Sweet return: Former owners plan to reopen White Cottage

The couple who for two decades maintained the White Cottage ice cream shop on Lebanon Avenue as a local institution will reopen it this spring.

The business at 102 Lebanon Ave. did not reopen after last winter, and it appeared it had closed for good. But Tom and Diedre Cordie, who sold the White Cottage in 2001 after running it for 23 years, bought back the foreclosed property in October and hope to reopen by March.

Mayor Mark Eckert is happy the owners are bringing back the business, which he calls a Belleville landmark. He hopes the business, which first opened in 1947, will help lift up the neighborhood.

"While it's a small business, it's a very big deal for Belleville," Eckert said.

The City Council will vote Monday on economic incentives to help with the business' $55,000 project to improve the parking lot and curbs, and install a retaining wall and extra cooler.

The proposed incentives include $3,500 in sales tax abatement on materials used to complete the project and reimbursement of 50 percent of the incremental property taxes for five years.

To keep the incentives, the business must spend the money planned for the project and create two full-time jobs and eight part-time jobs within the first year, then additional part-time jobs within the next several years. Also, either White Cottage or its successor must operate a business at the site for at least 10 years.

After the Cordies bought the business in 1978, it eventually became a destination for people who loved the camaraderie as much as the ice cream. But the business grew too quickly, so the Cordies sold it in 2001 -- a decision they regretted.

"This is what we've always done, and we missed it," Diedre Cordie said. "It'll be nice to see everybody again."

Tom Cordie said that since 2001, the ice cream recipes and customer service have slipped.

The Cordies said they will bring back some of their original homemade recipes, such as Cherry Garden ice cream and Watermelon sorbet. The shop also will be a full-service restaurant, with items such as burgers and fish sandwiches on the menu.

At one time, the Cordies owned two ice cream shops in Belleville and one in Fairview Heights. For now, they plan stick to the Lebanon Avenue location, but they may consider opening a second location in the west end of Belleville in a year.

Tom Cordie said he knows the slowed economy presents a tough climate in which to open a small business, but he's hoping a loyal customer base will help, and he is up for the challenge.

He said his friends think he's crazy, but his former customers are "elated."

"In a way, it's going to be like starting over for me," he said. "Who gets a second chance to do something like this and want to do it?"

Contact reporter Laura Girresch at lgirresch@bnd.com or 239-2507.

The Cookie House: Belleville nurse opens bakery on West Main

Jeannie Sadrerafi is putting her cookies to the test at The Cookie House bakery in west Belleville.

"Everybody who comes in here leaves with a smile," said Jeannie, 50, as she stacked shortbread turtle cookies on a tray.

The pro makes chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter and sugar cut-out cookies. She also sells cakes by the slice. Her interest in trying new recipes led her to create a cream cheese cookie and a turtle cookie, a shortbread treat topped with caramel and chocolate.

The Cookie House, which opened in late October, also serves salads, sandwiches and soups at lunch time.

"People really like the pastrami," said Jeannie, "and we give large portions."

Jeannie grew up in Oklahoma in a family of bakers. In high school, she took an occupational aptitude test.

"We had to take a standardized test, and I wanted to be a pharmacist. One of the counselors told me, 'Girls don't become pharmacists, but you can be a nurse,'" recalled Jeannie.

She became a registered nurse, but kept baking.

"The test also said I'd be a good baker," she said, laughing.

Jeannie, a nurse at Belleville's Memorial Hospital and divorced mother of four, started baking large batches of cookies for family and friends 14 years ago out of her home. Dr. Mark Feldman, a co-worker, regularly ordered cookies. He was one of several friends who urged her to open a shop. Now, he's her business partner.

In the spring, she found a vacant spot on West Main Street next to Don Rodgers Ltd.

"This was actually a house at one time, and then it was a place that sold windows," said Jeannie.

To keep the cozy feeling, she uses colors with culinary names -- cranberry and warm muffin yellow in the bakery area and green apple and olive for the two small dining rooms.

In a day, Jeannie uses 12 pounds of butter, 25 pounds each of sugar and flour and 10 pounds of cream cheese.

Her helpers include cashier Taylor Kosick, and Annie Wright who make the salads and sandwiches. Friend Stacie Dallas makes soups.

On a recent Friday morning, Donna Dougherty, of Belleville, couldn't wait to get her sugar fix.

"I drive by here every day, and I kept watching and waiting for it to open. It's the third time I've been in here," said Donna, who bought sugar cookies.

Bob Bernicke dropped by to pick up a cookie order for his wife and an oatmeal cookie for himself.

Jeannie is grateful for her abundance of well-wishers, but wouldn't mind getting more sleep.

"I probably had 12 hours of sleep since I opened," she said after the second week.

She's not complaining.

"There's nothing like handing someone a cookie and seeing them smile," said Jeannie.

Those wanting more than two dozen cookies need to place an order. All orders for Christmas cookies are due by Dec. 1.

On the menu:

Cookies (75 cents -$1.50 each, depending on kind and size)

Chocolate chip

Peanut butter

Oatmeal raisin

Cream cheese

Turtle

Cake, $3.25 a slice

Sandwiches ($5.95-$8.95, includes potato, cole slaw and baked beans or chips and an apple)

New York pastrami or corned beef

Gourmet three-cheese grilled cheese on sourdough

Grilled chicken breast on sourdough

Roast beef

Soup ($2.95 per cup and $3.95 per bowl)

Ham and bean

Potato

Salads ($5.95-$9.95)

Annie's Salad (grilled chicken with cranberries, walnuts and feta cheese)

Chicken Caesar salad

Grilled steak salad

At a glance:

Where: 6611 West Main St., Belleville

Hours: 6:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays. Closed Sundays.

Information: 213-7311 or www.jeanniescookies.com