“Oh wow.” Is how Chelsea Heilmann, owner of Square One Café, describes the start of her vegan journey after spending a day watching several informative documentaries 3 years ago. She says that she just “never looked back” and after not being able to unsee what she had just seen, and “knew that it was time to make a change” to veganism. The latest step in Chelsea’s vegan journey is the newly opened Square One Café in Downtown Schenectady.
Square One Café is the result of a lifelong dream of Heilmann’s. While she admits that she never believed that her dream café would be vegan, this new adventure “just makes it that much more exciting.” Chelsea credits Happy Cappuccino’s former owner Matt Robbins for creating an “amazing atmosphere of this cozy, warm, inviting café” that after her time working as a barista she saw the opportunity and potential for what could become.
Ms. Heilmann is from Schenectady and knows first-hand the restaurant scene. Square One will soon be a “full-fledged vegan restaurant” and this is part of the change that Chelsea wants to impart to her community. Her goal is to “show the everyday people of Downtown Schenectady that vegan food can be amazing tasting, affordable and convenient.” The one menu that Chelsea is looking forward to is the Cheesy Gordita Krunch (yes, just like the Taco Bell one). A self-proclaimed lover of junk food, Chelsea is excited to “show people you can have those items you used to love and it can be done cruelty free and environmentally sustainable.”