UNION — RattleTale Coffee and Such has new owners.

John and Linda Baker purchased the coffee shop and building, at 332 Main St., Union, on Feb. 13, from previous owners Randy and Tonya Freeman and will continue to serve customers the same tasty menu.

“The products include coffee drinks, 100% fruit smoothies, homemade chai tea, Italian sodas, frappes, steamers, energy drinks, pastries and sandwiches,” Linda Baker said. “We are featuring Starkey coffee, which is roasted locally.”

They offer breakfast burritos, pork loin sandwiches and chicken sandwiches. In the category of sweets, there are homemade cinnamon rolls, turnovers, brownies, coffee cake and bagels.

The biscuits, brownies, turnovers and coffee cake are brought in fresh by a baker in Union. The Bakers like to use local sources for their products whenever possible. They also make some things themselves.

“We barbecue the pork loin and chicken for the sandwiches,” John Baker said. “All of our breakfast burritos are homemade as well. It’s one of our best sellers.”

The coffee shop has in-house dining that will seat 20. When the weather warms up, there will be outdoor dining available for another dozen individuals.

“We do have a monthly coffee special,” John Baker said. “For February it is ‘Strawberry Kiss,’ an espresso with strawberries with white and dark chocolate for Valentines.”

Coffees come in 12-ounce or 16-ounce serving sizes, or customers may bring in their own cups to be filled. The Bakers have a sign-up list for those eating in house, and food also can be prepared to go.

Welcoming atmosphere

RattleTale Coffee and Such is a coffee shop with a welcoming ambiance, complete with Wi-Fi and seating for small groups. It’s a place where you can meet up with a friend, do some reading, or spend some time sipping coffee between appointments. Or you can become a regular at the coffee shop and have your order ready when you arrive.

“One thing we have a lot here are table games. People enjoy coming in and playing board games quite often,” Linda Baker said.

For those who want to do some reading, RattleTale has several publications there to read.

“We have 30 years worth of National Geographics and travel books and special interest books for our guests,” John Baker said.

It’s home-spun hospitality at its best, and in the future that may be extended to high school students so they have a place to hang out between sports and dinner because the school is so close to the coffee shop.

“The coaches have told us that the kids have nowhere to go between school and practice or school and games, so it would be nice to have a safe, supervised place where they can hang out for a few hours after school. Down the road that might happen,” Linda Baker said.

John Baker is a musician associated with the old-time fiddlers in the area, and that’s another possible use for RattleTale in the future.

“We might open it up for small concerts or have local musicians come to play,” he said.

Also, part of the hometown ambiance at RattleTale is created through their display of a variety of artwork by local artisans.

“We sell some leather goods, crafts, jewelry, and handmade cards made by locals,” Linda Baker said.

RattleTale Coffee and Such is founded on hospitality. John Baker cited an example when the Freemans opened their coffee shop to the Bakers on their wedding day.

“In May Linda and I were married in the little white church, a couple of doors down from RattleTale, and we didn’t have a place for our reception, so Randy and Tonya gave Linda the key and told us to use RattleTale for our reception,” John Baker said.

The Freemans made their shop available to the community in a warm and uniting way, and that kind of hospitality impressed the Bakers.

“We really want to continue the legacy that they began, extending the hospitality with good coffee and good food,” Linda Baker said. “It’s real cute inside to the locals and those traveling through town.”

Making themselves at home

John Baker was born in La Grande but moved away with his parents years ago. His last place of residence was Phoenix. He was a widower and Linda was a widow, introduced through mutual friends, she said. Then they started to play Wordfeud online. He may have lost most of the games to her, but he won her heart in the end.

“It was a whirlwind romance, and we became quite fond of each other,” she said.

Assimilating into the community has not been difficult for the Bakers. People already knew Linda (Bond) Baker because she has lived in Union for the past 18 years and has been an active volunteer at the museum and as a substitute teacher.

“We’re both involved with the Catherine Creek Community Center, and Linda’s been on the board at the museum across the street, so we’re already connected in some good ways,” John Baker said. “We’re making ourselves available in the community, and that’s what we want to do.”

The Bakers warmly invite everyone to come down to meet them at RattleTale Coffee and Such and get acquainted.

“Our goal at RattleTale is to make it a meeting place for the community that exhibits our unity together in Union,” John Baker said, “working with adults and young people and having good coffee at the same time.”

RattleTale Coffee and Such is open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. and their news is posted on Facebook, Instagram and Yelp.