My Hometown Businesses Play cafés serve coffee and the community

by Colleen Onuffer

These lyrics from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory are what inspired the name of Pure Imagination Café on Buffalo Road, and the mantra of owners Lisa and Chris Brunson and their blended family.

“It’s believing in something magical,” said Lisa Brunson. “The idea that we can create something that other people can enjoy. Something that’s bigger than us.”

Brunson and her family sing the song when they are looking for the power of magic.

“I was diagnosed with colon cancer about three months before we opened the café,” Brunson explained, looking back to 2019. “It was supposed to be mine and Chris’ wedding day, and I spent it in the hospital. We postponed our wedding and decided we needed to hire a manager to run the café while I went through treatment.”

The idea of the café began when Lisa was looking to get out of her corporate job. She started by listing the things she was passionate about: reading, playing board games, cooking, and creative play for her kids.

“I wanted to connect with the community. I wanted to create a place where people were engaged with their children, spouses and friends. And I wanted to give people access to resources to still believe in magic,” she said. Pure Imagination Café was built from a dirt floor up, giving Lisa and Chris control over how to design the space.

“We wanted to create an atmosphere where moms and friends can connect, along with offering a safe, friendly environment for kids,” said Brunson. The café opened in September 2019 featuring a large dining space and a 450-square-foot play area with games for all levels, including activities for parents to do with their kids. In describing the importance of creating a play area, Brunson said, “It’s not a revenue producing space for us, but giving kids to imaginative play is more important than money. It’s an upbringing.” blend of the dining area and play space is what draws cusfrom around the Rochester area. love coming here. We drive about a half hour to get here,” customer Shawn from Caledonia. She appreciates the flexibilhave adult time with her friends while being able to watch daughter play at the same time. “There’s no other place like close to Caledonia.” miles away in Hilton, Crystal Marello opened Mamaste Café Play less than a year ago. hope for Mamaste is that we can be a gathering place parents, caregivers and children to meet and build relationas well as to be a directory of information for parents,” said Marello.

Parenting can feel isolating, especially for those who became first-time parents during the pandemic.

“Mamaste is unique because we provide a great space for kids AND parents at the same time. We want parents to enjoy them- selves too and be able to have meaningful conversations while their kids safely play.”

Marello started dreaming of Mamaste eight years ago after she had her daughter. Fate stepped in when she drove past the building on Hilton Parma Corners Road in February 2022 and immediately fell in love with it. “I told my husband all about it and we both knew the timing was right even though I had very little planned out.”

Mamaste opened its doors in July that same year with a play area for children ages 0-5 and board games, puzzles, art supplies and other activities for everyone over the age of five.

“The name is a play on the Sanskrit word ‘namaste’ which is a respectful greeting commonly used in Hindu/Indian cultures and is often referred to in yoga classes here in the U.S.,” explained Marello. “It is a fun and simple play on words: ‘mama-stay’ to signify the beautiful relationship between mothers and their children, especially in the young, nurturing years. We love and value dads, too, and have lots of dads who come visit the café with their littles!”

Marello added, “We didn’t want to limit our café to just people who have kids, though. We want to be a place for anyone in the community to gather together for good food and drinks as well as game nights and other events.”

Mamaste has hosted events for parents and partners and offers yoga classes, with plans to increase the frequency of both types of events. “I find yoga to be an excellent physical and mental discipline and to be a peaceful and calming practice that has added much value to my life.”

Combined with the yoga classes, Marello hopes to “inspire health and wellness through the whole foods we serve.” Mamaste offers nutritional snacks and meals, including their top selling kids snack plate which offers a rainbow assortment of fresh fruits and vegetables, cut fresh to order. Their menu of top-quality coffee and teas, breakfast and lunch options is available for dining onsite, curbside pick-up or take out.

“We prioritize purchasing as many organic and local foods as possible,” said Marello. “Our eggs are pasture-raised, cage-free and organic. Most of our baked goods are from local bakers who we find super important to support. We use locally sourced maple syrup from Flint’s Maple in many of our recipes.”

Focusing on fresh, healthy options is another common thread between the two cafés. Pure Imagination Café’s menu features a list of creative names nodding to Lisa and Chris’ favorite books, games and movies. Aside from their regular offerings of sandwiches, salads, eight-inch pizzas and their kids menu of “short stories,” Pure Imagination has a Family Meal Deal on Fridays that can be pre-ordered for pick-up to easily feed families of two to four.

“One of the biggest challenges has been offering something for everyone. We recognize dietary restrictions, preferences and allergies. We’re trying to do the best we can, but we have limitations,” explained Brunson. “It’s the same thing between price and quality. We’re dealing with the same increased price of eggs, but at the end of the day, we strive to maintain a quality product and our brand.”

That brand and the company culture are things Brunson is especially proud of.

“I could not be more grateful for my team, especially my managers. We have many people who started with us three and a half continued on page 6 continued from page 5 years ago, and who are still with us,” said Brunson. “We continue to expand and add members. I’m excited see on community, community make sure the community stays strong. This is our legacy. This is for our kids, for our community.”

That same sense of community was echoed by Marello, who said, “We have been welcomed in the community in such an amazing way. We frequently have people tell us how happy they are that we’re here, what a unique idea it is, and what a need there is for places like Mamaste. It’s not just people from Hilton and surrounding areas who come to visit, either. We have people from all over Greater Rochester and beyond who have stopped into the café. We are beyond grateful by the warm welcome we have received.”

Pure Imagination Café is located at 2997 Buffalo Road, Rochester. Mamaste Café and Play is located at 1235 Hilton Parma Corners Road, Hilton.