Downtown Breakfast, Coffee Favorites Close

Mornings won't be the same in .

One of the city's two coffee shops, and Havre de Grace Patch Readers' Choice for best breakfast both closed their doors this month.

closed on July 1.

In a message to this weekend, Vancherie's owner said: "Basically the and our off-site catering operation are both robust and successful. The cafe, after 2 years, failed to show a profit, and we just couldn't justify carrying it any longer. While our week-end business was great, the rest of the week suffered."

The allure of the business in the first place was to allow for a commercial kitchen space to benefit the Lantern Queen, she said.

"The cafe was just a bonus at the time. And that bonus took geometrically more work than the Lantern Queen and the off-site catering combined," Fitzgerald said.

is being left in consideration for during the current . The shop—which operated weekend hours on Washington Street—had a regular clientele.

Voting for Jana's Java—and all other Readers' Choice nominees—will remain open into next month.

While the community didn't come in droves, a segment of regulars also supported Vancherie's Cafe—even voting it the in a spring poll on Patch.

Both in reflection and in appreciation for her newfound free time, Fitzgerald looks back on the Vancherie's experience positively.

"Since we closed on July 1, Carroll and I feel like we've been on vacation—even in the midst of the 's busy season. Go figure," Fitzgerald said. "I will say that folks like [the 's] Lou Ward, who have been successfully running a restaurant for decades are my heroes."

TELL US: Did you frequent either business? Leave a comment.