Fairhaven cafe closing as owners plan to move after 14 years of business in Bellingham
A Fairhaven cafe is closing permanently as the owners plan to move to California after launching their business in 2011.
Evolve Chocolate + Cafe, a coffee shop and cafe located on the third floor of Village Books, is closing permanently at the end of April, according to a social media post from the cafe owners, Christy and Shannon Fox, on a profile page for The Fairhaven Association.
The duo launched the business in 2011 and moved into Village Books in 2018. Christy and Shannon now plan to move to Sebastopol, California to be closer to family.
“With Evolve closing the café at the end of April, we have a five-month ‘at home’ interim period ahead of us,” the March 27 post states. “This includes a long-awaited knee surgery for Christy, allowing her to recover fully before we move and enjoy our last experiences here in the upper left. We look forward to hanging out with friends and continuing to offer small private catering services until early October.”
A Community Celebration & Goodbye has been scheduled for 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 22 at Evolve.
“We want to take a moment to thank our staff and the owners of Village Books for the last seven years. They have shared in some of our highest highs and some of our lowest lows,” the post states.
The owners also plan to host monthly book dinners in California, ship chocolates out as subscriptions on their website, and create cooking content on the business’ new YouTube channel.
The sudden closure announcement comes just over a month after several employees protested and picketed “unfair labor practices and the wrongful firing of a staff member,” according to previous reporting by The Bellingham Herald.
The cafe will close permanently on April 30, according to an email from Shannon Fox.
Evolve is located at 1200 11th St., Suite 201 in Bellingham.
This story was originally published March 27, 2025 at 12:22 PM.
