Something new at the Table

ome people just need that morning pick-me-up. Whether it’s a hot cup of fresh-roasted coffee, a cool taste of frozen latte, or a fruitflavored energy drink, Steven Papke and Alije Adams have been serving up the sparks to start people’s day since March 2021 at Sophie’s Cafe in Sterling —and as it turned out, it didn’t take long for them to find that their own cup would runneth over.

Business steadily picked up at their storefront in Pine Tree Plaza on East Lincolnway. Customers liked what Sophie’s was serving and they kept coming back for more. The lines got longer and they realized they might have a little problem, albeit a good one, on their hands: too many customers and too little space. Cutting back on customers was out, but finding more space? That option was definitely on the table.

“At our Sterling location, we were running into the problem where there just wasn’t enough space to give the people the type of service that we wanted to give them,” Papke said. “When you have a line to the door, people say that’s a good thing. No, it’s not. You’re upsetting everyone. They come to your establishment and they can’t relax and enjoy their cup coffee. When you have 30 people in the room, the totality of the experience is ruined. We don’t want to tell people not to come, so we decided to have another location to try and spread it out. SOPHIE’S cont’d to page 42

Steven Papke and Alije Adams opened Sophie's Cafe in March 2021 in Sterling, and its popularity led them to open a second location in Rock Falls this February. “We didn't expect a large following right off the bat,” Adams said. ... “It really took off quickly, and it's been so great."

CODY CUTTER/ CCUTTER@ SAUKVALLEY.COM

It was around that time that they noticed the site of a former restaurant in Rock Falls needed a new owner. Since they needed more space, it was a match that went together like coffee and cream. “We didn’t expect a large following right off the bat,” Adams said. “Maybe it was the anticipation of something new, because everyone gets excited when there’s something new in town. It really took off quickly, and it’s been so great.” Today, the former Family Table in Rock Falls is home to a second Sophie’s. The larger location opened in February, just under a year after the first Sophie’s opened, giving the Adams plenty of room to keep those lines from getting too long. Adding a second location so soon is no small feat, but it tells the couple that they must have hit on a recipe for success, a recipe that includes their signature beverages as well as breakfast, appetizers, gourmet sandwiches, salads, sweet treats, made-from-scratch bakery items, and more. On most days, Adams runs the Sterling Sophies at Pine Tree Plaza Decadent de- on East Lincolnway, and Papke oversees the Rock Falls location on lights; coffee and a the corner of U.S. Route 30 and 12th Avenue. Though running two long list of lattes; teas and locations has kept the couple busy, and apart more than before, refreshers; comfort food; pastries they’re willing to go the extra miles to build on their success. that are hard to pass up, and much “Right now, we’re good,” Papke said. “If we need to branch more — there’s plenty to pick from on off to a third, we will.” Sophie’s menu. And if you want to en- Sophie’s, named after the couple’s daughter, Sophia, 3, joy some of Sophie’s coffees at home offers dozens of different types of coffees, cappuccinos and or need a gift for a coffee-lover you lattes, and customers are welcome to try a sample before orknow, stop by and pick up a dering. All of the coffee is roasted in-house. bag of beans. Other hot drinks include an Americano, a combination of SVM PHOTOS espresso and hot water; coffee with a shot of espresso, called the red eye; and a matcha green tea latte, a blend of Japanese matcha with vanilla and steamed milk. Lattes include blends of caramel either salted or non-salted, white chocolate, chai, oat milk honey, and, of course, the traditional hot chocolate. Can’t get enough coffee at the cafe? Their grinds are available in 2-ounce bags, both the basics and blends such as highlander grogg, blueberry crumble, praline and honey, mocha java, jingle bell java, Jamaican me crazy, almond amaretto and a Seattle blend. Each bag comes with a short description of the blend. If you’re thirsty and hungry, Sophie’s has got you covered, from breakfast to dinner. Jumbo cinnamon rolls have been a big seller in the morning. There are also breakfast sandwiches, including The Richard: a sausage patty, egg, and peanut butter and banana on a ciabatta (“Don’t knock it ’til you try it!”, the menu says). Later in the day, you can start out with an appetizer or salad, or go straight to one of several gourmet sandwiches: chicken, ham and turkey, grilled cheeses, a banana Nutella Sammy (a decadent treat for breakfast, lunch or dessert), chicken pesto, pulled turkey and more. The mac-and-cheese bowls are a newer addition to the menu, each with blends of cheddar, cream and asiago cheeses. Each bowl has its own twist, such as the Smokin’ Mac, with pulled pork mixed in and barbecue sauce on top, as well as the Italian-themed Mobster Mac, with pepperoni and capicola, along with mozzarella and oregano cheeses. Adams once worked for her parents at family restaurants they’ve owned in Mount Morris and Elgin, an experience which helped when she was putting together her own menu. She also keeps her ears open to hear what customers want, too. While many of the recipes are her own, some have come from customer suggestions.

“We listen to the com- Sophie’s offers a munity and hear what comfortable and casual they want,” Adams atmosphere where customers said. “Each quarter can pull up a chair and eat or kick we’ve been adding back on a couch and enjoy a cup of more things to the coffee with friends. “We want to make menu and making this place as inviting and relaxing as it more fun and possible,” Alije Adams said. “It’s nice to exciting.” be able to sit down with friends ...

If you want to and just feel at home.” keep your cool, cold CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@ drinks are available, SAUKVALLEY.COM from a simple lemonade to more adventurous drinks. Energy drinks are also in the mix, with more than 20 different fruit blends, such as the tropic thunder with coconut, mango and pineapple; a Fred Flintstone with apricot, peach and cherry; and a Blak-n-Yello with blackberry and lemon. Customers can come up with their own creations, too.

“There’s an endless amount of combinations you can make here,” Adams said. “People can come here and be creative; it’s not just all from us. They can look at our list of syrups and concoct whatever they want. It’s fun for the baristas because we like to learn and try new things, and it breaks up the monotony, and the customers can also experiment, too.”

If a new idea catches on, it might be added to the menu.

“It’s so worth it,” Adams said. “It’s great seeing people happy and enjoy something we made for them. It’s fun to experiment with an idea that you never thought of, but a customer comes in and orders it, and you’ll think, ‘I never thought about putting those two things together,’ and yet it works.”

Alcohol is also available at the Sterling location.

Both locations have a comfortable and casual atmosphere: There’s the usual tables and chairs, but customers can also kick back and relax on couches, chatting with friends or watching TV. Free wi-fi also is available. The Sterling location also has small gifts for sale, and a room with six gambling machines.

“We want to make this place as inviting and relaxing as possible,” Adams said. “It’s nice to be able to sit down with friends around a coffee table and have coffee, with music or a show in the background, and just feel at home.”

The couple met while working as correctional officers at the Dixon state prison, Papke worked there for 6 years, and Adams for 5 before they decided to trade their uniforms in and wear a different hat, as business owners. Adams was itching to get back into the food business that she grew up around, and Papke was more than willing to utilize his business degree to make the idea become a reality.

“There’s that transition period in life where we were working shift schedules, the same thing every day,” Papke said. “You hit a ceiling, and hit a point to where, even if you have energy and drive, you just can’t do it anymore. You want to go into something else where there’s no ceiling. We can work at our own pace, bring our own energy to the business, and there’s nobody slowing us down. I can work from sunup to sundown, no one’s going to tell me no. I can work 4 hours. I like that.”

Another popular feature has been contact-free mobile ordering, for those who don’t want to dine in. The full menu is available on Facebook, and ordering can be done by downloading an app to your phone.

Want to join the club? Sophie’s has a coffee club program where customers pay a monthly fee for a drink a day — espressos, brews, refreshers and energy drinks (no alcohol). Once you join the club, you just stop by for your drink and a flash your member card and photo ID.

“It excites me when people get excited about our products and the things that we are doing,” Adams said. “That, honestly, is the fuel to my fire.” n Sophie’s Cafe is open 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday, both in the Pine Tree Plaza shopping center, 4311 East Lincolnway, Suite F in Sterling, and at 1204 West U.S. Route 30 in Rock Falls. Cash, debit/credit cards, Google Pay and Apple Pay are accepted at both locations. Online: shopsophiescoffee. com and on Facebook or Instagram (@sophies.cafe. sterling) Contact: 815-718-8518 or sophiescafe01@gmail.com