A space for your heart

By Halle Thomas | Manor Ink

Livingston Manor, NY – If you want to stretch your body, Heart Space Catskills in this hamlet is the space for you and your heart.

Many people are stressed and have tension, and they think the way to solve these problems is to “fake it ‘til you make it.” Instead, to actually calm your mind and soul, consider yoga. Yoga gives the brain nourishment, and lets it relax and focus on the present, which takes it away from the problems that stress you. Yoga also helps relieve the poor posture many of us have from sitting in chairs all day by stretching the body. In that way, it helps prevent illness by fully nourishing your body.

Meet Sophia Hartell, owner of Heart Space. She came to the Catskills because her mother lived in Livingston Manor for about 40 years, and has taught yoga at many different places. She received an acupuncture degree from Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, and was trained and mentored in the use Pilates equipment at South Shore Pilates. She is also certified in Hatha yoga from Serenity Yoga, and is certified in Kundalini yoga from Kundalini East in New York City.

Hartell also owns Five Element Wellbeing, a business in the same building at 54 Main Street, the former site of RM Farm Real Estate. Hartell chose the space because of its location. “You have accessibility for people to come to reset and release stress from their everyday lives,” she said. “They can feel like they get a breath of fresh air.”

Classes Hartell offers include Kundalini yoga classes on Saturday mornings and barre classes using a ballet barre to incorporate core stretching. Hartell will also co-teach a breath class, and she is especially excited about her sound-frequency class to promote relaxation, balance and wellbeing.

“Most of us sit at a desk all day, and that’s not good for the body or the mind,” said Hartell. “So we need to lengthen, strengthen, release the tight spots and relieve the stress.” To sign up for these classes and many more, visit Heart Space Catskill’s website.

Confections to perfection

By Rachel Zuckerman | Manor Ink

Livingston Manor, NY – Recently in town, several new businesses have been under development. One welcome addition to town is a crêperie called the Eden Café at 47B Main Street. While some bakeries over-sweeten their pastries, making your stomach ache, the café serves both sweet and savory goods with just the right amount of ingredients. And those ingredients – milk, fruit, vegetables and flour – are sourced from local farms. Manor Ink interviewed Eden Café owner Maureen Smith, and enthusiasm for the shop grew as she explained her plans for the place.

At first, Smith intended the venue to be a little smoothie shop, but it soon evolved into a crêperie shop with sandwiches. She also wanted it to be a café, but difficulties got in the way with progress. When she was younger, Smith had always dreamt of being a hostess, of bringing people together in a homey way. So she decided that she not only wanted a shop, but would open a shop and a café, regardless of the challenges.

Now that Eden Café is open, Smith is enthused about what she can bring to the community. “I’m excited for the healthy food part,” Smiths starts. “Part of the healthy food is the medicinal value of some of the ingredients we’re using.” Using buckwheat instead of wheat flour for some of her crêpes makes them gluten-free and provides an option for people who have an allergy to gluten.

The café has a wide variety of food and drinks to choose from, but that’s not all Smith plans to offer her customers. She wants to have musicians perform on an uplifted stage in the shop’s window, have art events and even have a picnic program.

All in all, the arrival of this new café is a welcome addition to downtown’s growing array of shops, and Smith can’t wait to have all her ideas for Eden Café become a reality.

Favorite BBQ joint has new owners, new tastes

By Addie Robbins | Manor Ink

Livingston Manor, NY – The culinary scene in Livingston Manor has taken a bit of a turn as Smōkd Barbecue has opened in the space formerly occupied by the Smoke Joint. Owners J.P. Medina and Sarah Banks Medina make sure that their business is infused with family history, a deep love for hospitality, and high-quality food. The menu offers a fresh concept mixing classic Texas-style barbecue with Colombian street food, inspired by co-owner J.P. Medina’s Colombian roots.

Both owners have spent their entire lives around food and service. Sarah has been in the restaurant world for 15 years while also working in retail and marketing. J.P.’s career in food goes back to his childhood, where being in the bakery owned by his grandparents and spending time cooking with his mother – for a family of 10 children! – were the main inspirations for his work in the food industry.

While the two excitedly look toward the future of Smōkd, they also make sure to appreciate all the time and learning that this has taken. “We took a lot of pride in working for others in this community and learning from them,” Sarah said. She described themselves during those years as “sponges,” absorbing skills that formed the perfect starting point for a successful business.

“We saw what worked and what didn’t work, and we took all of those lessons and put them into our own business,” she said. Their appreciation for the time and effort required directly influenced their idea of what Smōkd should be. They realized Texas-style barbecue and Colombian street food weren’t that different, and share many of the same attributes. Both cuisines are all about slow cooking, heavy comfort food and getting big families together.

The menu reflects that same level of care. In addition to J.P.’s signature Texas brisket, they serve authentic Colombian arepas, chicharrones, and empanadas, all of which J.P.’s mother makes by hand every single day.

“The brisket is the star of the show, but don’t sleep on the authentic Colombian dishes,” Sarah said. “Barbecue takes time, and so should you. No order here is a fast-food transaction. It takes a little longer because it’s truly made with love.”

Overall, what makes Smōkd special is that the owners, J.P. and Sarah, aren’t trying to achieve perfection, because that’s not barbecue. “Barbecue is messy,” Sarah said. “We’re celebrating the messiness.”