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Permalink Reply by Jason Shipley on January 29, 2009 at 5:51pm

We wholesale to a Church in Naperville, they have just finished expanding their cafe and adding more seating. Their cafe is set up mare to serve and foster community than to make a profit. Drip coffee is free, they have volunteer baristas and sell espresso based drinks. The goal was to have lattes and mochas ect. offset the cost of coffee service. They have never quite made that happen. I'm sure they would be happy to talk to you about their experiences shoot me an email and I'll get you their contact info.

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Permalink Reply by John on January 29, 2009 at 6:25pm

Marcie, if I went to your church, I'd suggest substituting communion wine for straight espresso shots. Especially for the early service. You'll need super-automatic machines.

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Permalink Reply by Marcie on January 29, 2009 at 6:49pm

John; You're hilarious! Seriously, tho, we are really going for it! We have a decent budget and we are doing a lot of research. I will offer your suggestion to our Pastor. He'll have a laugh and who knows, perhaps he'll offer espresso shots during service as a promo!

John Kijote said:

Marcie, if I went to your church, I'd suggest substituting communion wine for straight espresso shots. Especially for the early service. You'll need super-automatic machines.

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Permalink Reply by Marcie on January 29, 2009 at 6:54pm

Jason. We are intending to have amazing coffee, espresso beverages, fabulous panini sandwiches, soups and , of course decadent desserts amongst a few other items. We are aiming to be a "for profit" entity. There is a buzz of excitement in our church and we anticipate great success. We also just opened a dance studio and the response and quality of instructors is outstanding! I am brand new on this site. How do I get your email address?

Thx - Marcie

Jason Shipley said:

We wholesale to a Church in Naperville, they have just finished expanding their cafe and adding more seating. Their cafe is set up mare to serve and foster community than to make a profit. Drip coffee is free, they have volunteer baristas and sell espresso based drinks. The goal was to have lattes and mochas ect. offset the cost of coffee service. They have never quite made that happen. I'm sure they would be happy to talk to you about their experiences shoot me an email and I'll get you their contact info.

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Permalink Reply by James Doyle on January 29, 2009 at 7:05pm

I know that Cafe Evoke Catering just started something with a local church. Maybe send them an email?

http://www.cafeevoke.com

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Permalink Reply by Sarah Dooley on January 29, 2009 at 8:01pm

my good friend Josh Weidmann consults specifically for this subject and he is a great guy as well. Please contact him, you'll love his input. Check him out on google too, he's got an amazing ministry.
joshweidmann@gmail.com

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Permalink Reply by Marcie on January 30, 2009 at 5:11am

Thank you so much Sarah!! I will look him up as soon as I can today. I really appreciate your help! - Marcie

Sarah Dooley said:

my good friend Josh Weidmann consults specifically for this subject and he is a great guy as well. Please contact him, you'll love his input. Check him out on google too, he's got an amazing ministry.
joshweidmann@gmail.com

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Permalink Reply by Brian Bergman on January 30, 2009 at 7:22am

Myself and Jason (Café Evoke) are working on a project like this currently, and have several more in the works. If you're interested, let's talk. Shoot me a message if you're interested.

brian

James Doyle said:

I know that Cafe Evoke Catering just started something with a local church. Maybe send them an email?

http://www.cafeevoke.com

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Permalink Reply by Billy Kangas on January 30, 2009 at 9:58am

I helped start a really amazing cafe in Ann Arbor, MI called the common cup. It's in a church basement and I have learned a lot about how to do it and not to do it. I would be happy to talk about it more.... send me a message and I'll give you my E-Mail/and or phone

http://commoncupcoffee.com

Also Journeys Coffee in Michigan is in a church, the guys that do that are really cool

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Permalink Reply by M on January 30, 2009 at 3:24pm

i've heard of this being done quite a few times (in plenty of local churches from every denomination) most of these churches use their in-church cafe as a platform for youth groups, ministry meetings and after mass but solely for the congregation.

however, there are also a few cafe (here in michigan) that have implemented a cafe that's also open to the public. the best example i can think of is The Common Cup cafe (http://commoncupcoffee.com).

hopefully that helped.

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Permalink Reply by Marcie on January 31, 2009 at 8:39am

Thank you to all of you for your time and interest. I feel so touched that so many are responding to my request for advice. I'm going to begin by passing some of these suggestions and emails/websites to my pastor and another woman who is intricately involved. I/we communicate soon . Lots of blessings to all of you! - Marcie

M said:

i've heard of this being done quite a few times (in plenty of local churches from every denomination) most of these churches use their in-church cafe as a platform for youth groups, ministry meetings and after mass but solely for the congregation.

however, there are also a few cafe (here in michigan) that have implemented a cafe that's also open to the public. the best example i can think of is The Common Cup cafe (http://commoncupcoffee.com).

hopefully that helped.

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Permalink Reply by angela on February 9, 2009 at 5:39am

Hi Marcie

My church has an espresso bar with a drive thru.
The things God has done for us to get us to this point is amazing! Our espresso house offers fresh roasted coffee and espresso, as well as a breakfast and lunch/catering menu.We also have live music/concerts, as well as a place where people can have bible studies or just cozy up by the fireplace on the internet. And if you are in a hurry we have a drive thru to keep you going!(we are the only church in the state to have one)

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