Bread of Life provides healthier alternatives
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
CHERYLE MATOWITZ, left, director of Bread of Life, a bulk food and specialty store located at 769 Main St. in Presque Isle, and her 14-year-old daughter, Natalie, stand next to some of the spices and herbs that are sold at the store. Matowitz said the business is somewhat like a natural foods store; however, she features a lot of specialty items “that you can’t get somewhere else.” Bread of Life features everything from beans, wheat, flour, rolled oats, fruits, cheeses, desserts, sodas and much, much more.
PRESQUE ISLE – Local residents are getting plenty of nourishment thanks to Bread of Life, a bulk food and specialty store.
Director Cheryle Matowitz said the business is somewhat like a natural foods store; however, she features a lot of specialty items “that you can’t get somewhere else.”
“We have a lot of different sauces and ethnic and organic foods that are homemade,” she said. “We have some licensed people who bring in homemade things, and we can order anything and everything which is nice with the small store atmosphere. If someone wants a 50-pound bag of something or a 25-pound bag of bulk item, we can go ahead and usually order it for them.”
Located at 769 Main St. in Presque Isle, Bread of Life opened May 30.
“We’ve been very busy,” Matowitz said. “The response has been overwhelming. People have been very accepting and welcoming.”
Thus far, a lot of Matowitz’ customers are from the “younger generation.”
“They’re learning and wanting to eat healthier so there’s a lot of vegetarian and vegan people and people who just want organic and are going back to the basics,” she said. “I think they’re tired of all the processed foods out there which I believe is causing a lot of the sicknesses going on with people.”
Bread of Life features everything from beans, wheat, flour, rolled oats, spices and herbs, fruits, cheeses, desserts, sodas and much, much more.
“The gluten-free products are very popular,” said Matowitz. “There are more and more people who have been diagnosed with wheat intolerance or celiac disease. I could probably turn the whole store into a celiac store with gluten-free items.
“Anything that you can buy at the store, you can get gluten-free. We have bagels, muffins, pizza crusts and mixes, spaghetti, macaroni and even gluten-free ketchup and mustard. I’m the only store at all that has Frank’s Bakery items from Bangor,” she said. “I made friends with one of the owners and asked if I could carry their products. They’ve told other stores ‘No’ but because we’re so far north, there’s no competition involved so we get fresh, gluten-free baked goods from their chef. She has pies, cakes, breads, muffins … everything you can think of they’re doing down there and letting me purchase it in bulk and bring it up here.”
Matowitz grinds her own peanut butter from organic peanuts from California.
“We have a peanut butter machine that makes a pound of peanut butter in 30 seconds,” she said. “We also grind our own cornmeal from popcorn kernels and we can grind all types of flours. We’ve even ground rice for rice flour for someone that has been gluten-free.”
The bulk of the products come from suppliers in southern Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and New York.
“Some of it’s produced locally, as well,” said Matowitz. “I have one young lady who makes fresh bread for me, we have syrup and candies made from someone in Perham, one woman who makes jams and jellies for me, and we also carry some of the jams from the Amish.”
Formerly Heidi’s Tea Shop, Matowitz said she’s in the perfect location.
“I was doing a food co-op for six years in the basement of our church [Seventh Day Adventist Church in Presque Isle] and it just kept growing and growing and growing,” she said. “I thought, ‘Maybe this is something people really want and need.’ When I was visiting Dr. Richard Graves, who I brought fresh eggs to every week, I asked him if I could look at the building. He brought me in and we looked around and I told him my idea. He said, ‘Check back with me.’
“After another week or two, we talked some more and one thing led to another. I couldn’t ask for a better landlord. He’s been very supportive and a big, big help,” said Matowitz. “It’s a great location with great visibility. I couldn’t be happier.”
Matowitz primarily works by herself although her daughters Shiloh, 15, and Natalie, 14, help out occasionally.
“I like the one-on-one contact with people,” she said. “It’s not like a salesperson-customer relationship, it’s more of a friendship. I’ve made a lot of friends already.”
Matowitz has additional plans in mind for Bread of Life.
“Because so many people are health conscious, we’re going to sell herbal tea and coffee-free, which is a natural grain substitute for coffee, for 50 cents and have homemade vegan muffins and other pastries to go with it,” she said. “Eventually our goal is to make wraps also and have them for sale. It would be a good fit for people who want to eat healthy but don’t have time to come in and eat. They can come in, get it and go.
“We’re also going to have ice cream that’s going to be dairy-free and gluten-free and have homemade waffle cones, waffle bowls,” said Matowitz. “We hope to be serving ice cream by mid-August.”
In addition, she sells handcrafted specialty made soaps, lip balm, body butters and shower gels.
“I make all of it here and all the bases are from the United States,” Matowitz said. “There’s no gluten in it … people have trouble getting shampoo without gluten in it.”
The family moved to Wade from Wisconsin 11 years ago.
“I have an aunt and uncle who lived in Mapleton and we came to visit and fell in love with the area,” Matowitz said. “We didn’t plan on moving, but went back to Wisconsin and said, ‘OK, Lord, if you want us to go, find us a buyer in three weeks.’ Our house sold in three days and we got more than we asked, so we believe that God wanted us here.
“Aroostook County is a lot like Wisconsin,” she said, “but I miss the dairy farms.”
Hours are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday-Thursday. FMI, 768-7000.
ORGANIC PEANUT BUTTER – Cheryle Matowitz, director of Bread of Life, a bulk food and specialty store, grinds peanut butter from organic California peanuts. Matowitz said the peanut butter machine makes a pound of peanut butter in 30 seconds. Bread of Life is located at 769 Main St. in Presque Isle.
