Take a break from your busy schedule and curl up with a delicious cup of coffee, a pastry, and a good book, at the Book Mart & Café on Main Street. You can sit at a table in the café to people watch or climb the stairs to the more private (and cozy) reading area.
Bully Shop & Café, which opened in 2008, is the perfect spot to meet your friends for a down-home cooked meal. Some of the menu favorites include cranberry & pecan chicken salad, grilled pimento cheese sandwich, The Junction sandwich, Mexican lasagna, and Italian spaghetti.
If you’re on the search for the perfect Mississippi State University gear, you’ll find that too at the Bully Shop located in the Book Mart. Boasting everything from hats and shirts, to mugs, cowbells, and more, you’ll find the perfect MSU gift in this downtown shop.
Book Mart: Just For Book Lovers
Since 1972, the Book Mart’s windows have shone with the colorful covers of the latest best-selling books for adults, kids, and teens. Generations of Starkvillians have found their latest read on the shelves in this downtown shop.
If you want to interact with authors and artists, the Book Mart regularly hosts author events.
“We have hosted so many great authors, including Wyatt Waters (Mississippi Water Color Artist), Robert St John (Restaurant owner, author and TV Personality), Laurie Parker (author of Southern Fiction novels and children’s books), Joe MacGowan (International Artist), Charlie Spillers (undercover FBI Agent and author), Ken Murphy (renowned photographer), Willie Morris (legendary Southern author), Marshall Ramsey (syndicated columnist, author, cartoonist), Michael Farris Smith & Michael Kardos (bestselling southern and thriller fiction authors), Richard Grant (winner of the Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize), Hank Burdine (Southern Delta Non Fiction Author) and many others,” says owner Carolyn Abadie.
To encourage young readers, Abadie sponsors a ‘Children’s Story Time’ held on Saturday mornings. Kids will color, read, and often enjoy a tasty treat served up right from the Café.
Bully Cafe: Down-Home Food
The Café is where you’ll find delicious home-baked treats, tasty lunch specials, and hand-dipped ice cream. Lunch specials, called Maroon Specials, are offered Monday through Friday and feature menu favorites.
Baker and cook Miranda Dewberry, previously of McAllister’s, was hired at the Book Mart Café in 2014. She has become an important part of the store as she is the primary baker and cook for the café.
Delicious homemade cakes can be bought by the slice or the whole cake. Dewberry also bakes up brownies, cupcakes, scones, Danishes, and muffins.
There are great lunchtime offerings, such as sandwiches, wraps, soups, and salads. If you’re dropping in for something to drink, you’ll find black coffee as well as specialty flavors such as Southern Pecan, Mind Your Tummy, Salted Caramel, and Medium Roast; tea; lemonade; hot cocoa; and sodas.
On a hot summer day, don’t forget to drop in for a hand-dipped scoop of ice cream. The prices can’t be beat!
Downtown Meeting Spot
This downtown location is a great spot to meet; several Starkville groups take advantage of the great location, food, and atmosphere. Writer’s groups, bible study groups, knitting clubs, students studying for exams, and bridge players all meet here. You’ll find that Starkville residents and visitors alike love to meet up at the Book Mart & Café.
“It’s really fun to have different groups in the Café,” says owner Abadie. “We have had bridal showers, birthday parties, and even baby showers here in the Café.”
Supporting the Community
As a long-time member of the business community, the Book Mart & Café is a regular sponsor of several annual events including the Cotton District Arts Festival, unWine Downtown, the Holiday Bazaar, Pumpkinpalooza, and the Citywide Tailgate.
The business also participates in a variety of fundraisers for charities such as Make-A-Wish, American Heart Association, United Way, Arthritis Foundation, and the American Cancer Society. The Café also regularly donates door prizes to community organizations and clubs.
Drop In Downtown
The Book Mart & Café’s hours are Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Follow them on social media for updates, special events, and lunch specials at: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Visit their website to see the Café’s menu, see items from the Bully Shop, and learn about upcoming events and specials: http://bookmartandcafe.com.
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