Nutritious & Delicious
Nutritious & Delicious
Find a wide variety of healthy eating options at The Reserve in Great Valley
Generally, it’s safe to say that we all love to eat, and it’s also safe to say that maybe we need to eat a little healthier (I know, I know). Where can we go to grab something fulfilling, tasty but not artery clogging? Well, you can always travel down to 4795 US-219 in Great Valley and visit The Reserve Farm Shop.
Just six minutes away from Ellicottville, The Reserve is an organic grocery store and cafe. They offer some fabulous products from local farms and area businesses like potatoes, apples, and other fresh fruits and veggies. Not to mention they also carry local skin care products as well. But they aren’t just a lovely place to get some high-end groceries - the cafe is where they highlight their skills.
The owner shared that, “As soon as you step into our shop, you are welcomed by customers waiting in line for the most commonly sought out item.” That item is their smoothies! They’ve got the Strawberry Glaze, created with coconut cream, strawberry compote and protein, and flax milk; the Cacao Peanut Butter, made with flax milk, espresso, coconut cream, and of course the aforementioned cacao, and peanut butter; the Blue Cloud (my personal favorite), which has tropical fruit, blue spirulina, nut milk, and scratch-made whipped coconut cream! Then there is the newest smoothie creation, the Berry Bliss. Full of fruity goodness from strawberries and blueberries that’s mixed with cinnamon, oat milk, coconut cream and vanilla protein. They all sound delicious right? They are, and that’s what people wait in line for.
But they aren’t a one trick pony. They offer Buffalo’s most popular nitro line of beverages including: nitro oat milk lattes, nitro blueberry peach tea, nitro lemonade, and will soon be serving nitro cider on tap as well. They also have a lovely selection of breakfast options like honey peanut butter toast, sprouted wheat bagels, and a variety of pastries like warm sourdough cinnamon rolls and danishes.
“Another of our popular menu items are the sourdough pizzas that we make fresh to order,” the owner added. “We offer three choices: 4 cheese, Margherita, and Garlic Cream.” These delightful pies are put together on a base of handmade sourdough crust. The Garlic Cream is topped with 9-month aged cheddar, parmigiano, fresh garlic, charred dinosaur kale, and Calabrian chiles. And that’s just one of the three - you’ll have to order one for yourself to find out what the other two are like!
If you’re in a hurry but you don’t want to wait, you can always swing over to their cases and see what’s on offer in their grab and go case. The owner said, “‘Built Without Guilt’ is the brand we carry for our ready made meals. My sister-in-law owns this Buffalo based business and is the only organic meal prep you can find in our local region. Every month we switch our menu to offer five different meal options.” Some of those offerings can be chicken parm, fajita bowls, frittatas, granola, and more You can view this month’s options at https://builtwithoutguilt.club/menu.
Also, their freezers are packed with sprouted sourdough items like breads, bagels, pizza, and desserts. They also serve top of the line mushroom items from Flat 12 Mushrooms (the owner’s husband’s line of work) where they feature lion’s mane coffee, tinctures, fire cider, and fresh grown lion’s mane, blue oyster, and shiitake mushrooms.
“Fun fact: our top selling items by default are Dated Nutrition products (the owner's second business), Flat 12 Mushrooms (husband’s line of work) and Built Without Guilt (owner’s sister-in-law’s business). So I guess you can say The Reserve is intentionally and unintentionally a family based business!”
It is definitely the perfect one-stop shop for grocery items, organic grab-n-go meals, and locally made skin care products. But it’s more than that - it has a new more modern and easily accessible healthy fresh food vibe that our area has been lacking, all while supporting other local businesses and farms. A true community gem.
The Reserve is open through the fall and winter Thursday & Friday from 9:00am-5:00pm and Saturday & Sunday from 9:00am-3:00pm, closed Monday-Wednesday. So while you’re wandering around Ellicottville this weekend, trying all the great dishes, don’t forget to take a little trip to The Reserve to re-energize your system and grab some snacks for the road.
More information on The Reserve can be found on their Facebook or at their website, thereservemarket.com.
