8 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
Surfbird Cafe comes to Cannon Beach
Breakfast and
lunch spot will
replace Bella
Espresso
By BRENNA VISSER
COAST WEEKEND
A
new international-
ly-inspired breakfast
and lunch spot will
be coming to downtown
Cannon Beach.
Surfbird Cafe is replacing
Bella Espresso, the Ital-
ian-style coffee shop that has
operated at 231 N. Hemlock
St. for more than 16 years,
over Memorial Day week-
end.
“I have decided to simpli-
fy my life, enjoy family and
check things off my bucket
list,” former owner James
Faurentino said in a state-
ment. “It has been a plea-
sure owning and operating
Bella Espresso for the last
16 years and I am looking
forward to just focusing on
my first business and love
in Cannon Beach: Pizza a’
fetta.”
At the helm of Surfbird
Cafe is Josh Bokish, who
chose the name to keep the
seabird theme in line with
his other restaurant, Osprey
Cafe in Seaside. After four
years in Seaside, Bokish
saw the opening in Cannon
Beach as an opportunity to
expand, as well as a way
return to his Cannon Beach
roots.
For Bokish, running a
business in Cannon Beach is
a family affair. His parents,
John and Elizabeth Bokish,
operate the fair trade cloth-
ing and goods store West of
the Moon across the street,
and his sister Natalie runs
Geppetto’s Toy Shoppe on
the same block.
“Growing up we had a
house on Monroe Street,”
BRENNA VISSER PHOTO
Josh Bokish plans to open Surfbird Cafe around Memorial Day weekend where Bella Espresso operated for more than 16 years.
Bokish said. “I’ve gotten to
watch the town grow and
change a little bit.”
Like Osprey Cafe, lunch
and breakfasts will be in-
spired by Bokish’s years of
international travel with his
parents and emulate classic
American, Indian, Asian and
South American cuisine.
Surfbird Cafe will hold a
similar vibe that is found at
Osprey Cafe, Bokish said,
but with its own twists.
Because of limited space,
Bokish said the restaurant
will start by being count-
er-service only to encourage
both to-go orders and a
casual, sit-down atmosphere.
There will still be a full-ser-
vice espresso bar for those
who have come to rely on
this location for their morn-
ing coffee.
While the menu isn’t yet
finished, Bokish said to look
out for a new clam chowder
recipe and a breakfast sand-
wich made with arepas, a
type of South American corn
flour patty.
But some classics will
carry over from the Seaside
cafe.
“We’re definitely going
to carry over the avocado
toast, because they were
so popular at the Osprey,”
Bokish said. “But I always
like to keep experimenting
and challenging myself to
come up with new ideas. I
would be bored doing the
same thing.” CW