Pensacola's taste of Vermont, Maple Forest Café, to close its doors permanently Saturday

Even though Pensacolians may never see the red-painted hues of Vermont forests in the fall or snow-kissed cabins in the winter, they could experience them at Pensacola’s Maple Forest Café. That ends Saturday when the daytime café at 4455 Mobile Highway closes permanently at 1:30 p.m.

Maple Forest owners and Vermont natives Diane and Larry Morrison created the cozy West Pensacola nook to reflect their former home. The warm atmosphere, created with area rugs, wood paneling, artificial greenery and even a few stuffed deer heads, created a place you could snuggle up by the fireplace and nurse a maple latte − made with 100% pure Vermont maple syrup, of course.

You could smell the crisp 8-inch pizzas coming out of the brick-oven during the daily lunch special. This was when the daytime café would transition out of the soft and slow morning coffee crowd to a lively and bustling lunch rush.

Even in the hot Florida summer months, the café would keep a steady crowd serving cool maple “creemee,” which, in Vermont, is how the maple syrup is infused into soft serve ice cream. Or you could order it like a die-hard Northerner and opt for The Vermonter, which takes the creemee soft serve in a bowl and drizzles it with maple syrup.

The closure came as a surprise to customers who have frequented the spot over the past four years, as the owners broke the news on social media Wednesday with plans to enjoy retirement.

“Almost five years ago we opened Maple Forest Café as our business, but more importantly as an outreach to the community.  We have loved serving you during this time. It is now time for us to move on to the next chapter of our lives,” the statement read.  “We have made lifelong friends here and want to thank each of you for your unwavering support. We are so thankful for all of God’s blessings and would appreciate your prayers for us as we move on from the café.”

When they put out the post Thursday inviting customers to come in one last time and take a photo in front of their mural, a snow-filled forest scene with wildlife, they took the invitation seriously. Groups of customers huddled around tables savoring slices of pizza, as there were more customers than there were chairs.

The Morrisons will tell you the thing that they are going to miss the most about the place is the people.

Regular Angelo Alexakos, who owns Angelo’s Towing a mile down the road, made Maple Forest a regular lunch spot for his crew so that they could support the local business.

“There’s not a lot in West Pensacola like this,” Alexakos said. “We’re going to miss it.”

“We’ve had people saying, ‘It’s pretty amazing what you did here on this side of town,’” Larry Morrison said.

Diane Morrison said the café has been filled with people sharing stories of how they were positively impacted through the restaurant. Even though the business began as a way to keep busy while their kids were in college, it became so much more than that.

“We opened this restaurant to be a ministry and a light for the community, and we wanted to share Christ with the community. We are hearing lots of stories from people that have had a huge impact on them through the café,” Diane Morrison said.

“We’re just filled with gratitude,” Diane Morrison added. “They mean so much to us, our customers.”

For more information on the restaurant's last day, visit the Maple Forest Café Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Maple Forest Café in Pensacola closing permanently on Saturday