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Thistle and Mirth Owners Open Third Downtown Eatery

Co-owner Austin Oliver says featuring bagels at Lulu's Tiny Grocery was a good initial draw to breakfast and lunch spot.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The owners of Thistle and Mirth recently opened their third downtown eatery: Lulu's Tiny Grocery.

The breakfast and lunch spot, located inside Crawford Square at 137 North Street, offers coffee and tea, bagels, sandwiches, pastries, and more. It opened in late May and has been well received by old and new customers.

Joad Bowman and Austin Oliver had been utilizing the space as a commissary for Thistle and Mirth and Flat Burger Society since the beginning of the year before opening Lulu's. They saw a need for a bagel spot in that block after the popular Bagels Too closed in 2017.

"I moved here like two months before Bagels Too closed," Oliver explained. "There's never been a bagel place since I've been here, so I figured that was a good initial draw people in."

The mission is to be an "approachable, good, sometimes creative, sometimes indulgent" breakfast and lunch option on North Street, he said.

The menu includes both staples and rotating items.  

Bagels are imported from a Brooklyn bakery in flavors such as onion, jalapeno, and cinnamon raisin.  The signature Lulu's Bagel has cream cheese, egg, tomato, and onion on it.

Items such as watermelon and tomato salad, a Penny's peppered pork sandwich, and a chicken bacon ranch wrap have been featured in the "Today's Lunch" section.  The meats are all fresh, as opposed to processed deli meats.

Lulu's Tiny Grocery is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. All three restaurants can be found on Instagram and Facebook.

Habitat For Humanity Modular Homes Coming to Robbins Ave.

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:33AM / Friday, April 11, 2025

The homes will be available for residents earning between 55 and 65 percent of the area median income. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The first of two below-market modular homes arrived on the West Side on Thursday, and both are expected to be move-in ready this summer.

The other is expected next week.

Central Berkshire Habitat for Humanity is building two below-market condominiums at 112 Robbins Ave. for families earning between 55 percent and 65 percent of the area median income. Monthly costs for the three- and four-bedroom units are expected to be less than $1,500 with Habitat's subsidies.

Modulars allow for quicker construction to get more families into quality, affordable housing.

"Just because we have such an aggressive schedule this year, we are doing many modulars in addition to the stick-built that we usually do," communications manager Erin O'Brien explained.

Just this year, the nonprofit is constructing five homes in Pittsfield and 10 in Housatonic.

The two homes at 112 Robbins Ave. will come to $148,000 for a three-bedroom with the 20 percent subsidy and $156,000 for a four-bedroom. Similar homes in the Pittsfield area are valued between $225,000 and $250,000.

While prices are subject to change, the three-bedroom condo will cost owners about $1,430 per month and the four bedroom $1,495 per month, compared to renting in the city for more than $1,800 per month. Habitat noted that this provides a potential annual savings of $4,500 to $6,000, while building equity and long-term financial security.

The eligibility range between 55 percent and 65 percent AMI is said to support families who earn too much for most housing subsidies but still struggle to afford market-rate homes.