Leaf & Berry, a new café located in Martin, Tennessee, opened to the public on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026, offering the University of Tennessee at Martin community a health-focused menu of acai bowls, salads, sandwiches and more.

Opening a business comes with many risks, and many are unable to overcome them to create a truly successful business. Local business owner Drew Beeler, however, has done it not only once, but six times with the startup of his new café, Leaf & Berry, which he opened with his family under Beeler Investments in Martin.

Beeler Investments currently operates six businesses: restaurant Hometown Hangout in McKenzie, drink shop McKenzie Nutrition, mobile shaved-ice shop Rollin’ Snow, boutique Prescott & Pearl, ice cream franchise Pecan Jacks in Grayton Beach, Florida and the newest addition, Leaf & Berry.

Beeler lives in McKenzie, Tennessee, roughly 30 minutes from Martin. Beeler serves as vice mayor of McKenzie and is actively involved in the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce and the Northwest Tennessee Tourism group, where he met other Martin business owners, including the owner of The Grind, Alan Laderman.

A deciding factor for his family choosing Martin to open a business was their familial ties to the University of Tennessee at Martin, where both of Beeler’s parents, Tim and Ashley, graduated from and where his younger brother Miles Beeler currently studies as a freshman.

Of equal consideration for the family when deciding on Martin was the town’s emphasis on community and its vibrant downtown scene.

“I love the Martin community,” Beeler said. “I love small downtowns [and] Martin’s is definitely on top.”

When choosing the new building for the business, the Beeler family agreed on the empty suite in the Martin Courtyard downtown on Neal Street. Due to the proximity of similarly health-focused restaurant Crave, Beeler decided on a fresh-but-different menu that would work alongside Crave’s own pizza and rice bowl menu.

“We wanted to be healthy competition with them,” said Beeler. “We want somebody to eat at Crave on Monday and see us and come eat here on Tuesday.”

A particularly special feature of the café is the hands-on way Beeler’s parents helped shape the interior design while he managed the workflow design.

“Dad did the majority of the construction, and my mom did all the decorating. And then I’m kind of the brains behind the flow of the kitchen and set up,” Beeler said.

Although Leaf & Berry caters to college students, Beeler recognizes the importance of serving all types of people in the community, including everyday workers. He had the entire community in mind when designing the menu, which is still being developed but will include seasonal menu items.

Despite many openings for both part-time and full-time positions, Beeler is proud of his current hardworking staff and is willing to work with the schedules of both high school and college students.

“We have a great, great staff that I’m still looking to add to,” Beeler said. “Our staff has been great and very adaptable with all the changes and everything that we’ve had so far.”

One of his current employees is Macey Mayo, a health and human performance major at the UT Martin who works there part-time. She is close to the Beeler family and lives near them back at her home in McKenzie. She also worked at McKenzie Nutrition in high school and was very excited to hear that Leaf & Berry was opening.

“They’re great people to work for, and I was really excited for them bringing this to Martin,” said Mayo.

Besides her respect and admiration for Beeler, Mayo has liked working at the unique glass counter in the café, which creates an open atmosphere that allows for more opportunities to see and engage with customers.

Bailey Jo Daniels, a local from Martin, visited the café for the first time on Sept. 16. She said she had a good experience at Leaf & Berry due to its cleanliness along with its friendly staff. She said she would come back again and expressed interest in their upcoming smoothie menu as a future breakfast option.

Beeler is grateful for Leaf & Berry’s initial success and hopes that all people in the community will come to visit and enjoy his new, “vibey” café.

Above all, Beeler attributes his great success to the support of local communities.

“Lots of McKenzie people have drove over here to support us,” said Beeler. “Lots of Martin people have ate here and learned about our restaurant in McKenzie and have gone or are planning to go check it out.”

Leaf & Berry continues to work towards their goal of bringing in the community with fresh food and a lively, clean atmosphere that families, college students and everyday workers can enjoy.