I was invited to Leclair’s as part of an influencer meetup with the Fayetteville Convention Center. This is not a sponsored post.

One of the best parts about being stationed in Fort Bragg is the historical small town feel of the downtown area. There is always a new local shop or eatery opening geared towards incorporating local ingredients and artists.

Image Credit: Leclair’s FB

Thanks to the Fayetteville Convention Center I had the chance to visit one of those recent additions called “Leclair’s General Store” located in the Haymont area of Fayetteville.

Leclair’s is owned by Patrick Leclair a former Director of Visual Representation for Ralph Lauren. Patrick migrated to Fayetteville to be closer to his brother a service member at Fort Bragg and other family.

Image Credit: Angela R. MommyPR.com

The Leclair’s Experience

Upon entering the general store I was taken back to a time period of which I’ve never lived through, but easily could identify do to the atmosphere, decor and placement of products in the store. Leclair’s is filled with a mixture of vintage furniture, art, gifts, beers, wines, candies, coffees, teas,  and so much more. The cool part is that about 95% of what’s in the store is for sale. This means the chair you are sitting on today enjoying coffee could be sold tomorrow. That’s what makes the shopping experience unique. I purchased a bag of their Hatchet Brewed coffee with creamy raspberry undertones, hard apple cider ale, and a birthday card designed by a local artist.

Speaking of coffee, Leclair’s offers an interesting aspect that makes you feel right at home. When you purchase a Leclair’s mug, you have the option to write your name on it and hang it on the wall where coffee and food is sold. When you come back you grab your mug and fill it with fresh ground coffee (from Boone, NC) and only pay $1. Not only do you get get an affordable cup of local quality coffee, but you get to drink it out of a nice ceramic mug and avoid using disposable cups too.

Leclair’s is more than just a store, it’s a gathering place for locals to enjoy eclectic/handcrafted goods, foods, network, shop and music (the sounds of Etta James were in full swing here). Leclair’s allows other small businesses and artist to come in and showcase their offerings through things like workshops, live music and food events such as their upcoming Flight & Bite event on November 16th which combines seasonal craft beers and food from local food truck “The Blind Pig”.

In fact myself and some of the other local milspouse bloggers who visited Leclair’s last week had the opportunity to check out a workshop from local milspouse owned business “Gathered Marketplace“, a pop up florist who specializes in beautiful locally sourced floral arrangements. They hold fun botanical workshops using the freshest of locally sourced botanicals. While there we got a start on holiday decorations by making “Minimalist Evergreen Wreaths”. When lunch time came we were treated to an amazing feast from “The Blind Pig”. The BP is a local food truck who specializes in quality smoked meats infused with a unique combination of their homemade sauces and vinegars.

For lunch we indulged in chopped brisket on a sweet potato biscuit with onion jam. This was paired with fresh cut sweet potato fries, deviled eggs, the best sliver of pickle ever ( I don’t even like pickles), and for dessert a banana toffee pudding. The pudding isn’t on the menu yet as we were one of the first to try it. Let me tell you that pudding needs to go on the menu! I have never had homemade creamy toffee and let’s just say I’d go off my diet to try that again– several times. Last but not least, their smokey chipotle sweet ketchup was so amazing I asked if they bottled it (they don’t yet).

The next time you are looking for a place to meet up with some friends or even just to get coffee and some work done, I would make an effort to stop by Leclair’s. The owner Patrick made it clear that Leclair’s is not just his store, but everybody’s store and he wants it to feel like home. Remember the words from the TV show Cheer’s theme song:

“Sometimes you want to go
 Where everybody knows your name,
and they’re always glad you came.”
That’s definitely the Leclair’s vibe.

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Krystel is the mom of two and an Army Wife. In addition to Army Wife 101 she is the Co-Founder of SoFluential.com a digital media agency that connects brands with the military market. She has appeared on MSNBC ,FOX LA and formerly was a weekly contributor to HLN's "Raising America". She has written for various outlets including Sheknows and Lifetime and is a big fan of cupcakes and french fries.

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