When Courtney’s House became an affiliate of United Cerebral Palsy three years ago, we hoped to develop social, recreational programs for adults with developmental disabilities living in the North SLO County. Carrie and Greg Sanders bought the beautiful, Victorian home, built in 1892, to provide activities for their daughter Courtney and her friends. Carrie formed an advisory group who came up with the dream of opening a café as a location to teach restaurant skills to adults with disabilities. In November of 2015, she found a caterer who wanted to open a café at Courtney’s House. In December, the caterer decided against opening the café.
We put out a “Business Opportunity” offer in January and received interest from four parties to open the café. However, the deadline for bidders rolled by on February 29th and we still did not have someone to open the café. On a Friday afternoon, a week later, Carrie stopped by the local nursery to buy some plants to put into the yard over the weekend. She met Christine Dillow, the owner of the Fig Restaurant in Atascadero in the parking lot and they talked about the potential of the café in Templeton. Chris Dillow immediately fell in love with the concept and has poured her heart and soul into launching the Fig Café at Courtney’s House.
The Fig Café is located at 311 6th Street in Templeton and is open for breakfast and lunch from 7:30 am until 2:30 pm, Monday through Saturday. The Fig has their own staff, but Courtney’s House is offering the café to other programs to bring their vocational students to learn restaurant skills. They hope to learn at the Fig Café and then get a job at a local restaurant. Courtney’s House is also available to rent for weddings, business gatherings and other special events. The Fig Café lets you go back in time to enjoy sit-down, American food. You can sit on the large porch or inside the house. For more information, call the Fig Café at 434-3895 or visit www.courtneys-house.org.
Mark Shaffer
Executive Director
UCP of San Luis Obispo County