Archive for the 'Coffee and Third Place' Category

Where Hospitality & Discipleship Meet

Published on September 27, 2011 by Chris Bean in Campus Ministry, Coffee and Third Place, discipleship, Gospel and Hospitality.

It was about this time last year that I had a similar post, sharing a bit of a promo for the weekly gathering which I host at the Edge House.

With more in mind than just publicity, I share a similar post today.

Although I’m often conflicted about maintaining a program or event with all its administrative and logistic baggage, I am also compelled to provide a consistent opportunity & place for students to gather, worship, study the Scriptures, experience community and hospitality.

JOURNEY = a common metaphor for the spiritual life.

Jesus called himself the “way”…odos in the Greek (pronounced “hodos”). It’s the origin for derivative words such as odometer and exodus (“a way out”). So the discipleship component of our gathering is all about being FORMED into the likeness of Christ as we join Him on the Kingdom path.

Speaking of FORMED…that is the ‘curriculum for Christlikeness’ we’ll be engaging along the WAY. You can download the accompanying prayerbooks here or find out more about FORMED here. You can also “like” FORMED on facebook and be part of the community engaging this material and mission.

2.8 = refers to 1 Thessalonians 2:8 in which Paul encourages and reminds the Thessalonian Christians, “We loved you so much that we wanted to share not just the Gospel but our lives as well.”

Hospitality is more than serving coffee and pastries. It’s about blurring the lines between kin and foreigner. It’s a recognition that we are all pilgrims journeying towards some purpose or end. In Christ, we have been brought near to God. Though we were once considered estranged enemies of God, because of Christ…we are children of God. How great is that kind of love? The scandalous love of a Father for his prodigal child?! The whole paradigm of the Gospel is reconciliation…God extending gracious hospitality to His creation. So we who have received this grace and blessing are called to be people of grace and blessing to other “foreigners,” pilgrims, college students…whoever. And as Paul indicates, sharing the Gospel is about sharing life…not just information or some magical salvation prayer.

JOURNEY 2.8 then is about embracing the call to follow Jesus within the context and ethos of hospitality. It’s designed to be a welcoming environment but especially suited for students who want to be transformed by the Word/words of God in order to transform the world.

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Take a Load Off at Park+Vine

Published on February 4, 2011 by Chris Bean in Coffee and Third Place and Uncategorized.

Our Formed collaborative gathered this morning to put the finishing touches on our “Work”-themed seminar this weekend. More info about that here. Our meeting location has been on my list of cafes to visit for several weeks now.

Park+Vine is what you would call a Green General Store with a cafe. They are located off Main Street in the Over The Rhine neighborhood of Cincinnati. The old Kaldi’s coffee shop is their new home, and the place looks great. Although they have a variety of interesting products, the cafe was my main interest today.

Featuring an old-world Victoria Arduino 3-group machine and espresso from La Terza (a local coffee roasterie in Northside)…you can get some of the best capps and lattes in the city right here.

(Pictured to the right is a 2-group version of their espresso machine.)

Although they have a limited amount of seating, there’s a large table that is great for groups of 6-8 and a couple of smaller tables as well.

You could also pull up a seat on one of the bar stools and have a friendly conversation with the barista as s/he steams up some great soy for your espresso beverage (the store and cafe is totally vegan).

Local art which has been created mostly with reclaimed materials adds an extra creative vibe to the space as well.

Although I never had the opportunity to visit this location when it was the old Kaldi’s, I’ve heard that Park+Vine made some great improvements by brightening and livening up the decor. Come check it out for yourself soon.

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Tipping A Barista

Published on October 19, 2010 by Chris Bean in Coffee and Third Place, Finances and Personal.

Someone recently asked me what the expectation is for tipping at a coffee shop.

Unlike many in the food service industry, baristas are paid at least minimum wage. So there’s usually not an “expectation” to tip. However, having worked at a few coffee shops (Starbucks and otherwise), I know that baristas count on and hope for an additional $1 or $2 per hour in tips.

I usually try to tip baristas around 10% personally. On my $2 coffee though, that only amounts to 20 cents, so I usually throw in anywhere from a quarter to .50.

If I get exceptional service and customer interaction from the barista (and the register employee) I’ll tip up to $1 per beverage.

There’s my $.02 worth on the subject. Anyone else have any tips on the subject?
;-)

Here’s a helpful article I found on the subject if you want a more thorough guide to coffee shop tipping etiquett.

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