Justin Pogge of Sweet Pea Cafe

         

    Café owner and vegan chef extraordinaire, Justin Pogge is someone I met early on when I moved to Tallahassee. Being new to the city I tried to attend as many community gatherings as possible and let me tell you, I don’t think there was one local event where I didn’t see Justin’s smiling face. I knew he was a mechanic at Krank It Up, a volunteer based community bike shop located at Railroad Square that provides tools and parts to cyclists in return for a small donation and where Justin offers his expertise every Friday night to mechanically challenged commuters such as myself. I also knew he sat on the Board of Directors at Bread and Roses Food Cooperative, a community run grocery. Through small talk I learned that that since graduating from culinary school in 2001 he has been supporting himself by building custom bicycle frames under the moniker Old Field Cycles (the literal translation of the Muskogean word Tallahassee) and that he was in the process of opening his own café.

             

         I was a little nervous about the interview but when I walked into Sweet Pea, which opened in April, I immediately felt right at home. The café, located on W.  Tharpe, has an atmosphere reminiscent of 1950’s diners and the chalkboard menu and quirky art only adds to the charm. When I walked in Justin immediately greeted me himself and after he was finished serving the last of the lunch rush he led me to a table in the corner where I had a chance to pick his brain about the café, Tallahassee, and small businesses in general.

Me: What inspired you to open your own business? Was it something you always dreamed of or did you just fall into it?

Justin: I went to culinary school in New York and the idea of opening my own place was always in the back of my head. This place just kinda fell into my lap when my partner Rachel asked me if I wanted to do it.

Me: Can you tell me about Old Fields Cycles and why you chose to open a café instead of pursing building bikes.

Justin: Old Fields was nothing official. It was just the name I gave my bikes that I welded in my garage and sold to friends mostly. It brought in some money, but you know I went to school for culinary I had a desire to put that to use.

Me: So you have obviously been your own boss for a long time even though you are so young. What are the pros and cons of this?

Vegan Sausage Breakfast

Justin: I am able to make final decisions and have the final say. On one hand its awesome, the sky is the limit, but there is a lot of stress and you are always working.

Me: Why do you think locally owned businesses are important to the community?

Justin: While you have heard it all before. It keeps money in the community and provides jobs, but it also provides the diversity and that chains don’t.



Me: Do you think locally owned business are more affected by the downturns in the economy than chains?

Justin: In a lot of ways they are more affected. Small businesses aren't subsidized. It takes much longer for chains to feel the affects of a depression.

Me: In Tampa, where I am from, there are next to no local business. Do you think Tallahasssee is an exceptionally good place to open a small business compared to other cities?

Vegan Omelet w/ spinach, onions, and mushrooms.

Justin: Yes. There are so many organizations dedicated to local businesses and it helps that it is a college town. The government could do better though.

Me: You don’t think the local government is doing a good job supporting local businesses?

Justin: Not as much as they could be. Not like some bigger cities. They could do better especially as far as infrastructure goes. They are just doing more for to bring the chains here than to support the local businesses.

Roasted Peso Veggie Sandwich

Me: You said the infrastructure is not good. How did you go about picking this location?

Justin: It was just the best option. Finding restaurant space is Tallahassee is really difficult. This was already a café so it was easier and the price was right.

Me: There are obviously a lot of local businesses in Tallahassee and a lot of people who are dedicated to supporting them. Do you think that is a fad in Tallahassee or do you think it is here to stay?

Justin: I don’t think it’s a fad; it is more of the atmosphere. Tallahassee grew slower than a lot of cities in Florida so business had time to grow stronger. It is not just suburban sprawl like Tampa or Orlando.

Me: I know you are involved at Krank It Up and Bread and Roses, but can you tell me more about the roll you play with these organizations.

Justin: I am on the board of directors at Bread and Roses and Krank It Up; that basically means I go to all the group meetings and put in my say about the direction of the store.  And as you know I am a mechanic at Krank It Up and I work the desk at Bread and Roses once a week too.

Me: Do you think it is common for local business owners to become so involved in the community?

Justin: Oh, definitely. I was involved in the community before I was a business owner but it works both ways. You realize how important the community is and you want to support other people who are doing the same thing. Only the tofu comes from out of state, all the veggies come from Full Earth Farm in Quincy. The community kinda gets ingrained in you.

        The local business community in Tallahassee was something I was already very aware and supportive of. I work on a local farm, I frequent the local hangouts such as Black Dog and All Saints Café and I try to buy locally whenever possible, but this project shed light on the behind the scenes happenings that I never really thought much of.

          After my research and my interview with Justin I feel more able to commiserate with local business owners and my admiration and respect for them has certainly grown. When I asked Justin whether or not he felt small businesses were affected more drastically during economic downturns than chains he hesitated and chose his words carefully. I could tell this was something he had thought about a lot, yet he still chose to open up his restaurant during these hard times because it was something he believed in.

          I admire anyone who truly believes in something and I think you can tell a lot about a person by the things they pride themselves in. I could certainly hear the pride in Justin’s voice when he explained to me that all of the produce used at Sweet Pea comes fresh from local farms. Yet when I asked him to elaborate more about Old Field Cycles he down played it deeming it “just the bikes I welded in my garage” even though I personally know his hand built frames have made quite a name for themselves in the south east. Justin is a man that prides himself in how he serves that community not his own personal feats.

          I also accompanied Tyler to interview Joe of Joe’s Bike Shop. Joe and Justin are interesting to compare. Justin is young, only 30 years old, and just starting his journey in small business ownership. He is still optimistic and trying to carve his niche in Tallahassee. Joe on the other hand owns a well-established shop that has been here for twenty six years and the best adjective to describe him would be “gruff” When asked about the downside of owning your own business he simply answered “Your always f***ing working!” But his act didn’t fool me, it was obvious he loved his business and I knew him and Justin had a lot more in common than meets the eye. Both men had a certain air about them while in their own shops. Joe didn’t stop tinkering with bikes the whole interview. He removed cranks, adjusted brakes, and fixed flat tires while answering all of Tyler’s questions. Justin was much the same. I watched him sauté fresh vegetables, throw them on the plate, discard the scraps in the compost bin and quickly wash down the counter before I even had time to explain the purpose of my interview. Both men seemed so self-assured with their work and at ease in their shops it would be hard to imagine them doing anything else. It’s obvious that these two businessmen are intent on staying and working in Tallahassee and I believe the same goes for most local entrepreneurs in the area. Local business is here to stay.

Sweat Pea Café is located at 832 W. Tharpe St. Tallahassee, Fl. They are open from 12 to 7 on the weekdays and from 12 to 4 on Saturday and Sunday for brunch. I highly recommend the  the Tempeh Rueben and the homemade cucumber lemonade is a must have.