Verns Cheese under new ownership after 59 years
Jolly Good Soda – now that’s cool!
July 29, 2024
FOND DU LAC – As someone who describes herself as “highly caffeinated,” Nichole Blanck – owner of Lake Aire Coffee Bar in Fond du Lac – said owning the shop is a dream come true.
“What girl doesn’t want to have a coffee shop and build it from scratch and pick out every detail?” she said. “I have so many things I want to do here, and I’m not even half done. This setting gives you endless possibilities with flavors and the food you can create. How fun is that?”
Opening about a year ago at N8751 Lake Shore Drive in Fond du Lac, Blanck said Lake Aire Coffee Bar puts a fresh spin on what many folks consider a morning necessity.
The coffee bar offers hot and cold coffee drinks, Italian sodas, protein drinks, Boba, hot chocolate, various teas, baked goods and breakfast items, which are locally sourced from several local vendors, including Aviator Coffee, the M-Tea Kettle, Operation Coffee, Hangry Dave’s and Romero’s taco truck, among others.
Ziegler Winery wines are also for sale.
The journey to here
Blanck said she grew up in the restaurant business, helping out at her parents’ restaurant in Fond du Lac.
She said she was put on the payroll at age 10, making $5.25 an hour.
“I was my mom’s go-to,” she said.
At 17, with the desire for weekends off and a break from her parents’ business, Blanck said she got a job at a supper club in Malone (though now owned by a different family, it is still open today).
Working as a hostess and then cook in the heyday of supper clubs, she said, suited her personality and lifestyle.
“I was working full-time, making bank,” she said. “At a supper club back then, it was nothing but money.”
Eventually, Blanck said she and her husband, Scott, purchased Blanck’s Lake Aire Supper Club in Fond du Lac, which had been in the family for decades – and is the site of the coffee shop today.
Things were humming along nicely, she said, until the COVID-19 shutdown in 2020.
Blanck said the supper club reopened with abbreviated operating hours when the mandates were lifted, but the business climate for supper clubs had changed, along with the ability to staff them.
After some soul-searching, she said they decided to close the supper club and explore other opportunities.
“I’ve loved this business my whole life,” she said. “But as our kids got older, I was missing out on a lot and honestly, missing a little of my love for it – not the customers but the amount of work you put in, that sort of thing.”
Around that time, Blanck said she had been hearing about “ghost” kitchens.
According to the “Restaurant Business,” ghost kitchens – which are sometimes referred to as cloud or dark kitchens – are virtual restaurants operating out of existing restaurant’s kitchens and focusing on food delivery or take-out.
Such kitchens can serve as money-savers for vendors, who can share the space with multiple people and avoid carrying overhead costs on their own.
Blanck said she reached out to people in the industry to learn more about the concept and began networking to find vendors that needed kitchen space.
After EAA 2023, Blanck said she set a closing date for the supper club and lined up five renters for the kitchen space.
Today, they have 11 using the rental kitchen, which is fully equipped with walk-in coolers, a freezer, prep tables and more.
“It’s been nothing but growth for that, which has been great,” she said.
Soon after, Blanck said the coffee bar opened
Not just a coffee shop
In addition to providing food and drinks, Blanck said she rents the coffee bar out for various events, including showers, parties, children’s theme days, plant swaps, networking events and more.
The events, she said, have helped build name recognition after re-branding from the supper club.
This summer, Blanck said Lake Aire Coffee Bar is hosting a social media summer series hosted by Jessica Williams, owner of Whimsical Celebrations event company.
The workshops, Williams said, are designed to help small businesses boost their online presence and drive business growth.
“As a small business owner, I deeply appreciate and encourage support for local businesses,” she said. “I created the summer social media series because it offers a free, invaluable platform for marketing, especially when budgets are tight.”
Williams said Lake Aire Coffee Bar is not just a “charming new spot but a community gem everyone needs to experience.”
“The owner is a beacon of light in our community – fun, caring and creative,” she said. “She plants seeds of opportunity and nurtures them to bloom. Her coffee bar is designed to help vendors and other businesses build confidence and grow. It has been the perfect venue for workshops, with attendance ranging from eight to 12 people, where we can enjoy coffee and tea while connecting and learning together.”
Blanck said in the future, she intends to add “grab-and-go” items like sandwiches and lunches to Lake Aire’s menu and other things to entice people to check out the business.
She said she’s pleased her children have witnessed the evolution the business has taken in such a short time.
“I love that my kids can be a part of it and see how we built the business,” she said. “To have them see us rebuild into a whole new thing and see us change with the times – I’m happy they’re able to see that.”
For more information, visit lakeairecoffeebar.com.
