Longtime owner of downtown Modesto’s Deva Cafe sells; here’s what the new owner plans
Like the one-named icons of music and film, you only need to say Deva to most Modestans and they’ll know exactly what you mean.
Deva Cafe, first opened on J Street in 1993, has been a downtown staple and arts mecca for close to 30 years. Shepherding it through the past almost two decades has been owner Lorena Loftis. But this past week marked her last at the restaurant, having sold to another local owner who plans to keep its name and arts tradition alive.
About 10 years after Deva founders and original owners Kathy Waite and Charlie Link started the cafe (which they named after one of their daughters), Loftis and some business partners took over. A year after that, in 1994, Loftis assumed ownership entirely and began adding her signature stamp to what then was mostly an artsy French bistro.
Under her care, Deva became a vibrant spot for local arts, hosting concerts and displaying work by area painters and photographers on its walls. The Off the Air live indie music series of the mid-Aughts held regular concerts there. The popular Mod Shop holiday crafters fair got its start there. And all the while Loftis, with her spikey blond hair, was behind the counter or in the kitchen making from-scratch food served with a smile.
The outpouring of both online and in-person love for Loftis was evident on her last day at the restaurant Wednesday. But after 17 years on her feet, Loftis said it was time to start a new chapter and let particularly one foot — which she fractured in the fall of 2018 and has never fully healed — get some much-needed rest.
“Just physically I’ve been through a lot,” said Loftis, 57, who has been working in restaurants since she was 20. “It’s been in a boot for over a year. I just couldn’t keep going like this. But I’ve just loved serving people, watching them get excited when their food is set down in front of them and hearing them say it is their favorite place. I’ve loved building community here.”
The Modesto native made the decision to sell earlier this year, before the coronavirus upended daily life and made running a restaurant an obstacle course of new safety guidelines and service rules. In February, she agreed to sell to new owner Heather Elkins.
New owner familiar with valley cafes
The 42-year-old Modesto resident has been the longtime owner of Bean & Leaf Cafe in Manteca, but sold it to her younger sister this year to be able to buy Deva. Like Loftis, she has been in the restaurant industry since she was 19. A Manteca native, she remembers coming to Deva in her 20s and she always loved its eclectic, welcoming atmosphere.
Earlier this year, she ran into Loftis’s ex at the Cash & Carry (which, if you want to run into restaurant folks, is the place to go) who told her Deva might be up for sale. Elkins reached out immediately, and the two began talking. They’d agreed on a sale before the statewide stay-at-home order, but then the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic made financing and completing the transfer a little tricky.
Elkins said Deva offers her a larger canvas to work with. Bean & Leaf is only a little over 1,000 square feet, and Deva — with its large dining room and adjacent smaller room — has some 2,500 square feet. Deva also has a full kitchen, whereas her other cafe did not and only offered largely sandwiches, salads and sweets.
“I’m just exited to be a part of downtown Modesto. I think it’s a great scene and Deva has such a good reputation,” Elkins said. “I’m so glad out of everyone that Lorena picked me to take it over. (Downtown) has already been so supportive and I already feel welcome and we haven’t even reopened yet.”
She plans to keep the cafe’s name, and its commitment to the arts. After Loftis’s official last day on Wednesday, the site was closed and Elkins and her crew will begin some remodeling including painting and other improvements. She plans to reopen, with the same staffers and her former Bean & Leaf manager Mckenzie Huston, on Aug. 1.
With ongoing indoor dining shutdowns and social distancing guidelines probably still in place, Elkins said she’ll focus on their takeout and outdoor dining options at first. Then when restrictions start to ease up again she plans to be open for longer hours — particularly on the weekends where she wants to bring Deva back to being a nightspot.
Changes to menu, more night options ahead
The restaurant had been open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., and then until noon on Sundays. But Elkins said she wants to return as a later night destination again on the weekend, a spot for people to grab a glass of wine with friends or hang out with a cup of coffee and their laptop. She plans to add her own spin to the menu, with possibly more share plates (you know, for when we can share things again), and more brunch items.
She will also bring in a different coffee roaster — an admittedly big deal for a coffee shop — switching from Modesto’s Clayton Coffee & Tea to her longtime Northern California woman-owner roasters Equator Coffees. But something she won’t change and hopes to build on is Deva’s arts tradition, so expect live music and the like.
“I’ve just always loved downtown Modesto. It’s thriving even now with COVID, there are still a lot of places opening and people really like to support local businesses,” she said. “If I didn’t take this opportunity I would have kicked myself.”
As for Loftis, after 17 years behind the counter and feeding Modesto, she will take a well-earned vacation that includes a stay on a boat in San Diego. She also plans to finally have her foot fixed once and for all, and get out of that boot. And then, who knows. She has already fielded some offers, but isn’t quite sure what’s next.
Still saying goodbye to Deva has been bittersweet for her. She raised her son, Bryce, now 12, in the restaurant. She survived breast cancer, almost five years and counting, at the restaurant. She said having people drop by to say goodbye this week made her realize how many people cherished the community she had created. Tearing up a bit, she felt proud of that legacy and happy she believes it’s going to “the person who should have it” next.
“I honestly didn’t realize how I had touched people’s lives. So it makes it a little easier to say goodbye,” she said. “This place has been my home away from home. I couldn’t have done it without my employees and my customers all these years and I thank them so much. Now I can hardly wait to be able to go to my favorite place again (under Elkins) and sit down for a meal. I’m looking so forward to that.”
This story was originally published July 18, 2020 at 12:26 PM.
