"Coffee
in the Library" Program Expanding
More San José Libraries Gear Up to Offer On-site
Café Service
February 5, 2007 -
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| Maui
Wowi Hawaiian Coffee and Smoothies
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menu
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Something’s percolating at San José libraries these
days and it’s not just the “little grey cells”
of students doing research. More City of San José public
libraries are featuring full-service cafés offering a variety
of moderately priced, light snack food and beverages as well as
books, new media and free Internet access.
February marks the opening of a new library café site.
Maui Wowi Hawaiian Coffee and Smoothies celebrates its
grand opening at Evergreen Branch Library (2635 Aborn Rd.) on
February 9 and 10.
Maui Wowi’s library site is locally owned and
operated by Bao Chau Nguyen and her husband Eric Wong. The pair
is transitioning from the largely cerebral work of engineering
to a more hands-on career that offers greater community interaction.
“I practically lived at the library after school when I
was growing up,” says Wong. “When I got a little older,
it didn’t seem to be “cool” to go to the library
any more. But now I see things changing in San José, and
I want to be part of it.”
Bao Chau Nguyen, a graduate of Oak Grove High School and Santa
Clara University, credits her first job in high school as her
inspiration. “I worked for two years at Baskin Robbins,”
she says, “and spent the last year as a manager. I learned
a lot in those two years and found that I’ve missed the
interaction with customers and the satisfaction of preparing food-to-order."
In addition to serving library visitors, Maui Wowi will
also offer catering and fundraising services to local high school
sporting events and other community activities, including those
that book the library’s community room.
Plans are underway to add another café site at Almaden
Library and Community Center. These two cafés join three
other previously established operations located at Dr. Roberto
Cruz – Alum Rock, Tully Community and Vineland branch libraries.
What all share in common is personable, friendly service provided
by local entrepreneurs.
Recognizing that these operations can expect fairly low profit
margins, the City of San José encourages new entrepreneurs
with a very nominal rent for space and subsidizes some of the
costs of operation; e.g., water and electricity.
"It’s all part of the cost of providing our library
customers with a welcoming and comfortable environment,”
says Ruth Barefoot, manager of the library’s customer service
model, Libraries - the San José Way. “First
our customers told us they wanted nicer facilities, online remote
access to services and more current and popular materials. Now
that those areas have seen significant improvements, we’re
tackling other things on their wish list, like on-site refreshment.
Libraries are increasingly a community gathering place and a cup
of coffee or a smoothie is a natural complement to the exchange
of news between neighbors."
Maui Wowi will be open for service during library
hours.
San José Public Library welcomes other local entrepreneurs
to explore the possibility of setting up similar operations at
any of the other 12 and growing number of branch library locations.
Contact Ruth Barefoot by email (ruth.barefoot@sjlibrary.org)
or phone - (408) 808-2180 - to inquire.
For more information, contact:
• Lorraine Oback, San José Public Library, at (408)
808-2176
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