Summer Thyme’s new restaurant and bakery rolling along

Summer Thyme’s Bakery & Deli —a pioneer of fresh, local food in our region — is vastly expanding to a new location just down the street on Colfax Avenue in Grass Valley, as we reported on our blog this spring.

We toured the new store at 233 Colfax Avenue, still under construction, with Owner Amy Cooke this week. It is expected to open early next year.

Workers were buzzing around. The bright, airy restaurant is going to be marvelous, with 95-seats, a full commercial kitchen for baking, a patio, new espresso machine and ovens — and lots of parking. The renderings are here.

Summer Thymes will start serving dinner, along with breakfast and lunch with its signature farm-to-table food. It will feature live music, local artwork and even promote the “good deeds” of local nonprofits.

Amy and her husband, Chamba, have been pioneers of the “fresh, local” food movement in our region. Their suppliers include Grass Valley Grains, Boxcar Farm, Riverhill Farm, the farm at Woolman Semester School at Sierra Friends Center, Cello Chocolates and others.

Siteline Architecture is stewarding the project.

It is the latest example of the boom in fresh, local food and the regional dining business — a trend we have documented in our magazine.

Summer Thyme’s expansion also is a sign of growth in the up-and-coming Colfax Avenue neighborhood in Grass Valley, dubbed “The Avenue.”