As you drive through Mercersburg you may have noticed there is a new shop in town. In the square there is a new coffee shop called One North. They haven’t been open very long, but have had a busy start. The grand opening was the night of the Christmas Tree Lighting and they entertained the customers with a musician performing live music.

Lena Eckstine is the owner of the shop, and has been working closely with the manager Audrey Birkhimer. Eckstine and Birkhimer met in person in September when Birkhimer told Eckstine she was on board to help her dream of starting a coffee shop.

Birkhimer was working at another shop at the time but said, “Things just kinda happened and fell into place.”  

Since then Birkhimer and Eckstine have been working hand-in-hand to get the shop up and running.

“I did the menu, I did the hiring, I did some of the work around here [the shop]” said Birkhimer.

Working in a coffee shop has been a dream of Birkhimer’s since she was in high school, so for her this was like a dream come true. Working in the shop hasn’t been as hard of a task for Birkhimer as one might think.

“It was nice to get into the rhythm again,” said Birkhimer. “I’ve been a barista before so it was nice.”

Although the barista side of things for her was easy, she had never been in complete control of the hiring process like she is at One North. Birkhimer went through all the applications and did all the hiring. One of our own students, Savanna Riley (11) was lucky enough to become a member of the staff.

One North is open Monday through Saturday every week. So far the shop has not had an exact estimate on when their busiest times are, but when the Mercersburg Academy students have their free time, they like to come in and hang out in the shop. Their grand opening was held on a Saturday and that has been the most popular day.

“Throughout the week we get busier,” Birkhimer said. “So Mondays aren’t super busy then Tuesdays pick up, Wednesdays are busier and then it kinda leads up to Saturdays.”

The shop offers a variety of drinks on the menu, from lattes to smoothies to cappuccinos.

“Chai Lattes and London Fogs are super popular,” said Birkhimer. “But other than that, probably just a plain vanilla latte, people love those”.

A Chai Latte is two pumps of concentrated chai syrup and the rest is milk. A London Fog is a pump of vanilla syrup and earl gray tea and steamed milk.

In the words of Birkhimer these are “really yummy.”

The shop also does a specialty item of sticky buns on the weekends that seems to be very popular. As of now this is the only specialty item that they have, but there is a possibility for more things in the future.

One North has plans to hold different events in the shop to make it like a hang-out space for the community. So far they have had a musician come in and do live music and other things could be coming in the future.

“Poetry slams [and] live music is definitely on the list,” Birkhimer said. “Different things the community would be interested in we would want to host.”

Along with the baked goods and drinks, there is also a gift shop located inside of One North. There are different items you can peruse t and purchase while you are waiting for your order.

The shop also offers free Wi-Fi that customers can use while they are at the shop. A variety of people come to the shop for a drink or snack, but also some to work. Some people come to work on things because they work at home or they are allowed to work remotely. A lot of students come in to work on homework and connect to the shops Wi-Fi.

From couches and loveseats to tables and chairs there is a variety of comfortable options to sit at in the shop making a place where all people can feel welcome.

“We never want this to be an area of unrest or contention,” said Birkhimer.  “It’s for everyone in Mercersburg and beyond to come and just hang out.”