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Elaine Townsend of Cafe Mochiko on Making Connections through Food

Growing up in Hong Kong, visiting bakeries every day for bread or pastries for breakfast was a big part of my life. It was something I dearly missed when I moved to the United States. I had a hard time finding creative pastries until roughly two years ago when my roommate brought home some ube croissants from Cafe Mochiko. Since then, I witnessed how the business and its reputation grew.

As a pastry lover and cafe explorer, I was over the moon when I found out Mochiko opened up its own brick-and-mortar cafe on Madison Road. I visited the sunlit cafe on a chilly fall morning. As I was sipping my hojicha milk tea, it felt like home. That was the moment I decided to chat with the cafe owners.

From her childhood stories to getting a physical space for Cafe Mochiko during COVID time, co-founder and chef Elaine shared with us her journey of finding herself and her connection with communities through cooking and food.

May 2022, Entrepreneurship, Resident CapstonesJanet ChuMay 6, 2022Community Mix

Claire Bryson on Creating Community Stewards through Public Art

“Cincinnati Is Beautiful.”—This simple and colorful mural in Camp Washington, just off Martin Luther King Drive near its overpass with Central Parkway, catches my eye every time I drive past it to get to the University of Cincinnati. Heading downtown, as I walk or drive around Over-the-Rhine, I take a closer look at the doors and walls of some boarded buildings and am often surprised to find them painted with cute door knobs, windows, and flower boxes.

Community Mix, July 2021, Arts + CultureJanet ChuJuly 3, 2021Community Mix

Meet the Women of Cincy Team: Sarah Urmston

As a Women of Cincy resident, I had the opportunity to interview any team member of my choice. As I scrolled through the team member profiles on our website I was intrigued by Sarah Urmston’s interest in learning human stories and her experience in empathic research. I decided to interview her because I aspire to be a user experience researcher and hope to learn more about what she does.