Community Corner
"Because We're Islanders:" Little House Café
Patch talks with two owners of Little House Café, the year-round eatery in Vineyard Haven.
Like Dr. Who's Tardis, Little House Café is bigger on the inside.
From State Road, you see a small frame house set back from a flapping OPEN sign and a pair ofcolorful chalkboards advising passers-by that the place is open all day.
Once you enter, you discover a take-out counter, coffee to go and, through the curtains, a comfortable dining room where you'll shortly be served your choice of comfort food: lamb burger, falafel or perhaps the restaurant's luscious take on grilled cheese: Brie melted on a ciabatta roll with a smear of apricot preserves and, if you're so inclined, a few strips of bacon. The eatery also serves beer and wine and espresso drinks.
Little House is owned by two couples: its chef Merrick Carreiro and her husband, carpenter Steven Carreiro, of Oak Bluffs and artist Jenik Khelalfa Munafo of Vineyard Haven, who is married to roofer Hocine Khelalfa and who has created some of the works that hang on the dining room walls.
Last week, chef Carreiro and Munafo found some time to sit with Patch at the restaurant for an interview to debut our new Business Monday spotlight series.
Patch: How did you meet?
Little House: Merrick was cooking at Café Moxie, when it was owned by Tina Miller, and Jenik was a waitress, and we became friends.
Patch: What else did you do before opening Little House?(Carreiro) After I started a family, I went to Vineyard Home Center and managed the lumberyard; I sold kitchens and bathrooms; I did cabinetry design for a while. (Munafo) I was an artist all along; I waitressed for a while, I worked at teaching English as a second language; but I was doing art all along.
Patch: When did you open Little House?Little House: In July of 2010.
Patch: When did you start serving dinners?
Little House: The following spring.
Patch: Why did you make the change?
Little House: We realized we needed to expand.
Patch: How do you make business decisions at the restaurant?
(Carreiro) We always need to start with what we think we can handle, being two mothers with small children. (Munafo) So we always begin by taking small steps.
Patch: Why did you decide to open a year-round restaurant on the Vineyard?
Little House (Carreiro): Because we're Islanders, and we kind of have to seize the moment.
Patch: How many people do you employ?
Little House: In high season, about 15. Right now we have four people in the kitchen and five or six servers.
Patch: What do you like most about doing business in Vineyard Haven?
Little House: (Munafo) It's my home town. (Carreiro) We have a really good year-round customer base with local businesses, schools, teachers.
Patch: What's one thing the town could do to make it easier for small businesses to operate?
Little House: A checklist for new businesses would be helpful, if it's approved by all the different boards and departments.
Little House Café is located at 339 State Road, Vineyard Haven: 508-687-9794 and online at littlehousemv.com. Open this fall on Mondays from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Closed Sundays.
Watch a video of server Polina Asenova creating one of the restaurant's chalk signs>>.
Originally posted in the Patch Business Monday series Nov. 18, 2013.