This guide was originally written and published in 2021 and has been updated. Some dishes and products may have changed since.
A small town in the middle of nowhere named after water. A man with bushy eyebrows runs the local cafe. Two men who are partners in life and partners in business run a shop in town with goat cheeses and beauty products, working with others in the community to sell their goods, as well. The mayor co-owns the hotel on the main strip. Any of this starting to sound familiar?
When quarantine started, we immediately flew through a bunch of shows that we had yet to binge watch and Schitt’s Creek was at the top of that list. We were immediately hooked, so when we heard there’s a small town in New York that resembles Schitt’s Creek in so many ways, we knew we had to check it out. The real life quaint town of Sharon Springs, New York is as close as it gets to resembling the fictional town of Schitt’s Creek.
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The Black Cat Cafe
195 Main St, Sharon Springs, NY 13459 | (518) 284-2575
Maybe they don’t have a local Café Tropical, but the Black Cat Café is serving delicious, high-quality sandwiches and treats. Their Thanksgiving sandwich is outstanding and they make high-quality sweets from scratch. Even their fruit cake, which is normally a total joke anywhere else, is well known and absolutely delicious. They also sell a line of spices and balsamic vinegars, in house and online. Tony Daou, the cafe owner, looks just like Eugene Levy and fully embraces it, even popping one brow up like Johnny Rose does.
Beekman 1802 Mercantile
187 Main St, Sharon Springs, NY 13459 | (888) 801-1802
Now, here’s where it gets really coincidental. Ridge and Kilmer-Purcell opened their shop in this small town after losing their big city full-time jobs in New York City during the 2008 recession. They originally purchased this property as a weekend getaway to escape the chaos of the big city and hopefully retire there one day, but it ended up being their permanent home. They owned a farmhouse, so they decided to really embrace the farm life. After hearing about a local farmer who fell on hard times, they took him and his 80 goats in on their large farmhouse. Yes, 80! What do you do with 80 goats? You make goat milk products.
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Bringing the Local Community Together
From there, they started making goats cheese and different products with all of the goat milk that they had. After some time, they met other crafty individuals in town that are talented when it comes to weaving, soapmaking, blacksmith work, and so many other unique traits, that they decided to open a shop selling products that were locally made by artisans in the area. And yes, in case you’re wondering we did see the whipped body butter and the lip balm right near the register. Some products are even branded with the Rose Apothecary label, after the store did a pop-up Rose Apothecary, re-branding the front of their store temporarily.
Rosebud Motel or the American Hotel?
American Hotel
192 Main St, Sharon Springs, NY 13459 | (518) 284-2105
After exploring the strip, and a few other local artisan shops along the main street area, and of course grabbing a sandwich at the Black Cat Café, we’d highly recommend getting a room at the American Hotel. Not only is it Sharon Spring’s very own version of the Rosebud Motel, it’s actually co-owned by Sharon Springs mayor, Doug Plumber, just like in the later seasons of Schitt’s Creek when Roland buys a property to partner with Johnny and Stevie.
Although there’s no questionable sign welcoming you to the area, the similarities are pretty crazy. If you’re a fan of the show, you have to go to Sharon Springs to check it out for yourself. We think you’ll find yourself welcomed by friendly faces that lead passionate businesses, selling high quality goods and services. So grab yourself some goat cheese to fold into your enchiladas and check it out for yourself, bébé.
This guide was originally written and published in 2021 and has been updated. Some dishes and products may have changed since.
