Coffee cart service

Library Administrator's Digest, Sep 2002

Now there is no reason to take a break from searching through the latest periodicals or gloriously basking in volumes of books to seek refreshments or sweets away from the library. Tucked into a corner at the entrance of the Main Library, the coffee cart is noticeably inconspicuous. Five small tables and chairs provide seating, even though patrons may take their drinks through the stacks to browse the newest Grisham or the latest nonfiction best seller, as long as they keep the drinks away from PCs.

"We want to ensure that our patrons feel at home in our library and that means easily having access to food and refreshments," says Library Director Raymond Santiago. "It's another way of improving services to our patrons."

For the main library, this experimental project was an opportunity to provide refreshments to its 553,000 patrons who visit each year. Realizing it should stick to the books and stay out of the kitchen, the library wrote a Request for Proposals to seek a vendor to provide a turnkey operation that would attract patrons and generate revenue.

"Most libraries don't want the hassles of running these operations. They prefer to have an experienced vendor fully manage these services," said Library Assistant Director William Urbizu who has nurtured and guided the library coffee bar notion for the past two years.

Refreshments and sweets offered to patrons are reasonably priced and include coffee, sodas, orange juice, bottled water; croissants, muffins, cookies, bagels, donuts, cake slices, assorted Cuban pastries, snacks and chips.

If successful at the Main Library, the Library System plans to expand the carts to all regional libraries in the near future.

Library Happenings, Miami-Dade Public Library, Spring 2002