The E Squared Cafe

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'The whole recipe of good comfort food and good beer and wine and live music - you can't go wrong with that." - Matt Taylor, former Eclectic owner who is working on new venture

A makeover of the Eclectic Cafe is going to transform the former Magic Skillet, which has been vacant for some time on Washington Street in northeast Brainerd.

Jessie Borkenhagen, whose parents Chip and Jean Borkenhagen own the Lake Country Journal, purchased the old Magic Skillet building on Nov. 14.

The 21-year-old Central Lakes College student formerly worked at the Eclectic Cafe in downtown Brainerd. The cafe, known to its patrons as the E, closed in June. The new restaurant will be called the E Squared Cafe. Borkenhagen said she missed the original Eclectic Cafe and its music and wanted to do something about it.

The idea is to offer deli style food for lunch and dinner, have a bar area with craft beer, wine and specialty coffee and provide original music on Friday and Saturday nights.

Matt Taylor, who opened the original Eclectic Cafe more than 10 years ago, is helping with the operation as kitchen manager and booker of bands. In a statement about the new venture Taylor said the plan is simple: "Great food, organic/fair trade coffee and espresso, craft beer, fine wine, and of course... original live music."

Taylor and Borkenhagen were busy at work remodeling the restaurant's interior last week.

"I'm really excited about having some place to go," Taylor said.

The two said they have a lot of work to do, cleaning and remodeling. When complete, they expect to have an interior decorated with work from area artists and, of course, an eclectic mix of furnishings. Taylor said it will be more like the Eclectic Cafe as it existed on Laurel Street. The cafe moved into larger quarters around the block on Eighth Street before it closed.

"I think we'll be competitive with a lot of the fast food joints with our pricing," Taylor said. "I really think this has a lot of potential. ... The whole recipe of good comfort food and good beer and wine and live music - you can't go wrong with that."
"We were making it work," Taylor said of the E. "A lot of people said 'why did it fail?'" Taylor said he sold the business and then got it back after the new owners weren't able to make it work and he was unable to build the business back up to where it was.

The Magic Skillet has been through several failed attempts of its own in recent history. It was last licensed as a food establishment more than two years ago. But the recent remodeling activity has people stopping by to wonder just what is going inside. Taylor said that kind of buzz is welcome.

And the fact that the restaurant building has been vacant for so long helped make the cost to start the business better in a tough economy. Taylor said Jeff Nagorski of Big Lake owned the building and was willing to make it work with Borkenhagen.

"But it doesn't really scare me," Taylor said of the business climate. He said cafe style is affordable for people to eat out and while people may cut back on big ticket purchases, they still want something fun to do and are still seeking entertainment. Taylor said he remembers the business struggle after Sept. 11 and he thinks people are still going to make the choice to go out.

The E Squared Cafe's menu items include a four cheese veggie wrap and what is called the "big pig" - a wrap with ham and bacon and veggies. Other dishes include a vegetable panini sandwich with ham and cheese and grilled cheese panini.

"I think we'll be competitve with a lot of the fast food joints with our pricing," Taylor said. "I really think this has a lot of potential. ... The whole recipe of good comfort food and good beer and wine and live music - you can't go wrong with that."

Borkenhagen said the effort to open a new business, even without prior business ownership experience of her own, isn't too much. She expects to graduate at the end of this semester with an associate's degree and dive into the work. She said her parents' knowledge as business owners will be a big help along with others, like Taylor, who are supporting the effort.

It wasn't a decision she struggled with.

"I just kind of just thought of it and decided to go with it," she said. "There is quite a bit of work but it's going very well so far we have a lot of people helping us."

Taylor and Borkenhagen were busy working on kitchen tiling and planned to paint - green walls and a dark ceiling. The raised seating area inside the restaurant will serve as a stage area for the weekend bands. A new counter is going in for the bar. The restaurant will seat about 50 people.

So why should people stop?

Borkenhagen said the restaurant will focus on organic food as much as possible and include locally grown produce andthe cafe will be a venue for new bands and music. She said people are excited the E is going to be back.

RENEE RICHARDSON, senior reporter, may be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.