Granite Bay Market changes hands, reverts to Spoons

As a regular at Granite Bay Market, Rene Nash had a few worries when she heard her favorite morning coffee spot was going up for sale. Chief among them: Would anyone mess with the recipe for the to-die-for scones?Rather than risk such potentialities, Nash took matters into her own hands. She bought the whole operation."I've actually had, as corny as it sounds, a lifelong dream to have a restaurant," said Nash, who purchased the business along with a partner, Carol Morehouse. "And I spend so much time there now. It's my home away from home, so I want to see that it maintains the excellence and quality and friendly ambiance."What Nash and Morehouse acquired is more than just a café and restaurant, having become a local institution of sorts ever since opening in August 2000.And, although the pair has no intention of messing with its success, they do plan on making a few changes."We are going to go back to the name 'Spoons,'" Nash, a Granite Bay mother of four, lawyer and entrepreneur said. "We think it just has a lot of charm and people liked it."Founded by partners Joy Reed and Alexander Danner as Spoons Market Café, the business doesn't resemble your typical eatery.In addition to a core lunch menu, which combines an international flair with fresh, often local, ingredients, there are other offerings: a popular prepared take-out business, a morning café, a separate catering venture (Spoons Fine Catering), and occasional wine dinners and tapas nights - all in a quaint, elegant environment that resembles someone's home."If you could say one thing that makes us different, it's creativity," Reed said recently from her office on the second story of "the cottage," a rentable private dining room behind the market. "We're original; we're not strip mall or corporate style."In 2005, the name of the restaurant side changed to Granite Bay Market due to a legal issue, and the interior received a revamp.Reed said she and Danner, a builder by trade who renovated the restaurant at its current site - a former "biker bar" in the historical center of Granite Bay - decided to sell the enterprise earlier this year in order to focus more on their respective passions. "Alex wanted to go build cabins, and I wanted to go travel more," she said. "So after the first of the year, we started putting the word out."Still, Reed and Nash said customers shouldn't expect any drastic changes.In fact, Reed, who is currently traveling on a culinary inspiration trip through Europe, will stay on as director of catering, to teach classes and consult on the menu - or, as she puts it, "play in the kitchen."Danner will make occasional appearances as a barista."We started this with a cook and a carpenter, and we'll both get what we want," said Reed, who has catered for three U.S. presidents and regularly travels internationally to find inspiration for new dishes. "Alex will still come back as a cameo, and we'll be very close through the rest of the year."Nash, a self-described "foodie," said customers could count on enhanced wine options.Ideally, she'd like to see more wine-by-the-glass, wine tastings and winemaker dinners, and - eventually - longer hours."The main thing is eventually we'd like to be open longer hours," Nash said. "I can't promise when, but eventually I want us to be open for dinners and Sunday brunch."Aside from that, not much will change.And definitely not the scones."People enjoy congregating there," Nash said."That's what initially brought me there and I can't imagine changing that."Where: 8230 Auburn-Folsom RoadHours: 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through SaturdaysInfo: 797-2233