{"id":32429,"date":"2019-10-10T15:39:26","date_gmt":"2019-10-10T19:39:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/?p=32429"},"modified":"2019-10-11T06:53:34","modified_gmt":"2019-10-11T10:53:34","slug":"melissa-brennan-goes-from-running-daycare-to-owning-health-conscious-restaurant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/2019\/10\/melissa-brennan-goes-from-running-daycare-to-owning-health-conscious-restaurant\/","title":{"rendered":"Melissa Brennan Goes From Running Daycare To Owning Health-Conscious Restaurant"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
Fresh ADK, owned by Melissa Brennan, is expanding. The original space continues to serve as the kitchen, a pickup space for take-out and a popular smoothie bar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

by Andrea Palmer
\nPrior to opening Fresh ADK, a restaurant at 11 South St. in Glens Falls, Melissa Brennan owned and operated daycare centers for 21 years. In 2015, she became sick and gained weight.
\nIt led to starting a business that pays attention to healthy eating.
\n\u201cMy body started to shut down, and I didn\u2019t know why. So I left the daycare business. I literally thought I was dying,\u201d said Brennan.
\n\u201cI found out it was all food-related. I took time to figure out myself what was wrong, because there wasn\u2019t a doctor who could tell me. I\u2019d always wanted to try something new, and I knew there were other people like me who had food-related sickness. So I opened the restaurant,\u201d she said.
\nBrennan chose to operate the business almost entirely by herself.
\n\u201cI didn\u2019t want things run like a big restaurant, pushing people through. I wanted to be able to talk to people. It\u2019s about finding out what people\u2019s ailments and food issues are, and cooking to make sure we\u2019re taking care of them the way they need,\u201d said Brennan.
\nBrennan credits a refusal to fail as the key to success in the restaurant business. The building next door to Fresh ADK was purchased and completely renovated by Chris Patten recently. Construction made access difficult for the restaurant. There was no sidewalk accessibility.
\n\u201cThere were mornings where I literally cried … But I kept saying it was going to be amazing when it was all done,\u201d she said.
\nAfter a brief hiatus, Fresh ADK is expanding its menu and services.
\nThe restaurant started three years ago, initially utilizing one storefront on South Street. Eventually, Brennan expanded to include the adjacent space. Fresh ADK now occupies the ground level storefront of 11 South Street.
\nAbout a year ago, the restaurant expanded into the additional space, which Brennan described as a \u201cblank square\u201d with no kitchen.
\n\u201cI didn\u2019t plan on expanding, but I knew it was something we needed to do. The opportunity came up. We went ahead and took that space, and it\u2019s beautiful,\u201d said Brennan.
\nThe additional space serves as the dining room and bakery counter. It will grow into a market of specialty products such as produce and drinks. The original space continues to serve as the kitchen, a pickup space for take-out and a smoothie bar.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s a bonafide smoothie bar. It\u2019s all fresh, real food. Fresh veggies, fresh fruits. We have all kinds of things you can add, like protein powders, collagen, bone broth and crystallized CBDs,\u201d said Brennan.
\nFresh ADK also sells CBD products, primarily from Holistic Health out of Colorado.
\n\u201cOur CBD products were recommended to us by a chiropractor we know. He works with people who suffer from all kinds of ailments,\u201d said Brennan. \u201cThey\u2019re pure CBDs. It\u2019s not a crap shoot. We researched the product for a long time,\u201d said Brennan.
\nFresh ADK has space available to rent for parties and events. Catering is offered both in-house and for delivery. Brennan personalizes dishes, creating a specialized menu for each event.
\n\u201cThings are awesome now. The businesses on the corner, as well as Chris [Patten], we have a great relationship. Everybody is working together. Everybody supports each other\u2019s business. It\u2019s truly changed downtown,\u201d said Brennan.
\n\u201cEven in the beginning, when nothing was happening on South Street, there was something inside of me that said that was where I was supposed to be. I knew it was going to be hard, and it was. But it\u2019s awesome,\u201d said Brennan.
\nBrennan has plans for expansion.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ll be expanding our educational classes. We started a health network from that. We\u2019re finishing up our website for that. People will be able to find local healthcare professionals that offer both modern western medicine and alternative medicine,\u201d said Brennan.
\nThe health network website is www.freshdirection.org and should be up and running in November.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re going to extend our bakery menu and our coffee offerings. We\u2019ll be adding a market with specialty items like local produce,\u201d she said.
\nBrennan also has plans to start a new daycare center in Glens Falls next year.
\n\u201cIt will be a green daycare, with all the same food. All whole foods, clean eating. It will be the 11th daycare I\u2019ve opened. I miss it tremendously. I really miss the kids. I loved my families,\u201d said Brennan.
\n\u201cThe reason I love daycare is the same reason I love the restaurant. It\u2019s a privilege to take care of people,\u201d said Brennan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Andrea Palmer Prior to opening Fresh ADK, a restaurant at 11 South St. in Glens Falls, Melissa Brennan owned and operated daycare centers for 21 years. In 2015, she became sick and gained weight. It led to starting a business that pays attention to healthy eating. \u201cMy body started to shut down, and I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":196,"featured_media":32430,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nMelissa Brennan Goes From Running Daycare To Owning Health-Conscious Restaurant - Glens Falls Business Journal<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/2019\/10\/melissa-brennan-goes-from-running-daycare-to-owning-health-conscious-restaurant\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Melissa Brennan Goes From Running Daycare To Owning Health-Conscious Restaurant - Glens Falls Business Journal\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"by Andrea Palmer Prior to opening Fresh ADK, a restaurant at 11 South St. in Glens Falls, Melissa Brennan owned and operated daycare centers for 21 years. 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