Thursday, March 20, 2008

Reflecting back after two years of being open, a few things spring immediately into mind. Just to adequately prepare you for the onslaught that are my thoughts, bare in mind that my opinions are just that, my opinions.
What first comes to mind are the changes to the physical layout of the store. Remember that crusty old couch that used to sit near the washroom wall? An interesting slice of information about that was it was donated to us by a student house. No joke. I remember all the kids that used to writhe in and out of the cushions ignorant of it's origins and experiences. If only that couch could talk.
Behind the bar in our work space we used to have the grinders on the right side. The significance of this is actually quite important. For one thing we wouldn't have been able to fit that many grinders in that little space which is now taken over by our hot water dispenser (and our charming "no cell-phones-at-the-counter" sign, more on that later). But more importantly the surface that holds our current grinders didn't exist and therefore getting in and out of the bar was easier. This wasn't so great at first seeing as how many "grabby-joes" that would come in. "The espresso machine is for employee use, sir" was once upon a time a common saying. Baristas were also known for having short tempers and often jumping out from behind the bar trying to strangle customers so caging them in were also a good idea.
But we've come a long way baby! Our customer service is now somewhat streamlined into some thing that resembles an obedient, efficient, factory production line.

Come help us celebrate our second birthday this Saturday. The Mercury Goat fund will be back, and that means that a dollar from every latte will help buy a goat for impoverished families. There's going to be raffles ( of course with prizes), barista vs. barista latte art throw downs, t-shirts, Alice Bergs, live music (by our very own Adrian), and oogling of our new webpage, some tears, New Jack Swing, Donovan impressions, and perhaps some line-dancing.

Who knows what's going to happen?

2 comments:

BeeRich said...

Nakid barista races!

One Red Chair said...

congrates on two years! Here's to many more!