Sip single-origin java and buy local produce at this purpose-driven coffee shop
There’s a lot going on with that latte you just ordered from Main Street Market’s new coffee shop River & Roots.
The beans are fair trade and the milk is supplied by Louisiana dairy farmers. The cinnamon roll you couldn’t resist—the one shellacked with creamy frosting—is from a Baton Rouge small business. And while you wait for the brewing and frothing to commence, you fetch a dozen fresh eggs and some verdant green beans from the cooler, both of which were supplied by regional farmers.
Opened in February, River & Roots is run by Main Street Market’s parent organization, BREADA. It’s part of a web of programs that help local growers and producers connect with consumers, says BREADA executive director Darlene Adams Rowland.
“Everything we’re doing here is really about staying aligned with BREADA’s mission of supporting our local food system,” Rowland says. “We want to build as much awareness about that as we can.”
Packages of stone-ground cornmeal and old-fashioned grits sit on tidy shelves, along with jars of pickles and preserves. There are even home-grown succulents and handsome pieces of Louisiana-inspired jewelry by Baton Rouge artisan Mimosa Handcrafted, known for rings, bracelets and charms fashioned in the shape of local flora and fauna.
Along with Main Street Market, BREADA operates the nearly 30-year-old Red Stick Farmers Market, which runs two to four weekly markets, depending on the season.
The 8,000-square-foot Main Street Market first opened in 2002 at Fifth and Main streets. Last year, it completed a major renovation that added four new restaurant bays, a teaching kitchen and River & Roots, BREADA’s signature coffee shop and retail store.
Rowland says the first step in creating the concept was sourcing single-origin coffee. She and her team selected North Carolina-based Counter Culture Coffee, a B Corp certified company known for fair compensation of farmers, with whom it has many long-term relationships. Rowland says the only other coffee shop in the state to sell the brand is HiVolt Coffee in New Orleans.
“We wanted to make sure we were intentional in what we were sourcing,” she says.
Cow’s milk is supplied by Feliciana’s Best Creamery, and goat’s milk from Southern Maids Dairy. Both are Red Stick Farmers Market vendors.
“We’re going through a lot of dairy, so they’re feeling an increase in sales, which is exactly what we’re all about,” Rowland says.
Similarly, the cooler holds seasonal fruits and veggies, much of it grown by longtime vendor Frank Fekete Farm in Hungarian Settlement. Offering Red Stick Farmers Market produce in a retail outlet has been a longtime BREADA goal, says Main Street Market manager Kay Shirer.
“It’s available to shoppers who can’t make the market,” she says.
River & Roots also sells small-batch sweets and cinnamon rolls from CounterSpaceBR and bagels from Just Brewing Around in Hammond, which pair nicely with Southern Maids’ goat milk cream cheese, Shirer says.
The shop serves hibiscus iced tea from Lena Farms and specialty beverages made with fresh fruit. This spring, Shirer turned an overrun of strawberries into syrup to create the “Strawberry Fields” green tea.
Popular among casual sippers and business types, River & Roots also helps strengthen BREADA’s brand, Rowland says.
“We have our coffee shop at this end and our teaching kitchen at the other, which helps us reinforce our messaging of what BREADA is all about,” she says. “People see all the different things that farmers grow, and they feel connected. We’re building community.”
River & Roots Coffee Market is located inside Main Street Market at Fifth and Main streets and is open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
This article was originally published in the July 2026 issue of 225 Magazine.
