Marty Accardi was most eager to open up the new and improved Brekky, Wading River’s coffee spot, to have a space for customers to come in and stay.
Before opening up in its bigger location last week, Accardi, the owner, remembers the previous place as small, to say the least.
“We had a tiny little shop, barely 300 square feet. And it was great. We loved the area, loved being down by the park, by the community, but it was really, really tight,” he said. “As we started to grow and get busier, it was impossible to work back there with two or three people.”
The new location is situated just a few doors down, where North Fork Bacon and Smokehouse closed in 2018. Once Accardi took it over, he spent three months on the renovation, expanding the space to allow for a few tables and adding an espresso machine to make the business a full-service coffee shop. Accardi also brought in a local artist to paint a mural on one of the walls.
“We wanted to change the look, so we exposed the rafters. We like that kind of old look,” he said. “Really nothing major, mostly cosmetic.”
The move, along with the renovations, has meant a better space for both his employees and the customers, who come in for their morning coffee and the popular açaí bowls.
“Number one, now we don’t have to trip over each other. But more importantly, now we have three indoor tables that people can sit and hang out at,” Accardi said. “That was a big part, because before we had no place to stay.”
“It has given me space to think about expansion in the future,” he continued. “We are running some ideas and things we might do in the near future. For now, we are sticking to the basic menu but with plans to grow.”
Accardi said he’s happy he now has an area for his customers to stick around after ordering their dose of caffeine.
“I am most excited that people can hang out, and we can talk,” he said. “My whole premise for opening this shop in the first place is that I envisioned myself being able to stand by the counter and talk to my customers and get to know people — the community. So now we can kind of gather enough people to sit down and stay for awhile and talk … it’s exciting.”
Brekky, located at 2 Sound Road in Wading River, is open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday 7 a.m. to 4 p.m..