With multiple restaurants closing up shop, changing owners, or changing locations, the people of Creston are hungry for new places to eat.
And despite the challenges of opening a new business, Bigfoot Cafe and Gifts has taken up shop in the Creston Valley.
The Milne family works hard to provide tasty, homemade pasta and pottery in their small cafe off Highway 3.
With family in the valley, the Milnes have been in and out of Creston for 14 years but permanently relocated here in the past year.
With multiple restaurants in Creston closing their doors or changing owners, Bigfoot Cafe and Gifts is an outlying success so far.
“We just literally pinch ourselves every day that this is real life, and we get to live in the Kootenays and have a cute little cafe and share our love and our passion with people,” said owner Teri-Dawn Milne.
“This is not just any old community, this is the best community of people. I just can’t believe the love and support that we’ve felt. It just makes us want to continue to just pour out the love”
It’s not uncommon to find the little cafe’s tables filled, with cars filling the parking lot to burst.
“The cafe was always a dream of mine,” says Teri-Dawn.
“To share the love that I have for cooking and baking, and it’s always something that has been at the back of my mind that I’ve always wanted to do. So when the opportunity presented itself, we rolled with that, and we’re just winging it here. So many people are supporting us, and we feel so much love.”
However, owner Scott Milne says opening a business in Creston is not without its challenges.
“Creston is just like any other place. It’s a microcosm within a macro. And the ebbs and flows of business are just like life. We’ve been in business for decades, and we’ve seen competitors come and go. We’ve seen flashes in the pan. We’ve seen it all. And I think it’s just the same wherever you go.”
He says, in a market like Creston, it’s key to find a niche and fill it.
“With any business, I think you want to just try to find a niche, maybe find a need that needs to be met, and then do your best to meet that need. And that’s what we’ve done. We bring our passion, love, joy, peace, vibe, and respect to our business.”
To find that niche, owner Soloya Milne says they listened to the community and applied it to what they knew and specialized in.
“My mom has always made amazing sauces and always used the same recipe since we were younger. So, it really made sense for us to go down this route, because you have to do things you love. It makes sense in this community, as some people were saying that they haven’t seen that in a little bit. So it was perfect, just as a win-win.”
When deciding on their business hours, the Milnes took a look at what times and days other restaurants in the valley were open. Then, they decided to remain open during days when other restaurants were closed.
“We chose two days that we think were complimentary to the community, just because a lot of businesses are closed on Sundays and Mondays. We love going to other restaurants, so it kind of dovetails being open Sundays and Mondays in the community,” explained Scott.
The Milne family has had their hands in business in the past. Scott has been active in retail for the past 30 years, and Teri-Dawn developed and ran an apothecary.
They hope to bring the lessons they learned in their past experiences to Bigfoot Cafe and Gifts.
“You make sure your customer has their needs fulfilled, in a fair fashion, in a respectful fashion, and ideally a friendly fashion. And it should be a feel-good experience where everyone’s a winner. So we bring that here. We just do it a little quicker now,” explained Scott.
And, so far, that experience has proven itself. Customers continue to pour into Bigfoot Cafe and Gifts, delighted with the food, drinks, memorabilia, and the Milne family’s stellar customer service.
“It’s been consistent, even from the day we sat down here and nobody even knew us,” says Scott.
“The community, just out of its nature, is very welcoming and warm, and that’s why we moved here. And it’s been no different with our business. People have been so gracious with this as we’ve opened. And the peeps here have been so understanding and gracious and kind.”
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