and training), Advanced Coffee Solutions will also sell hot brewed coffee, cold brew nitrogen coffee and fresh roasted whole beans, all on a “pick up and go” basis, Nikhil tells NEN. He notes they are developing a smartphone app which will allow clients to track and trace their coffee “all the way back to the farmer who harvested it and to tip your farmer or contribute to a sustainable development goal in the region supporting various projects.” Customers will also be able to order and pay through a forthcoming app.
For Nikhil, running a business on Beechwood Avenue is a return home. Born and raised in New Edinburgh, he studied business at Algonquin College. After many years of working and living across the globe (including in California, Dubai, and Malaysia), Nikhil and Karawan returned to Canada to set up a cold-brew coffee facility in Toronto. They later moved to Ottawa to be closer to family.
Advanced Coffee Solutions is located at 14 Beechwood Ave. Contact them at 613-656-7362 or advancedcoffeesolutions.com.
Dhruvees to open Dec. 9
Owner Donald Wingell and his team have been working around the clock at 18 Beechwood Ave., preparing to open New Edinburgh’s newest restaurant, Dhruvees, located in the former Jasper restaurant site.
Donald confirmed to New Edinburgh News in late November that Dhruvees, featuring spice-laden dishes from countries in and around the Indian sub-continent, aims to open around Dec. 9.
NEN got a sneak peek at the menu, which looks delicious. Indian cuisine staples including samosas, pakoras, biryanis and tandoori items (including seafood) will be available. But the item which will likely make Dhruvees stand out is the Sri Lankan lamprais which are described on the menu as rice, vegetables and protein “placed inside a banana leaf to create a parcel […] baked in the oven” and served with accompaniments including hard-boiled egg, pickles, and vegetable curry.
Is your mouth watering yet?
NEN looks forward to providing a fuller profile of Dhruvees and its team in our next edition. But with the colder weather settling in this month, it is exciting to have a new restaurant nearby offering spicy dishes to keep hungry Burgh residents warm!
Dhruvees will be open for dine-in, take-out and delivery at 18 Beechwood Ave. Call 613-744 7888 or find them online at dhruvees.com/media. Also follow them on your social media of choice (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok).
Farewell to Le Suq
After it celebrated one year in business at 141 Beechwood Ave. this past fall, Le Suq has closed its doors. The Levantine food store is still running its Hintonburg location at 1175 Wellington St. W. The last reference to the Beechwood location was on their Facebook page on Sept. 29. Owner Donald Batal opened the Beechwood location (where Jacobsons used to be), back on Sept. 1, 2020. In its short life, Le Suq has tried out a couple of locations in Ottawa, including one on Preston Street, also now closed. Here’s hoping they have found their forever home in Hintonburg! Donald is also involved in Hushh Burgers, a “ghost kitchen” (delivery only) last seen operating at the former Tim Hortons at 360 St. Patrick St. NEN reached out to Donald, but was unable to get a comment about Le Suq’s closure. At press time, 141 Beechwood Ave. site is available for rent.
