{"id":2483,"date":"2024-06-05T11:48:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-05T11:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.centerra.com\/kinston\/?p=2483"},"modified":"2024-06-13T17:54:02","modified_gmt":"2024-06-13T17:54:02","slug":"meet-tracie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.centerra.com\/kinston\/2024\/06\/05\/meet-tracie\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Tracie, the smile behind the menu"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You could call Tracie Reeves-Hartman a restaurateur prodigy since she created her first menu at the age of five, selling seven-cent hot dogs and bologna sandwiches out of a China chest. Extra points for creative presentation and (no doubt, adorable) customer service. That was the first of many enterprising culinary ventures in the life of Tracie, face of the newly opened Hub Caf\u00e9 by Fresh Plate<\/a> at Kinston. Part neighborhood eatery and part gathering place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy dream has always been to open a caf\u00e9,\u201d says Tracie, \u201cI love creating something from nothing.\u201d From scratch, so to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which is exactly what she’s done at Hub Caf\u00e9 by Fresh Plate. Delicious food aside, Tracie\u2019s real culinary talent is putting together a great team and creating a place where they can thrive in her fresh food forward philosophy. And she\u2019s savoring the moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat I really like about this menu<\/a> is it\u2019s a combination of several people,\u201d she explains. Supplementing some of the original Fresh Plate Catering sandwich and salad recipes, Tracie\u2019s team has made creative contributions to both the signature food and taproom\u2019s handcrafted cocktail selections. \u201cThe entire team has experience and ideas so I\u2019ve welcomed them to bring in specials and add new menu items.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Think traditional with a twist. An Espresso Martini or Banana Old Fashioned paired with a Not My Mother\u2019s Egg Salad sandwich or Roasted Stuffed Peppadews with herb cream cheese.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also influencing the menu is what\u2019s nearby. Colorado-fresh ingredients are sourced locally\u2014and soon\u2014very locally at The High Plains Environmental Center<\/a> Demonstration Garden just out back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe garden is just being planted for the season so the plan is to work with them more as things begin to grow,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Naturally, food is the star of Tracie’s show, \u201cit\u2019s important for us to provide great tasting food, food that is presented well. Great food is beautiful so it\u2019s great to showcase that.\u201d But for Tracie, it\u2019s also about community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With a background in marketing and event planning, it\u2019s no surprise this is more than a place to eat and drink, it\u2019s a place to gather. Weekly events like Wednesday Wings & Wine and Thursday Trivia have already proven popular, drawing a regular crowd, and more occasions for celebration are planned. \u201cKicking off different activities to make it fun for the residents in Kinston adds to the quality of life here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then again, sometimes the best reason to visit The Hub by Fresh Plate is, well, no reason at all. As a place to work or enjoy the sunset with friends, for instance. \u201cWe have the best location in Northern Colorado,\u201d Tracie says. \u201cAmazing patio with mountain views, fireplaces, comfortable furniture, tables that are great to work on, a grassy area for kids to run around in \u2026\u201d it all adds up to Loveland\u2019s new favorite hangout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After earning a marketing degree at Indiana University and stints as an event planner and event coordinator for Hilton Hotels, Tracie founded of Fresh Plate Catering in 2013, Fresh Plate Caf\u00e9 in downtown Loveland, Colorado in 2016 and is now the proprietor of Hub Caf\u00e9 by Fresh Plate at Kinston Hub. Welcome to Kinston, Tracie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q&A with Tracie Reeves-Harman:<\/p>\n\n\n\n