Historic Snoqualmie bank building owners lease to local chef

By Evan Pappas • February 28, 2017 2:18 pm
Kristen Schumacher has more than 16 years of experience as a chef and is planning to open her business, Heirloom, in Snoqualmie’s historic bank building by July. She plans to host cooking classes as well as events. (Courtesy of Kristey Ray)(Courtesy of Kristey Ray)
Kristen Schumacher has more than 16 years of experience as a chef and is planning to open her business, Heirloom, in Snoqualmie’s historic bank building by July. She plans to host cooking classes as well as events. (Courtesy of Kristey Ray)(Courtesy of Kristey Ray)

Since the Snoqualmie Valley Chamber of Commerce left its location in the historic Snoqualmie bank building and moved to the second floor of Sigillo Cellars, the old building’s new owners are planning to bring a new business to the city.

The city of Snoqualmie sold the building to Flying Pie Pizzeria in October of 2016. The new owners have subleased the space to a local chef for the next three years. Kristen Schumacher, chef and Snoqualmie resident since 2008, will move into the building in March to begin setting up her new kitchen.

Schumacher, a graduate of Seattle Culinary Academy, has worked as a chef for 16 years and has worked in catering, contract work as a private chef and teaching cooking classes. In her new business, she wants to combine the aspects of her previous work into something new.

Named Heirloom, her new business will act as both a classroom and a kitchen. She is planning to host cooking classes and special events, while also offering food from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day with a seasonal, changing menu.

This past Fall, Schumacher was looking for a location to lease. She had been looking at the building between The Bindlestick and the Snoqualmie Market on Railroad Avenue, but was offered the space at the bank building by the new owners.

“I was looking at a different space, the smaller space by the downtown market. I had an appointment with a kitchen (installation) guy and he was late, I was hanging out and these people walked in, it was one of the landlords (of the bank building),” she said.

Once they got to talking and understood what Schumacher was looking for, Katheryn Parker, one of the owners of the bank building, offered to lease the space to Schumacher.

She gets the keys to the building in March, but it will take a few months of work to get the kitchen up and running.

“I will be working with the city planners, health department, King County, I have about seven permits to apply for,” she said. “Hopefully I will be open in July.”

Schumacher is also hoping to launch a crowdfunding campaign to help fund the set up of a commercial kitchen space.

The name Heirloom is derived from two sources, Schumacher said. The first is her grandmother, who left her some money when she died. That money allowed Schumacher to attend Seattle Culinary Academy and turn her love of cooking into a profession.

The name also came from heirloom plants that are grown and passed down between generations.

“I named it for those two things, the heirloom passed down to me,” she said. “To honor her and what she had given to me.”

And while it may not be ready yet, Schumacher is ready to get started teaching classes and cooking in her new location.

“My favorite kind of classes are hands-on classes, anyone can read a recipe, but to be able to show someone and have them go hands-on… when they eat it they will have more of a sense of pride,” she said. “It’s been my dream to have a brick and mortar location and I’m super passionate about what I do, I love cooking and teaching.”