Atop Police Station Hill on Sawmill Road, you can order such exotic-sounding things as a Great White. Or down a Plankton, Imbibe a Lazy River, Or a Shady Beach, a Lake Street, a Sawmill. Or perhaps a Mermaid’s Tail, a Stardust, or a Lazy River whet your beverage appetite.
Westies Nutrition is the place where these delicious mixtures, as well as many others, can be yours. The cafe, which will celebrate its fourth anniversary next month, opened a few months before the world shut down – and made it through very successfully, a tribute to the panache and community spirit of its owners, Amanda Forst and Mandy Hutchinson.
The menu features coffees, smoothies and tea, all packed with nutritional benefits. The smoothies are meals in disguise, boasting the required daily amount of nutrients — 21 vitamins and minerals, and 24 grams of protein – all for fewer than 250 calories. All teas are green tea-based and contain the proper amount of stimulating guarana extract for you – for a slight boost or more. Vitamin B12 is a popular ingredient as well as acai, and, if desired, you can add collagen, probiotics, protein or, as Forst notes the teachers are all doing right now, the immunty boost. All sweetening is done with stevia, and the guarana provides a clean energy boost with none of the jitters or crash of traditional caffeine (pink-and-orange and green-and-white spots, we’re once again glancing in your general direction).
Forst, who hails from Wethersfield, lived in Los Angeles for seven years, where these sorts of shops are commonplace. Noting that she struggled with her weight, Forst lost 27 lb. taking advantage of the nutritional drinks and when she returned to the Nutmeg State, wanted to open such a shop here. Mandy, a born and bred Westie, came into the frame and, as she explains it, “caught the vision.”
“This town poured so much into me that I knew this would be the perfect place to give back…this place raised me,” Hutchinson says, joyfully. “The customers are our extended family.”
“We’re West Haven’s Cheers,” adds Forst. “Everybody knows your name…we know about the customers and care about them, their kids, their kids’ T-Ball games…”
The most popular smoothie is the White Chocolate Reese’s: “like a healthy peanut butter cup, in a cup,” laughs Hutchinson. As for the most popular item? It’s not on the menu, but a very well-known secret: the Black Widow. Originally begun just for the Halloween season, this berry-based tea proved so popular it’s now available year-round.
“People drive from far away to get the Black, Widow,” Frost says, “It’s a special house blend.”
She estimates that as much as 80% of the tea orders are Black Widow requests, adding with a smile that “I think the West Haven Police Department runs on Black Widows!”
Frost and Hutchinson, two moms with a toddler each, understand what it’s like for families in today’s stressful climate. They have kids’ size drinks (from the non-acai/caffeine selections) and they also anticipate the financial stressors of today. “We want to give the most value for your dollar…we don’t take you spending your money for granted,” Forst says. “We’re in the same economy as everyone else.”
The ladies also highly value their community involvement. They got through Covid very successfully – a brand new business – and never let up on it from the beginning, donating meals to nurses in New York and even toilet paper to Those Without. Their community spirit continues apace. “We do about two fundraisers a month,” says Forst. UNH, the West Haven High School sports teams, local organizations such as the Beach Box, and causes like breast cancer and Alzheimer’s are just a very few of the happy recipients to which Westies has extended its largesse. They have donated more than funds, too – free tea to the sports teams, for example. And their cafe is always available for a space for hosting community events.
Forst and Hutchinson say that they think of their business as a “grab and go” place, but as the sign over the bar exhorts visitors to “come in…fill your cup…stay awhile”. people often linger…at the bar on the tall stools, or in one of the comfy sofas.
“We pride ourselves on the experience of the customer,” Forst says. “We strive to be the lighthouse in the community…everything is positive…a true, authentic connection with our customers.” As they speak, a fellow walks in and they greet him by name as he greets them, bemoans the humidity and goes to get four large beverages.
“People tell us, ‘I leave, and I feel so much better’,” Forst continues.
If you look at the bottom of your cup at Westies, you’ll see that every one is hand-inscribed with the word “love” – Forst and Hutchinson’s way of sending good vibrations. “Our mission,” Forst says, “Is to remind people that they matter.”
Westies is open daily (every day but Christmas Day) – 7-5 Monday through Friday, 9-4 Saturdays and 10-2 Sundays.