Before Cheryl Beaver took over Blue Window Cafe in December 2016, she was looking to start a business—a gift shop with an attached coffee bar—in downtown Bartlett, about 25 miles northeast of Georgetown. But when the cafe’s original owner, Lauren deVries, decided to sell the business, Beaver said the opportunity and timing were perfect. Now, as Beaver has started making updates to the business, her focus has been to keep things simple and feature menu items she expects customers to find familiar, she said. “It reminds them of home. It reminds them of the old days or something they haven’t had before or just a family meal,” Beaver said. “It’s the comfort food that you would get at home.” Since taking over the cafe, Beaver has made several menu changes. She makes everything in-house, including pastries, soups and sandwiches. Blue Window Cafe offers daily hot soup and hot sandwich specials. The tomato basil soup is popular enough that Beaver will often put it on the menu as a special several times per week, she said. Another menu item, the chicken and dumplings, is probably the cafe’s best seller, she said. “It’s amazing how many people will come in and they either don’t know what chicken and dumplings is about, or they will say, ‘I haven’t had that since I was a kid,’” Beaver said. Much of her regular business comes from people who live nearby the cafe, which is located near Georgetown High School, but Beaver said she also gets regular customers from Sun City. “They spread the word,” she said. “They’re really good about, if they like something, going back and telling people.” The cafe is meant to be more of a grab-and-go type of restaurant rather than a full-service eatery, but Beaver has a small seating area in a room adjacent to the front counter and coffee bar, and she encourages customers to order food or drinks and eat in, she said. Blue Window Cafe also offers catering services, Beaver said.

Blue Window Cafe 1911 N. Austin Ave., Ste. 302, Georgetown 512-942-9530 www.facebook.com/bluewindowcafe Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., closed Sat.-Sun.