Hello all. Today we would like to introduce the other business that is going to call the J.W. Houston House home….Cafe Eclipse. We are going to start this blog off like the rest…with the room itself. Let’s get started shall we.
This room started off a pale yellowish color and it has one long window. The fireplace mantel was not attached to the wall. It had a white with gold trim ceiling fan and 4 recessed lighting fixtures.
We painted three of the walls with Valspar 4000 Eggshell Finish Paint in Clay Angel. The fourth wall has been painted with Valspar 4000 Satin Finish Paint in Hematite. The ceiling and recess lighting covers have been painted with a flat ceiling paint in white and the crown molding, trim, and fireplace mantle have been painted using Valspar 4000 Semi-Gloss Finish in White.
We replaced the ceiling fan with a black metal chandelier and painted the Allen + Roth White Composite Ceiling Medallion using Valspar 4000 Semi-Glass Finish Paint in Tricorn Black. We replaced all the recess light bulbs with Great Value 9W LED Daylight Floodlights and bought GE 1W Flicker Flame LED bulbs for the chandelier. There is an added touch that we will be putting on the chandelier; however, we might just keep that as a surprise.
The floors will remain the original flooring. We will steam clean them and treat them with Howard Feed-N-Wax Beeswax & Orange Oil Wood Polish & Conditioner. The mantle has been put back in place and the tiles we used for the hearth is FloorPops Altair Peel & Stick Floor Tiles – Black. Once again, this is not what we wanted originally, but it can always be replaced at a later date.
After the painting and lighting was complete, and the building began. First, we added two Hematite colored shelves with gold brackets along the Hematite colored wall. Then we placed the pastry unit and counters where they belong and front façade was built, trimmed out, and painted white. We added frames along the Hematite wall and we are adding gold-colored utensils in some of the frames. This is a work in progress. We are placing these items as we find the ones that we like.
We found six beautiful black metal bistro chairs with wood seats that we loved. We had three black metal table legs and we and bought three Reliabilt 1”x36” Radius Edge Unfinished Pine Board. We stained them using Minwax Satin Stain in Gunstock to finish off these bistro sets.
We decide to add a two-seat bar area when we found two black metal bar stools with wood seating that matched the bistro sets. We also placed four floating corner shelves above the bar area. These shelves we painted using Valspar 4000 Semi-Gloss Finish Paint in Tricorn Black. The three bistro sets have been placed on the wall with the window. So, inside Café Eclipse there will be seating for eight. There are plans to have two to four bistro sets on the front porch and a seating area with a small table in the yard for the café’s patrons who want to sit outside and enjoy the day. This is where we will leave with the construction of the café.
Now we would like to introduce everyone to the owner of Café Eclipse, Kristoff Kesler. Kristoff is a 37 -year-old world culinary degreed chef, husband, and father. He has been in the food industry since he was 16-years-old. He graduated at the top of his class with honors from Le’Cole Culinaire and completed his internship with Flight in downtown Memphis, TN. Up until the Covid pandemic hit, he worked at managing and successfully flipping a few well-known restaurants in the Memphis area. Since the pandemic, he has been working as a chef at the Highlander Scottish Pub on the square in Collierville, TN. This amazing chef also teaches kid’s cooking classes when he has spare time. Below is a picture of Kristoff and celebrity chef Maneet Chauhan.
Café Eclipse will be a café, where patrons can come for coffee, tea, dessert items, and a few savory items as well. Unfortunately, at this time, we are not allowed to say what is actually on the menu. Kristoff wants to keep some things a surprise. However, we can say this much, this man knows his stuff and what we have sampled, we love! And don’t worry, he has experience in creating menus! We can’t wait for all of Collierville and the surrounding areas can truly meet this amazing chef and taste the wonderful items that he will have to offer. We are sure that you will enjoy his menu as much as we do! The pictures below are just some of the dishes that Kristoff has made over the years.
We are getting closer and closer to having an opening date; however, this is where we will leave you at this time. We thank you for taking the time to follow our journey. If you would like to help you can contact us in the ways listed below. Thank you, Collierville, our friends, our family, and our employees for your time, support, and your love! All of our information is below if you would like to follow, volunteer, or donate to the preservation of the J.W. Houston House (“the Manor”).
or if you would like to help with a donation: https://www.spotfund.com/story/5dfade47-dc05-493c-91b2-e45356b9a24d?fbclid=IwAR10zSj5PoDijNSZO8Tz1ScdSAUxt3nculDSGeVVLaaDY461G3P42dWed5c&SFID=HoustonHouse
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