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James Pharmacy and Soda Fountain will reopen as the James Farmacy

The historic James Pharmacy & Soda Fountain in Old Saybrook will reopen in May as the James Farmacy, an organic café and juice bar. Through its menu and programming, James Farmacy will offer clean, whole-food options, nutrient-dense foods and drinks, health conscious versions of ice creams and sodas, and various educational programs.

The new James Farmacy will continue the tradition of its namesake, Miss Anna Louise James, Connecticut’s first licensed African-American woman pharmacist, by featuring organic vintage sodas and remedies, healing tonics, and elixirs.

James Farmacy will offer an organic seasonal menu with vegetarian, vegan, paleo, and gluten-free options and organic ice cream as well. The menu will be fresh and farm-to-table and will vary daily, weekly, and seasonally based upon availability at local farms. James Farmacy will source from farms that are certified organic, NOFA (North East Organics Farmers Association) certified, or farms known to use organic methods.

The ambiance of the historic James Pharmacy & Soda Fountain will be preserved right down to the original soda fountain, heart-backed chairs, and original woodwork and cabinetry.

Buck’s, a local favorite, has provided Connecticut with ice cream since the 1950s and James Farmacy will continue to work with Buck’s to source an organic line of ice cream made by Golden Organics.

James Farmacy owner Shelley Nobile is an engineering specialist at General Dynamics and has been a local businesswoman in Old Saybrook since 1994, when she opened the Deacon Timothy Pratt Bed & Breakfast and operated the James Gallery and Soda Fountain from 2000-2003.

Nobile’s partner and co-founder at James Farmacy, Janet Verney, is a certified health coach, wellness designer, and author of ROOTS2Wellness, a guide to unearthing the root causes of disease and discovering a route to wellness. Verney will be available on site to share tips on how to make healthy choices in mind, body, and spirit. She will also be available for private sessions and will play a key role in the educational programming and menu offerings at James Farmacy.

James Farmacy will offer lectures and workshops and will be a vendor at the Lyme Farmer’s Market. Nobile and Verney encourage local organic vendors and healing practitioners to connect with James Farmacy Organic Café and Juice Bar.

James Farmacy has hired two chefs. Andrea Bartosiak received her culinary training at Ballymaloe Cookery School in County Cork, a 100-acre organic farm whose intensive training program promotes a farm-to-table lifestyle and philosophy that showcases regional cuisine and sourcing ingredients locally. Laurence Lavagne moved to Connecticut from Paris, France 20 years ago. Always passionate about food, sustainability, and the environment, she co-created one of the first farmers’ markets in Connecticut in 1990 and for more than 16 years has worked with chefs who serve locally sourced food and support organic small farms.

James Farmacy will open for business with a soft launch on Friday, May 6, with a grand opening on Saturday, May 21. The James Farmacy is located at 2 Pennywise Lane Old Saybrook. To find out more, call 860-395-1781, or visit jamesorganiccafe.com, or, on Facebook at James Farmacy Organic Café & Juice Bar.

This information provided by James Farmacy.