Exploring Life & Business with Liz Post of Ocelot Cafe & Bakery

Today we’d like to introduce you to Liz Post.

Hi Liz, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
In early 2020, pre-covid, my now husband & I launched @platesbypost from our Cleveland apartment, showcasing kitchen creations sourced via the West Side Market runs. We started advertising some of my bakes, and our friends & family proved to really be interested. I baked, Jason delivered. It kept us fairly busy while the world was in disarray. By July 2020, we were both jobless, and decided to roll the dice and see just how far this baking passion could take us. This led to the formation of Plates by Post LLC.

Later that year, we moved to Akron, registered for a Home Bakery License, and expanded the business to wholesale, the Medina Farmers Market, and custom baking services. We both worked part-time at a local bakery, while also running PBP via out of our house. By the end of 2021, we began to outgrow our home space. It was time to decide whether to find work doing something else, or to continue forward & take a risk on a brick & mortar location.

In April 2022, we purchased The Richfield Gourmet Cafe. Within the year, we rebranded to Ocelot Cafe & Bakery. Change happened very fast, and it’s definitely not what I envisioned. Actually, I really didn’t have a lot of time for envisioning; but it works, and it works well.

Ocelot offers an entirely scratch-made menu, locally roasted coffee, and quick service. We keep a team of 8-10, including ourselves. Jason and I are quite involved with the day to day operations. We operate the cafe 6 days a week, and the months just keep getting busier. For that, we are very lucky.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It would be very impressive to meet a business owner who answers a simple “yes” to this question. There have been smooth moments, days, weeks, and even months. I had just turned 25 when we opened the cafe. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

Something not a lot of people know is that we turned key within two weeks of finding out about the availability of our current location. It was merely an idea to open a bakery. No plans had been drawn, no equipment lists had been made, and no real business plan was prepared. We were passively looking around, but that was it. There was just an idea, and the potential for growth. We found out about this locations availability and it seemed like it could work. It would have been nice to have more time to plan, but we had to make our decision quickly. So we did it, and then two weeks later the madness began.

We received the key and closed the shop for two weeks to make some quick shop improvements. This consisted of painting, electrical & plumbing fixes, equipment additions, and general shop organization. Everything had to happen at once, and then we needed to open our doors fast so that we could keep this idea alive.

It’s essentially been non-stop since then. The first 2.5 years were the hardest. Hiring employees, dealing with equipment failures, and just learning how to navigate this operation. I’ve since learned that it’s smart to take things day by day. Organize yourself and your work as much as possible, but understand that each day might throw something new at you. Whether it’s a broken down walk-in cooler or a failed batch of scones, the sky is not falling. It’s going to be okay.

Our goals are to make a really great product with excellent service, ensure a safe + accommodating work space for our employees, and to try and maintain a healthy work-life balance for ourselves. That last part ebbs and flows, but we have learned to deal with that, too.

Our staff is incredible, and our passion to make this business successful is what drives us every day.

As you know, we’re big fans of Ocelot Cafe & Bakery. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Ocelot focuses on creating everything from scratch, with a daily selection of handcrafted pastries that sell out by closing time.
Our menu changes often, with updates available on Facebook and Instagram stories each business day. Customers are advised to arrive early for the best selection, or to call ahead and reserve items for later pickup. Lunch is available Monday – Friday starting around 10:00 a.m., with a limited number of sandwiches, cold salads, and soups prepared each day. The aim is to sell out of all lunch items by closing time.

Breakfast Focaccia is one of our absolute staple items. It’s our house-focaccia with an egg baked into the center of each slice. This becomes a blank canvas for flavor. Our bakers are given the creative freedom to craft a custom flavor via toppings each day, which means you aren’t likely to have the exact same flavor twice. We are also popular for our scones, which have turned scone-haters opinions around time and time again. Our sweet rolls are currently climbing in the ranks as one of my favorite items. The London Fog & Dirty Chai Twists are elite pastries, in my humble opinion.

More than anything, we are proud of the fact that we make all of it in-house. No short-cuts. Every dough, every filling, every dressing, and almost every condiment is made in-house on a weekly and daily basis. We don’t believe in serving pastries past their prime. If this means we sell out one hour before close, so be it. We base our daily bake lists off of data collected via past sales, weather, holidays, and sometimes pure instinct. Our goal is to sell as much fresh food while we’re open, while also eliminating waste at the end of the day. The message to our customers is this: come early, or place a pre-order. Our shelves will be empty when nearing the end of the day. This is by design.

Food is clearly the forefront of what we do, but our coffee selection is special too. We serve the finest local north-east Ohio coffees. Our selection rotates weekly and monthly among 8-10 of our local roasting partners. The coffee is cultivated from all around the world, but all roasted here in the greater Akron/Cleveland area by a diverse group of artisans.

While three varieties of drip coffee are available daily, we also provide an outlet for selling whole beans from our roasting partners. We grind any whole bean to your desired preference. Since our coffee supply is constantly on rotation, you will have an opportunity to try coffees from different roasters and regions every week; we consider this a unique tour de coffee.

As for the service, our shop is meant for quick-service. everything is designed to be done on-the-fly. A majority of our weekday customers are commuting to work or having a meeting in-shop. We cater to this fast-paced lifestyle. We don’t have table service, and nothing is made-to-order. Our baristas will make you a delicious latte while you wait for your pastry pocket to warm up in our convection oven. That being said, our dining room is large and a great spot for gathering. It’s very family friendly, especially on the weekends. We’re located in a small community and have gotten to know so many of the local families in the area. The community has been supporting us every step of the way. We’re now starting to see customers from all over Ohio. The Akron Summit County Visitors Bureau has assisted with the Drip Drive, a local coffee tour, sending Akron locals to our shop for two years in a row now. Every bit helps, and we’ve gotten progressively busier every year.

Another small note about our brand. We’re Phish fans at the core. That’s where the name derives from.

What’s next?
Our future plans are to maintain our current location and make the most out of where we are. We have yet to reach the ceiling of possibilities for what this cafe space is capable of.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ocelotcafe.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ocelotcafeandbakery/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ocelotcafeandbakery/about/?_rdr
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/ocelot-cafe-and-bakery-richfield