It was 15 years ago this month that Café Opus – then a small but determined business that employed only 5-6 students – slid open its door for the first time in McEwen Hall. Of course, a lot has changed during those 15 years: not only does Opus now employ 35-45 students, but it has also expanded into a second location – known appropriately as CO2 – in the Science Center Atrium. Today, the privately owned café is a local culinary mainstay and an integral part of the Hamilton community. As Sarah Goldstein, one of the owners, remarked “Back then I never imagined that it could be like this.”
In the mid-90s, then-Dean of Faculty Eugene Tobin threw a party for the college faculty. Attending were Sarah Goldstein, the wife of Professor of Economics Christophre Georges, and Larry Bender, the husband of French professor Martine Guyot-Bender. Sarah and Larry hadn’t known each other before that night, nor had they guessed that they would become successful business partners for the next decade and a half.
Though neither had any extensive experience in professional catering and food service (Bender had a master’s degree in geography while Goldstein’s expertise was library preservation), each had a passion for food and, perhaps more importantly, the resolve to share it with others. Bender in particular, had concrete ideas about what he wanted their potential business to offer.
Before moving to New York in 1991, Bender lived in “laid back, earthy, hippie” Oregon, the “center of coffee culture.” Therefore he was heavily dismayed when he discovered that his new home in the Northeast paled in comparison when it came to coffee. “There were no such things as cappuccinos and there were really no cafés,” he says. “There wasn’t a culture like there was on the West Coast.” A self-proclaimed coffee addict, Bender admits with a smile that “the coffee around here stunk,” proceeding to rattle off a few huge names (Folgers, Maxwell House) that had dominated the lives of those poor caffeine-crazed college students.
That’s how the idea of Café Opus, the brainchild of Goldstein and Bender, was born.
After convincing the college to let them open up shop where a student-run coffeehouse had existed during the Kirkland years, Goldstein and Bender set up their own veritable “coffee cart on campus” in January of ’95. Things weren’t easy, however. “We started out with a shoestring budget,” Bender says, noting that they had to supply their area in McEwen Hall with “funky furniture” from Goodwill.
Their menu started off pretty simply as well. “We just sold coffee and baked goods,” Goldstein explains, “especially since no one drank espressos 15 years ago.” Also around that time Bon Appetit became Hamilton’s primary food service company and extensive construction was started on the Kirkland side of campus. The café remained open that summer; Sarah and Larry started making significant adjustments to their menu in an effort to feed the hungry construction workers.
Since then, the café has started serving food – healthy vegetarian fare, in particular, especially since many such options weren’t available at the time. Interestingly, many of the café’s original patrons were those who performed at and attended Wellin Hall, which was (and is) located right across the room. It was those very patrons who gave the café its name, Opus, an oft-used musical term.
Opus’ menu is notable for its flexibility, mainly because students’ tastes change drastically from year to year. (“But the mango-brie Panini is always in style,” Goldstein says.) And often it is the students themselves who keep the menu fresh and variable. Opus used to serve sushi after a particular student taught the workers how to make it – and even the ever popular mango-brie panini was created by students, too.
But more so than anything, “the environment that we provide is the real attraction,” Bender explains. The food (and everyone’s newfound love for espresso) is only a small part. Rather, it is the “laid back, earthy, hippy” vibe – perhaps translated directly from Oregon – and the homey atmosphere that pervades the space that lends itself to Opus’ popularity. “We wanted to build and be part of a sociable community,” Bender says.
And Opus will continue to thrive – “indefinitely,” Goldstein assures, so that students will be able to continue getting their fix of quality caffeine.
Student author Alex Pure '12 is a graduate of John Miller-Great Neck North High School. Student photographer David Schwartz '13 graduated from Trinity Preparatory School, Winter Park, Fla.
In the mid-90s, then-Dean of Faculty Eugene Tobin threw a party for the college faculty. Attending were Sarah Goldstein, the wife of Professor of Economics Christophre Georges, and Larry Bender, the husband of French professor Martine Guyot-Bender. Sarah and Larry hadn’t known each other before that night, nor had they guessed that they would become successful business partners for the next decade and a half.
Though neither had any extensive experience in professional catering and food service (Bender had a master’s degree in geography while Goldstein’s expertise was library preservation), each had a passion for food and, perhaps more importantly, the resolve to share it with others. Bender in particular, had concrete ideas about what he wanted their potential business to offer.
Before moving to New York in 1991, Bender lived in “laid back, earthy, hippie” Oregon, the “center of coffee culture.” Therefore he was heavily dismayed when he discovered that his new home in the Northeast paled in comparison when it came to coffee. “There were no such things as cappuccinos and there were really no cafés,” he says. “There wasn’t a culture like there was on the West Coast.” A self-proclaimed coffee addict, Bender admits with a smile that “the coffee around here stunk,” proceeding to rattle off a few huge names (Folgers, Maxwell House) that had dominated the lives of those poor caffeine-crazed college students.
That’s how the idea of Café Opus, the brainchild of Goldstein and Bender, was born.
After convincing the college to let them open up shop where a student-run coffeehouse had existed during the Kirkland years, Goldstein and Bender set up their own veritable “coffee cart on campus” in January of ’95. Things weren’t easy, however. “We started out with a shoestring budget,” Bender says, noting that they had to supply their area in McEwen Hall with “funky furniture” from Goodwill.
Their menu started off pretty simply as well. “We just sold coffee and baked goods,” Goldstein explains, “especially since no one drank espressos 15 years ago.” Also around that time Bon Appetit became Hamilton’s primary food service company and extensive construction was started on the Kirkland side of campus. The café remained open that summer; Sarah and Larry started making significant adjustments to their menu in an effort to feed the hungry construction workers.
Since then, the café has started serving food – healthy vegetarian fare, in particular, especially since many such options weren’t available at the time. Interestingly, many of the café’s original patrons were those who performed at and attended Wellin Hall, which was (and is) located right across the room. It was those very patrons who gave the café its name, Opus, an oft-used musical term.
Opus’ menu is notable for its flexibility, mainly because students’ tastes change drastically from year to year. (“But the mango-brie Panini is always in style,” Goldstein says.) And often it is the students themselves who keep the menu fresh and variable. Opus used to serve sushi after a particular student taught the workers how to make it – and even the ever popular mango-brie panini was created by students, too.
But more so than anything, “the environment that we provide is the real attraction,” Bender explains. The food (and everyone’s newfound love for espresso) is only a small part. Rather, it is the “laid back, earthy, hippy” vibe – perhaps translated directly from Oregon – and the homey atmosphere that pervades the space that lends itself to Opus’ popularity. “We wanted to build and be part of a sociable community,” Bender says.
And Opus will continue to thrive – “indefinitely,” Goldstein assures, so that students will be able to continue getting their fix of quality caffeine.
Student author Alex Pure '12 is a graduate of John Miller-Great Neck North High School. Student photographer David Schwartz '13 graduated from Trinity Preparatory School, Winter Park, Fla.
