Gourmet food and specialty fare offered in new Auburn shop.
AUBURN – When Dore Campbell spotted freshly made sushi at local grocery stores, she knew it was time to launch the dream she’d been nurturing for four years.
“I knew the area was ready,” she said.
On Monday her dream comes true when she opens the door to Dore’s Cafe and Market. The gourmet cafe and gift store will offer a range of specialty sandwiches, salads, breakfasts, party trays, pastries and gift baskets.
Its location on Union Street near Center Street ensures a lot of traffic and visibility. She’s counting on the quality and variety of her food to ensure steady customers.
“There was never anywhere like this where I would want to go and eat,” said Campbell, who started the business with her husband, Ryan. “People go to Portland to specialty sandwich stores. The disparity struck me.”
Campbell said while she was conducting her market research, some people tried to persuade her to open her gourmet shop in Yarmouth “where the money is.”
“I think L-A got a bad rap,” said Campbell. “It’s got such potential.”
It’s clear Campbell is proud of her operation. She notes that her sandwiches offer generous portions – 4 ounces of meat rather than the customary 1 ounce – and that all the salads are freshly made. The sandwich menu offers the traditional deli sandwiches and some things to appeal to the more adventurous – mozzarella, basil and tomato sandwich, and a breast of chicken with peppers are two possibilities. There are also panini grilled sandwiches. Likewise, the salads run from the expected to a marinated, grilled chicken salad and a cold sesame noodle salad.
Campbell hopes to appeal to a business clientele by preparing box lunches that contain a sandwich, chips and a cookie or pasta salad and a brownie. She offers delivery service as well. And a small conference room will be available for rentals just off the cafe’s kitchen.
“It’ll smell wonderful,” she said with a smile.
The shop has seating for about 35 at small bistro-style tables and chairs. One section of the shop has racks of gourmet food items – many of them made in Maine – for sale. There are blueberry jams, dessert toppings, dry rubs, marinades, nuts, Haven’s chocolates and other items. Campbell is also offering a gift service: making baskets of products and delivering them.
Once the shop is under way, she hopes to offer pastry classes with her pastry chef, Theresa Hyatt. She’s planned a holiday dessert class for later this month and hopes to offer basic cooking classes thereafter.
Campbell has extensive experience in retail. A Virginia native, she spent eight years managing a similar cafe there before moving to Maine to raise a family. She spent two years working at Williams-Sonoma in Portland.
“It’s important to know your customers by name,” she said. “I really value customer service, and a place has to have personality.”
Luckily, both qualities come easily to her.
“My philosophy is ‘If you don’t like what you’re doing, get out of it,'” she said. “I happen to love what I’m doing.”
Comments are no longer available on this story