In May 2025, Chatty Cathy left its home of nearly a decade on Eddy Street for an expansion and rebrand as Fresh Marché on College Avenue. Inspired by its increasing popularity and many loyal customers, the owners wanted to add to their current offerings, while maintaining their high quality ingredients and homey atmosphere.
George and Milany Papachryssanthou, a husband and wife team, founded Chatty Cathy in 2017 and have been the sole operators since. After eight years in their original location, they signed a lease on College Avenue in May 2025 where they quadrupled their original footprint, George wrote to The Sun.
“Through hard work and really good fortune, we were able to grow a really amazing following and successful business,” George wrote in a statement to The Sun. “As a result, we outgrew the space.”
The couple also owns a second location in the Ithaca Commons, which has been branded as Fresh Marché since its opening in October 2024.
Fresh Marché’s “goal is to create a place that takes the thinking out of eating clean and healthy but still [makes] something that is gastronomically enjoyable,” Milany wrote in a statement to The Sun. The name means fresh market, and the owners wanted the name to be catchy and elicit thoughts of both freshness and clean food.
In addition to their previous offerings of acai bowls, yogurt bowls, oatmeal bowls, coffee, tea and smoothies, Fresh Marché now offers build-your-own grain bowls and salads.
“Too often really [healthy] food is bland or really unhealthy food may taste great but the way you're left feeling after often isn't worth it,” Milany wrote. “We are trying to find that balance.”
With their new location and expansion of offerings in Collegetown, the couple “wanted the name and brand to represent a complete vision of what the new concept would represent.”
According to George, Fresh Marché prioritizes offering “unique, high-quality sandwiches” with ingredients that “cut zero corners regarding quality.” He explained that they achieve this by spending months sourcing all of their ingredients. Additionally, the business works with hospitality professionals who George Papachryssanthou wrote “genuinely care” about customers' dining experiences.
George said that Fresh Marché prioritizes customers’ experience by making it a “beautiful, welcoming, cozy and comfortable” space. He wrote that he and his wife “love” meeting their guests and getting to know them on a personal level, developing an experience that is “more than just a simple transaction.”
The location at 304 College Ave. has a clean, open aesthetic with french-themed decor and lots of natural light. There are spaces for both group and individual seating — suiting the differing needs of customers.
Esther Jung ’28, a frequent Fresh Marché customer, told The Sun she goes there for its “amazing food and great environment.”
“I like the new location — it's great for hanging out with my friends or when I just want to get some work done off campus,” Jung said. “Overall, I really appreciate the quality of the food and I am excited to try more of their new menu options.”
Since the expansion, the owners have made it a priority to maintain high quality in both their food and service. We are proud that “[e]verything we do is made in house, fresh, on the daily with lots and lots of love,” George told The Sun.
Madeleine Naumoff is a member of the Class of 2028 in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. She is a contributor for the News department and can be reached at mn635@cornell.edu.
