Our short (but sweet) history
It was a sunny Tuesday in January 2022 after mountain biking nearby when we first laid eyes on what is now The 1856 Speakeasy Suites - a Nevada City Hotel! Two short months later, as proud owners of this iconic building plans to restore this Nevada City hotel back to its intended purpose immediately began and the community experience now known as Communal Cafe is now thriving. In no particular order, these are the top 5 reasons we chose to create a mixed use Nevada City Hotel and Nevada City Coffee shop!
Room 2 exposed brick walls along Broad St.
Charm
Not having been in Nevada City before, the town and building had great energy that spoke to us. Built in 1856, caught fire shortly thereafter but remained standing, and one of the oldest buildings in Nevada City, we immediately felt the history in the brick walls, 200yo true cut lumber, 6’ hand carved clay walls in the basements and felt compelled to take part in the building’s history and help restore it back to its glory days. The spacious yet comfortable 4,000sf Communal Cafe has been such a rewarding experience opening up the space and creating some of the best coffee, drinks, food and of course donuts ever! Fun facts: rumor has it this was a brothel, no, we did not find any hidden treasures and have not encountered ghosts! Please reach out if you have any more information or pictures about the building (Eddie’s Bank Club, Schreibers Corner, KVMR radio, etc.) - we’d love to hear from you!
Room 5 is a quiet 2 bedroom/ 1.5 bath
Location
Located in the heart of this iconic Gold Rush town at the intersection of Broad & Pine, the 4,000sf floor plates covering 3 stories is the most popular intersection in all of Nevada City. Home to some of the most popular tourist attractions - Victorian Christmas, Hot Summer Nights and Farmers Market has made this a special location! Walkable to all local retail stores, amenities and some of our favorite restaurants, our family loves the town. Some of our favorite activities are parking at Pioneer Park, exploring the buggy museum, playing at the park, hitting baseballs followed by a quick nature walk through Little Deer Creek Trail, stopping by Communal Cafe (typical order is butterfly pea lemonade, cardamom breve, churro donut, grab and go burrito with home made hot sauce, and the classic burger) topping the night off at Friar Tucks for dinner and drinks and back to The 1856 Speakeasy Suites (Room 5) for the night!
Future 3rd floor penthouse suite
Blank slate
The first floor coffee shop had been remodeled prior to, so our focus was the 2nd and 3rd floors which was in rough shape. Nearly all the walls down to the studs, some plumbing and electrical in place, no flooring or ceiling these floors were ready for a refresh! Nearly two years later and viola - The 1856 Speakeasy Suites is a modern victorian 9 room hotel.
Community
Initial reactions was that this building has always been a pillar in the community and we wanted to keep it that way. The iron metal shutters on the 2nd floor were closed and the first floor was only partially used. We wanted to open it up and bring this prominent Nevada City corner back to life again. We are thrilled so many locals and visitors find comfort in our space at Communal Cafe and The 1856 Speakeasy Suites and are happy you are our guests.
Family
Our busy family is always seeking opportunities to bond and as a unit and more importantly teach valuable life lessons through hard work, sacrifices, believing in yourself and taking risk. This endeavor has provided just that.