Contact information

Business Name:	Birchwood Café
Address:	3311 East 25th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55406
Phone:	612-722-4474
Email:	info@birchwoodcafe.com
Website:	www.birchwoodcafe.com

System details

Size:	8.200kW
Installer:	Novel Energy Solutions
Date of Install:	Summer 2014

Who we are

At our heart, the Birchwood Café is about fostering community, revealing connections and inspiring gratitude.

We pride ourselves on offering something for everyone.  Whether you are vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, omnivorous or all about the bacon, we have plenty of lovingly handcrafted dishes for you to enjoy.   Our food is local, sustainable, organic food that makes you feel good.  We take care to know the land, the animals and the people we work with and source from are treated with respect, and you’ll taste that in the food.  And because our menu changes with the seasons, there is always something new to try.

Why we went solar

We went solar when we remodeled to incorporate more aspects of sustainability into our building.  We used solar energy, solar “tubes”, repurposed wood, plus added in a kitchen garden and full-size compost operation.  The Made in Minnesota Incentive plan, along with the sizable federal tax credit, made it financially doable, and we’ve certainly reaped many rewards from our energy plan and our garden.  The solar array needs little to no maintenance and, while it doesn’t quite supply all of our electric needs (restaurants use so much energy for cooling, etc) it does supplement energy that we pull from Xcel.  Ultimately we’d love to see more options for renewable energy and offsetting our carbon output, but for now, we’re glad to do our small part in the energy revolution from our corner in Seward.