Open for Business: The Pickle and The Chilly Dill

The Pickle and The Chilly Dill
A southwest Springfield venue brought pickleball and cryotherapy services together on Oct. 5. The Pickle LLC and The Chilly Dill LLC are two separate businesses with the same ownership, open at 3350 E. Montclair St., near the U.S. Highway 65 and Battlefield Road intersection. The 14,500-square-foot building constructed this year houses The Pickle, which offers four indoor courts for pickleball, a lounge and a training area. On the building’s south side is The Chilly Dill, a cryotherapy recovery center. The owners are two married couples, Christie and Tim Blasi and Katie and Steven Miller, who also own the building and property via The Big Pickle LLC. The sisters declined to disclose startup costs for the venture, for which Dock Brothers Construction Co. was general contractor and BRP Architects was the architect. Katie Miller said the two businesses have a combined staff of 10. Aside from The Pickle and The Chilly Dill, Day One Fitness LLC, a personal training business, leases nearly 2,000 square feet in the facility, Miller said.
Phone: 417-530-3070
Web: ThePickleMo.com

Whatcha Cooking
Italian beef sandwiches are the primary focus of Whatcha Cooking, a new food truck that launched June 13. Owner Christina Romaniak said the mobile eatery generally operates at Metro Eats, 2463 W. Sunshine St., but will travel up to a two-hour radius of Springfield for events. Startup costs were roughly $15,000, she said, adding she pays $500 monthly for the month-to-month lease with Metro Eats owners Christine and Amy Shellhart. Romaniak said she is the lone employee at Whatcha Cooking, but her family volunteers their time to help out. The food truck marks Romaniak’s first business ownership venture. She notes she has accrued around a decade of food service experience, including work at Taco Bell and McDonald’s. Aside from the traditional Italian beef, menu options include a French dip, an Italian sausage and a Chicago-style Philly steak sandwich with sauteed onions, green peppers and cheese. Romaniak said she also plans to add soup to the menu for the winter. Prices range $8-$13.
Email: whatchacookingmo@gmail.com

Architect Coffee
Five years after making its Queen City debut, Architect Coffee Co. LLC launched its second location Oct. 17 in the Fremont Center. The company’s newest spot is a drive-thru shop at 1300 E. Battlefield Road. Originally projected for a late August opening, Architect Coffee has taken on the space previously occupied by Andy’s Frozen Custard, which closed in January after operating in the 450-square-foot building since 2012. Architect Coffee co-owner Alycia Horn declined to disclose renovation costs for the new shop, adding roughly half of the company’s 45 employees will also work at the new location. Horn, along with her husband, Ryan, and Nick and Megan Bearden, opened the coffee company’s first location in 2019 at 1604 E. Republic Road. Horn said the new store offers the same selection of coffee and food items as the Republic Road shop, and these include breakfast burritos, sandwiches, pastries, quiches and oatmeal.
Phone: 417-272-4401
Web: ArchitectCoffeeCo.com