The Sophian

Issue date: 11/5/09 Section: News

Green Street embodies the individuality of Northampton while remaining a quaint, calm locality, separate from the downtown bustle. Known for its pizza and cafe, the street maintained this identity as a third café, No. 40 Green Street Lunch, opened Nov. 1.

With the variety of cafe - Elbow Room, Green Street Cafe and now No. 40 Green Street Lunch - the obvious question is what this new cafe has to offer that distinguishes it from its neighbors.

James Laing, owner of No. 40 Green Street Lunch, said he picked the location due to its significance as a memory of a place that was once "a neat little chocolate shop" he frequented while growing up on Belmont Ave. Laing, who is married to Smith French professor Hélène Visentin, attributes his choice to join the ranks of cafés to a desire for variety.

"There is Green Street Cafe, a sit-down French cafe, and Elbow Room, a quick organic coffee grab, but what we don't have is both a sit-down and a high-quality, quick-service place, which would fit well with the other businesses," he said.

Ken Shapiro, owner of East Heaven Hot Tub Co. on West Street, said the new opening strengthens the "cafe district."

"It's fabulous that someone's opening a breakfast and lunch place," he said.

The new cafe's menu primarily contains breakfast food, salads, sandwiches and desserts. It is not its content, but its character that is noteworthy. The interior is a modern room with a respect for New England structures.

Laing describes a fusion of influences featured in his cafe. Having studied at the Culinary Institute of America and practiced cooking a range of cultural cuisine from Californian to Parisian, Laing boasts that a customer can enjoy a classic New Orleans muffuletta or a Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich and finish with a pain au chocolat for dessert.

He also places considerable emphasis on good ingredients. "What we can't buy, we make," Laing said.

Aside from the unique composition of basic menu items, an effective service style is also a top priority for the cafe.

"The subtleties and details are what count for people," Laing said. From his 26 years of restaurant experience, Laing has learned that proper equipment not only produces quality options, but also permits quick preparation.

He envisions the café being a casual meeting place for locals, faculty and students as well as a place that provides ready-made food alongside the specialty food, catering to the "appropriate needs" of any customer. Shapiro sees the café as an addition rather than a competitor to the other cafe and supports the claim of "not fighting for customers." Students' purchases, however, often depend upon their budget sensitivities.

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