February 9, 2007

Maui Wowi Hawaiian Coffee and Smoothies opens at Evergreen Library Feb. 9 and 10

Something's percolating at San Jose libraries these days and it's not just the "little grey cells" of students doing research. More City of San Jose public libraries are featuring full-service cafes offering a variety of moderately priced, light snack food and beverages as well as books, new media and free Internet access.

February marks the opening of a new library cafe site. Maui Wowi Hawaiian Coffee and Smoothies celebrates its grand opening at Evergreen Branch Library (2635 Aborn Rd.) on Feb. 9 and 10.

Maui Wowi's library site is locally owned and operated by Bao Chau Nguyen and her husband, Eric Wong. The pair is transitioning from the largely cerebral work of engineering to a more hands-on career that offers greater community interaction.

"I practically lived at the library after school when I was growing up," said Wong. "When I got a little older, it didn't seem to be cool to go to the library any more. But now I see things changing in San Jose, and I want to be part of it."

Nguyen, a graduate of Oak Grove High School and Santa Clara University, credits her first job in high school as her inspiration.

"I worked for two years at Baskin Robbins," she said, "and spent the last year as a manager. I learned a lot in those two years and found that I've missed the interaction with customers and the satisfaction of preparing food-to-order."

In addition to serving library visitors, Maui Wowi will also offer catering and fundraising services to local high school sporting events and other community activities, including those that book the library's community room.

Plans are underway to add another cafe site at Almaden Library and Community Center. These two cafes join three other previously established operations located at Dr. Roberto Cruz - Alum Rock, Tully Community and Vineland branch libraries.

Recognizing that these operations can expect fairly low profit margins, the City of San Jose encourages new entrepreneurs with a very nominal rent for space and subsidizes some of the costs of operation; e.g., water and electricity.

Maui Wowi will be open for service during library hours: Mondays, 2 p.m. - 7 p.m.; Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 11 a.m. - 8 p.m.; Thursdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information about an individual location, visit branch pages at www.SJLIbrary.org.