Photo by: Katie Mastroianni

A group of nine Hotel Restaurant and Tourism Management students at the University of Denver

have conspired to turn their academic work into job experience, and the result is Beans Café.

Beans is a student-created, managed, and staffed coffee bar and snack shop that will open in the HRTM building during Spring Quarter 2009.

“We are designing and opening a restaurant that has plans to stay open and evolve,” said senior and Beans co-founder Meg Walla.B “That’s valuable experience in a controlled environment that you don’t get anywhere else.” HRTM students will be running the café and preparing food and beverages alongside the paid staff of the HRTM School.B

Sodexho, the university’s dining services provider, will not be involved.

“We are hoping to create some healthy competition, but we want to be as much a part of this

campus and it’s food services as Sodexho, and we want to keep a good relationship with them,” Walla said.

Beans will offer students an alternative to popular on-campus snack stops such as the Sodexho-

run Jazzman’s Café, but hopes to distinguish itself by offering a wider variety of snacks.B

Following its grand opening, the café is hoping to serve paninis, breakfast sandwiches, and

seasonal soups.

“We plan to set ourselves apart by being the only student run store on campus, making all of our foods in the HRTM kitchen, except pastries and bagels, offering fair trade coffee, and using

all green packaging,” Walla said.

The café will also serve a variety of teas, Island Oasis beverages, and other traditional coffee shop fare as well as coffee from Italian company Lavazza.

“Our largest asset, and what sets us apart the most, is that this was designed for us and our

peers, so we are extremely interested in hearing what the students at DU have to say,” Walla

said.B “This is for them.”

Beans will cater directly to student needs and function largely on feedback from the community. “We will evolve our menu depending on what our guests like and dislike,” Walla said.B “Being so small, we have the opportunity to change with our market, which is a huge advantage.”

The founders of the project are also working to set the stage for an exciting atmosphere at

Beans Café, which will be located in the old serving lab at the HRTM building.

“We plan on eventually bringing in the Lamont School of Music jazz groups to play in the evenings, and converting the space to a wine and tapas bar,” Walla said.

The space will also encompass an array of seating options, including banks where laptops can be plugged in.

Students will not be able to use their meal plan at Beans because of the university’s contract with Sodexho, but the café hopes to eventually accept flex cash as well as pre-paid cards, credit cards, and cash.

The founders are currently preparing for the café’s grand opening.

“We are getting class credit for designing this operation, but mostly I am motivated by the

learning opportunity,” co-founder Matt Landes said.

“I’m excited to be a part of this because I want to open my own restaurant someday,” Walla said.B “Already having done so will be a huge advantage.”