Cookie Chicks

11/07/2024

Our friends at Kent District Library are pretty smart. We should all listen to them! 😊

Tomorrow's another good one too.

10/24/2024

Hey guys,
We've got big news happening in here and we just want you to all be aware of some changes-

On Tuesday 10/29, I will be taking the first step into retirement as I head off to Portugal for the next 3 months. If all goes well there, when I return at the end of Jan. 2025, I will start easing out of Cooke Chicks/Cooking Connection. I plan to pass the baton to the next person to hopefully have them foster and grow both businesses and the small businesses incubating in the space while helping our extra special workers develop and grow their skills here.

With my computer, I will still be online with you, handling your order inquiries and requests. It will still be me interfacing for invoices, etc. but the capable gang here will be designing the beautiful cookies, baking tasty cakes, pies, muffins, etc. We will still be handling your holiday orders and all the packaging, shipping and deliveries needed to continue serving you.

You will be seeing some new faces upfront in the coffee shop but hopefully, still the same warm greeting, comfortable place to work or just enjoy your coffee and treats. Starting next week, the front coffee shop will be working with shortened hours due to some staffing challenges- instead of closing at the current 3 p.m. Tuesday - Friday, it will now be closing at 2 p.m. Saturday, it will still be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. We will work with you to accommodate any product pickups outside of those hours.

We would SO appreciate your continued support of our efforts here - keep the gang going and busy with orders and wish me luck in going from 60+ hours of work each week to hopefully, a bit less (and it might even be from a sunny beach with a glass of vino verde in-hand!)😉

10/21/2024

Thank you West Michigan! Your support is greatly appreciated and will not be forgotten!

10/17/2024

Hey guys, build a little extra time in your morning tomorrow and stop into the Cooking Connection coffee shop upfront. Buy a coffee and get a free cookie - yup a bribe to get you all coming in after the new low of 3 customers all day!

10/11/2024

Truth....

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/QskiieoxD4ybLpgm/

Discover & share this Coffee Face GIF with everyone you know. GIPHY is how you search, share, discover, and create GIFs.

10/09/2024

It's always heart warming for us when we interface with our clients and are able to share various celebrations and events with them over the years. High school graduation to college graduation to engagements to weddings and then babies - we have been honored to have had a couple clients where our cookies and treats have been a part of all of those celebrations.

Once such celebration is for Miss Tilly - she had her first party in here when she was just a wee 4 yr. old. We recently celebrated her birthday again in here with her friends now as a 7 yr. old! They were a great gang and it was fun to see how Tilly and some of her friends have grown in the past 3 years.

Looking for a place to hold a special party, class or event - contact us for availability!

09/27/2024

It's HOMECOMING WEEKEND here in Comstock Park and we are getting excited for the parade to begin in a couple hours - it goes right past the front of our shop so stop on in for some fresh coffees, cookies, donuts and other goodies! ☕🍩🍪

We'll be here and open through the parade, so we can support our Comstock Park High School teams, member and fans!

Go Panthers, beat Hopkins! 🏈

09/27/2024

It's fall, and the warm, long summer days are no longer here but it was a beautiful sunset last night! (Afraid this photo does not do the actual sunset justice)

09/26/2024

Yeah, this!!!!

09/26/2024

We were honored to be asked to participate in the opening of the new sensory space at our Gerald R. Ford International Airport this morning..

Our special gang was able to help prepare and then serve the coffee, donuts, muffins and other goodies produced in our Cooking Connection space.

Our Ryan in his typical friendly style, was decked out welcoming guests and helping to serve them Then he was able to test the newly dedicated space!

We are SO incredibly fortunate to have such an amazing space in our local airport- great for allowing someone to just be still and not get overstimulated all the way to providing a safe space to just burn off some energy before a flight. They also have an amazing simulation area where you can work with someone unfamiliar or nervous about the flight process and walk them through a boarding pass area, down a jetway and "onto" the plane- complete with REAL plane seats!

Keep it up GRR- you are doing GREAT things for our community! 🥰

The Coffee Crew K & D’s Donuts and Desserts .

09/22/2024

Well, you've all been waiting/asking, and they're BAAACK! Same flocked wallpaper and Al C's booth is still here awaitng his arrival.

Soft opening tonight, grand opening tomorrow.

Welcome back to the neighborhood Nick Finks Comstock Park!!

09/19/2024

Small Business Owners - here's your opportunity to learn about the new legislation that will be impacting small business in 2025! Free, but you need to sign up!

Hey Small Businesses, getting a bit overwhelmed with all the new laws about to hit small business in 2025???

Fear not - next Wed. 9/25, we will be hosting Rose Coonen of Coonen Law, PLLC and Karen Horrigan of Kareismatic here for their seminar " From Confusion to Confidence, What and Who Business Owners Need to Know." Hopefully this knowledge will help you to avoid any of the pitfalls looming as a Small Business owner.

The event is free but spaces are limited, so click on the link to register for one of the remaining spots!

https://coonen-law.com/fromconfusiontoconfidence/

09/17/2024

Back at Ada Village Farmers' Market today where our K & D’s Donuts and Desserts is making things feel like fall (even if the temps aren't feeling very fall-like!). Stop by to grab some donuts, cookies and other goodies.

This will be our last appearance at the Farmers Market this year but Stephanie will be there with cards and info. on ordering. It's NOT too early to start making your Corporate and Gifting inquiries and orders. Contact us to make something special for you, then we can ship and deliver for you, providing turnkey options!

Back at Ada Farmers’ Market today for our last time this year!!
Stop by pour some fresh pumpkin donuts , zucchini bread, apple zucchini bread, chocolate zucchini bread, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cream cheese bread, and pumpkin chocolate chip bread

Cooking Connection
Cookie Chicks
Stephanie Marie Smith

09/13/2024

We are so excited that our neighbor will be back! Sept. 23- we've all been waiting, now we need to go out and support them!

09/12/2024

As a small business, we know the work that it takes to stay operating lately- it has not been easy for ANY small business! So when we hear of a long-time small business closing, we always feel sad because we know all too well, that the business was someone's hopes and dreams that are now dashed. It wasn't like they didn't know what they were doing, their time in business shows that. They were just another unfortunate victim of the economy and the times.

We wish you luck Fat Boy Burgers gang- thank you for your years of service. We hope you receive that miracle!

"We invested our life savings into the business to try to stay afloat scraping by with the skin of our teeth," owners say.

08/28/2024

Good morning West Michigan. For those of you without power, we invite you to come into our space here- Cooking Connection for some coffee (hot or iced), perhaps some breakfast, cool A/C and fast wifi to be able to work until power is restored.

Stay cool West Michigan!

08/14/2024

Laura Faiver Rausch - since you want to hold us accountable to YOUR timing, perhaps you missed this prominent post about where WE were on Friday and Saturday - we were participating in supporting our community event, sponsoring a pancake breakfast here in our parking lot after the fund-raising run, hosting a table at the Community Outreach event and manning our booth at the festival where we provide support to 8 different little startup businesses in our space and provide work to a special needs staff.

Then if you look at our site, we also post that we are CLOSED on Saturdays and now Mondays, but you were upset that I didn't return your call from late Friday for a few late-notice custom cookies until Monday afternoon - that was so upsetting to you that you had to write a nasty review about us.

(rant warning)
That is certainly your prerogative, but also know that small businesses are getting fed up with nasty people like you who try to extort them with the threat of nasty reviews. In fact, we, along with a number of other small businesses have contracted with an app developer to create a "Reverse Review" site that will serve as a large database of people who businesses might want to reconsider doing business with. It includes names, social media identification, addresses, and will allow reviewers to post evidence of the person's offense as proof (texts, videos, voicemails, etc.) Businesses can lookup an individual, sort by type of business, etc. We here have been keeping a "Do Not Accept Orders From" database and will use that to help populate this new app - and guess what, you have just won yourself a spot on it! People need to understand that posting nasty reviews about a small business only hurts the community - they do it because they are emboldened behind a screen and keyboard and we are working toward pulling back that screen and allowing society to see these people. Perhaps if they knew their nasty efforts were going to become public, they might think twice before posting. (end of rant)

Mill Creek Days starts tomorrow! A few changes to the schedule -- The Cooking Connection/Cookie Chicks will be a food vendor -- pancake breakfast after the 5k/10k race at The Cooking Connection. Sober Eats has cancelled. The Grand Rapids Model Railroad Historical Society will host an Open House at Dwight Lydell Park on Saturday.

11/07/2023

16 days away! Get your orders in!