Lansford church opens cafe

A new cafe and bakery in Lansford is part of a local church’s mission to help bring together the Panther Valley community.

The Gathering Grounds Coffee Shop, located at 36 W. Ridge St., held its grand opening Saturday morning.

It’s a new ministry from Grace Community Church, a nondenominational church in Lansford. The church also owns a thrift store in the borough.

“One of the main goals that we have as a church is to try to be a center of the community in some way,” said Pastor Jeremy Benack of Grace Community Church.

The cafe, staffed by volunteers, is hoping to get up and running with breakfast and lunch six days a week.

Glennard Brooks, an experienced chef who attends Grace Community Church, has volunteered to manage the store.

Joe Serina, a retired Navy veteran and Panther Valley native, has also set up his business inside the store. Serina’s Bakery will serve pastries including pies, scones and tarts.

Brooks said he’s looking forward to the venture, and possibly working with Serina on future menu items.

“I’m absolutely excited with the whole ministry we’re going to provide here. I’m also excited to partner with Joe and do different things with him as well,” Brooks said.

Benack doesn’t view it as a coincidence that two people with experience invaluable to a cafe ended up in Lansford.

“I don’t believe in chance, I believe God brought us together at the right time, with the right connections,” he said.

Benack had wanted to open some kind of cafe in town for years. Volunteers from the church helped turn the space, which hasn’t been occupied in 15 years, into a real coffee shop, complete with an espresso bar and comfortable couches.

For starters, Brooks plans to serve breakfast items like omelets, sandwiches and eggs to order.

For lunch, he envisions items like jalapeño breaded shrimp with rémoulade, marinated coffee ancho chile chicken wings, chicken gumbo soup and a grilled marinated chicken sandwich with pesto mayo.

“We’re gonna step out of the box a little bit,” Brooks said.

Benack said he wanted to have an emphasis on fresh food.

Serina’s Bakery takes the same approach. Joe Serina makes all his fruit fillings himself.

“Sometimes I’ll go up there on a Wednesday to the farmers market, I’ll see whatever (ingredients) and decide, ‘that’s what I’ll make today,’” he said.

They plan to open the cafe from 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday. The bakery will close at 3 p.m. each day.

Saturday’s grand opening featured a member of the GCC praise band giving an acoustic performance. and a remote radio broadcast.

Benack hopes that community groups will consider the dining area, which has room for more than a dozen people, as a possible meeting area. The church’s Bible study group is already planning to use it.

Most of all, they just want to open it to the community, to come together around coffee, pastries and good food.

“Let’s face it, people don’t get together anymore. That’s why it’s called the Gathering Grounds. We wanted to give an opportunity for people to just get together and meet,” Benack said.