Tapping into Hoover: Torbor family opens new smoothie, sandwich cafe

Reggie and Michelle Torbor originally planned to open a Smoothies N Things franchise in Hoover in November, but five days before opening, they changed their minds and decided to do their own thing, Torbor said.

Instead, the Hoover residents came up with the concept for a restaurant they’re calling the Taproot Cafe, which opened at the end of April in The Shoppes at Hwy 150 Crossings, near Jubilee Joe’s Cajun Seafood Restaurant.

The Taproot Cafe specializes in health-conscious smoothies, panini sandwiches, salads, rice bowls and baked goods. Operating independently of a national brand allows them the freedom to do some things their own way, said Reggie Torbor, who is well-known for his football past with the Auburn Tigers and several NFL teams.

One big thing is that Torbors want to buy as much of their food and ingredients from local sources as possible, Torbor said.

They are getting their bread from Birmingham Breadworks, including white sourdough bread, multigrain breads and specialty breads that include things like parmesan bits or walnuts and cranberries, Torbor said.

They’re using honey as a sweetener instead of sugar and getting the honey from Eastaboga Bee Co. Hamm Farms in Hanceville is providing sweet potatoes, spinach, red and white onions and roasted root vegetables as side items, while Smitherman Farms in Clanton is providing strawberries and Magic City Mushrooms in Irondale is supplying the mushrooms for sandwiches.

Torbor said he has been making connections with local farmers at farmers markets and plans to offer specialty menu items depending on the season and when he finds something good at a farmers market. They won’t be locked into specific menu items they must offer or can’t offer, he said.

While they won’t offer 30 different kinds of smoothies, they do plan to have four staples on the menu, including peanut butter and banana, avocado lime, pineapple carrot ginger and several strawberry mixtures, Torbor said. Other types of smoothies will be available, depending on the ingredients they find at any given time, he said.

They plan to get salsa and hummus from a Hoover-based company called Venitos, and they continue looking for local people who can provide things like jams, jellies, pastries and other baked goods you typically might find in a cafe. “The more, the merrier,” Torbor said.

He and his wife really like the idea of providing business for local suppliers. That’s where they got the name Taproot, which is a hard root that breaks up the soil and provides a base that allows smaller roots to flourish, he said.

Neither of the Torbors have a background in the restaurant or food business, but Reggie Torbor said he loves food and loves to cook. “I understand the power of food. It tends to get people together,” he said. He said his restaurant will be a “relational place disguised as a food place.”

Taproot Cafe

WHERE: 5190 Medford Drive, Suite 124, The Shoppes at Hwy 50 Crossings (near Jubilee Joe’s)

HOURS: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, except Sunday

DETAILS: Cafe featuring locally sourced smoothies, paninis, salads, rice bowls and baked goods.

CALL: 205-502-7781

WEB: taproot-cafe.com

He and his wife are thrilled with the location they found, he said. They like the idea of bringing another original restaurant concept to Hoover, so people don’t have to go to downtown Birmingham or Avondale to get something different, he said.

Plus, being an independent restaurant, they expect to rely on their extensive relationships in and around Hoover to make the cafe successful, he said.

It’s also convenient to where he lives. “It’s literally is six minutes away from my house,” he said. “Any closer, and it would be in my yard.”

The Torbors won’t be running the cafe day to day. That will be Reggie’s brother-in-law, Eric Myers, a former Hoover police officer. But Torbor does plan to spend two to three days a week there, and Michelle will provide support more from a distance, he said.

He’ll maintain his other jobs as personal development manager for Brasfield & Gorrie General Contractors and as a motivational speaker, and Michelle will continue her counseling practice at Cardinal Counseling and Consulting on Lorna Road.

Taproot Cafe, at 5190 Medford Drive, Suite 124, will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., every day but Sunday. For more information, go to taproot-cafe.com.