Popular Eatery Moxie Cup To Become Redstart Coffee

The owner of Moxie Cup on Main Street. Photo by Samantha Schwartz.

There will be a change of scenery at 184 Main St. in the Village of New Paltz come next week, as Moxie Cup will do away with their famous cupcakes and transition into a more coffee-oriented shop.

On May 14, the current incarnation of Moxie Cup will operate one last time, bringing back oldie-but-goodie, retired flavors such as matcha (known as Karma Police), s’mores (Campfire Song) and watermelon (Summer Lovin’) before reopening on May 16 as Redstart Coffee. 

Moxie Cup founder and owner, Josie Grant-Eriole, who opened the shop in 2010, says that while it has been a wonderful experience selling cupcakes, she is looking forward to advancing her business both personally and professionally. 

“I want to focus my attention on the passion and love that I have for coffee going forward, which led to my decision to transition Moxie Cup to Redstart,” Grant-Eriole said. “I look forward to upping my game in the coffee world by introducing pour over coffee as well as cold brew.” 

In addition to the new-and-improved location on Main Street, Grant-Eriole will be opening up another location on the Kingston Waterfront one exit away. 

Set to open later this month, Kingston’s Redstart location will sit upon the Kingston Rondout Waterfront district between Savona’s Trattoria and Ship to Shore, adjacent to Mariner’s Harbor restaurant. 

“It’s a beautiful, revitalized area that features a promenade around the Rondout and right by the trolley museum,” Grant-Eriole said. “It’s a perfect day trip if you’re traveling up from New Paltz.”

The name “Redstart” refers to the American redstart bird, who migrate from the northeast to coffee fields and are beneficial to farmers by eating and fending off harmful insects to the coffee beans. 

“I chose the name because I wanted to sell great and sustainable coffee,” Grant-Eriole said. “I also want to focus on selling coffee from bird-friendly coffee farms with strong women farmers.”

From when Thursday through Sunday, you will still be able to purchase your favorite cupcakes at Moxie Cup, so make sure you take a trip into town to get your favorites before they are gone forever. 

Thoughts from the author … As a Moxie Cup employee for the last year, I have enjoyed serving cupcakes to my friends, family and anyone who the sugary delights appeal to, but I am excited about the direction the shop is going. As a barista, it is exciting that there will be more of an emphasis put on coffee and to educate loyal customers and newbies alike on the art that is the game of coffee.