New specialty cheese shop opens on Chapman

The new Chapman Street Market, specialty cheese shop with bread, crackers and meats, has opened and will add more specialty items as time, tastes and needs develop. Co-owners Cathy Mindel and Grant Young want to keep the market interesting. They are planning a daily lunch special with a menu that will change every day or every other day. Since they opened August 27, they are still getting a feel of what customers want, starting with cheese and meats, breads, teas, and olive oils and they’ll see where it goes from here. The cheeses they sell are not sold elsewhere in Ely, and the closest other specialty cheese shop is the Northern Waters Smoke House in Duluth. Cathy and Grant bought Northern Aire Lodge in 1996 and operated it for seven years. Cathy used to ask her friends to bring up some cheese and crusty bread when they’d come to visit. That’s what got her started doing this – nobody else has specialized in these cheeses and she saw a little niche in town that she could fill. They wanted to stay in town after they sold the resort and this is the plan that came out of last winter. It’s been fun remodeling the Car Quest building with sunny yellow walls and checkered floor. Coolers and racks line the walls with space in front for the tables overlooking Chapman Street. Cathy loves Chapman Street. It feels cozy, she says. The cheese selection has a good mix with domestic artisan cheeses and imported French, Dutch, Greek and Spanish cheeses. Also available are American cheeses with goat, gouda and organic cheeses. The stock will keep changing. The cheese industry itself is growing so the selection will also increase. The Chapman Street Market offers five varieties of olives, dry cured sausages, meat and vegetarian spreads (paté) as well as specialty teas and sparkling pear water. They may also carry deli meats.Grant says his wife knows everything. Even though he’s the co-owner, he says “Cathy’s the gist of this. I’m the helper and trainee.” Cathy graduated from Chef School in 1990 and cooked for several restaurants around Minneapolis. She was pastry chef at Nicollette Island Inn in Minneapolis. The last job in Minneapolis was catering for Design Cuisine which was Marshall Fields’ company. During this time Grant was the drummer in the rock band, Soul Asylum, for 10 years in Minneapolis and toured the country and the world. He is wondering what the French title for someone who is a Sandwich Chef for a living. If you have a suggestion stop in at the Chapman Street Market and let them know. They also welcome other requests for products and possibilities. What else does Ely need? Come in and see where this may go from here.