Bella Coffee reopens under new management

Coffee lovers who frequent Bella Coffee on Westover Square fretted over the possible loss of their favorite coffee shop as owner John Seaton announced his retirement. The Carrollton Menu, a local blogging site that covers the current events of Carrollton restaurants, reported the search for new owners to take over. For a while it seemed as if Bella Coffee may remain closed for good, but then Tim and Denah Bell decided to take on the challenge.

“We have lived in Carrollton for about 17 years,” said Tim Bell. “I worked for the majority of that time at Greenwood Medical Technologies. We decided to do something different. We were toying with the idea of opening a small restaurant here in Carrollton, and we had been looking for the right building and the right location and never could find anything.”

Just when his dream of owning a small restaurant seemed out of reach, Bell found a story online about how the Seatons put Bella Coffee on the market.

“I had been a customer [at Bella Coffee] over the years, I called [my wife] Denah and said, ‘Maybe we should look at Bella Coffee, because it’s going to closed if it isn’t sold,” said Bell.

By the time the Bells decided to actively make an offer, Seaton had closed the store for about two weeks. They came and met with him and found the store to be “a perfect match.”

They liked the current setup of Bella Coffee that it is as much of a place to eat, as it is a place to get a cup of coffee. The professional kitchen and the cozy atmosphere sealed the deal for them.

For now, the name will remain Bella Coffee and the menu will stay the same. Bell hinted that he plans to expand and to grow the food service aspect of the business. Overall though, it seems Bella Coffee will retain the low-key, comfortable setting patrons are accustomed to.

“We will always be a coffee shop. It will always be a nice environment for people to come and enjoy and work,” said Bell.

Denah Bell said she hopes that students will continue to use Bella Coffee as a place to socialize and study. In a small town like Carrollton, local businesses become a vital part of the community. It is easy for family owned establishments like these to get lost in the sea of Starbucks and McDonald’s,restaurants, but it is places like Bella Coffee that give small towns their heart.

“We are a big supporter of local business,” said Bell. “We buy as much of our products as we can locally. In fact, our coffee is from Bowdon Coffee Roasters. We want to be a part of the community here; we want to participate with the University [of West Georgia] and with the other merchants in [Westover Shopping Center] to make this a destination for the community to come to.”

Bella Coffee officially reopened on Nov. 2. The future looks bright for the Bells and Bella Coffee.

Erin

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