The Johnsonian

Issue date: 10/16/08 Section: News

It's 8:32 a.m. and I'm at Java City, the place where Winthrop students and faculty can grab a parfait or caramel macchiato on their way to class.

A line stretches from the cash register to the couches. But I'm not in line.

I'm behind the counter.

I rub the sleep from my eyes and wonder just how I got here.

Last week, a Johnsonian reader wrote to us about how the lines at Java City are too long. She said it takes 20 to 30 minutes for customers to receive their orders, from the time they enter the line to when they pay and receive their purchase.

When I went to the coffee shop to ask employees for a response, morning supervisor Pat Williams suggested a student come behind the counter and see how it is.

So I did.

My bedroom at home, where I would be except I have journalistic curiosity, stays at a cool 68 degrees. But the temperature at Java City is like a heat wave. Two men are working on the air conditioning unit, but Williams says the repairs won't be much help.

Lisa Jones, an employee who has been with Java City since the semester began, eyes my thick blue sweater.

"You'll be taking that off soon," she assures me.

Then there's the smell.

My room at home certainly doesn't have the rich and seductive aroma of coffee beans that Java City does.

Though the tables and couches in the Java City's lounge area are spacious, behind the counter is a different story. The space is cramped, and the employees say that running around and getting orders together can be difficult.

"Our goal here is to get our customers in and out as soon as possible," Williams says. "We're the busiest we've ever been."

The lines tend to slow down when students pay with a credit or debit card because the machine has to print the receipt, Williams says.

Sharon Williams, Pat Williams' daughter, has been working at Java City for five years.

She notes that any place on campus, including Thomson and Dinkins, has lines.

"And any coffee shop is going to have a line," she says.

At 9:26 a.m., a line has appeared. It's six people long, but by 9:30 there are 10.

I grab my cell phone to see how much time it takes for orders - is it really 20 to 30 minutes from the back of the line to getting an order?

Williams takes three orders at the register.
The three customers move to the side to wait for their drinks. Now the heat Jones cautioned me about is real. A sheen of sweat glistens on the employees' foreheads as they assemble drinks, and I slide off my sweater.

But through the heat, they work together: one assembles drinks, one gets the food and one takes orders.

By my calculations, students received their orders in less than three minutes. The time for the student at the back of the line to the moment his or her hand closes around that white mocha Javalanche? Eight minutes or less. Students who order a house blend coffee receive it right away.

From then on, Java City sees a steady flow of customers.

As soon as the line trickles down to three customers, more appear.

I notice Pat knows many of the customers.

"Hey Hannah," she greets one. "Hey Jessica," she greets another.

I comment on this to her, and she grins.

"People love us and come here all the time," she says. "I know the people. I know what they want and how they want it."

She says sometimes when she sees a customer she knows, she goes ahead and puts their orders in.

Her grin grows.

"They like that," she says.

Also, the employees' response time is consistent. The average time for every student to receive his or her order is still less than three minutes. Still less than eight minutes from the back of the line.

I move out from behind the register to hear if students are commenting on lines.

"Whoa," I hear one student say around 11:16 a.m. "They got through that line fast. One minute they had a long line, and the next time I turn around it's nearly gone."

When I had first gone to Java City to talk to the employees on Friday, I found Ashley Eller, a junior psychology major, studying and sipping a coffee.

Eller said she comes to Java City three times a week and sees long lines, but she doesn't think the wait has been a problem.

"They're not bad," she said. "The fact that it's small and doesn't have room for three or four people making coffees probably has something to do with it."

Apparently size matters, whether it is the size of the line or the size of Java City.

The student last week wrote that she thought the size was a legitimate reason for many things, but said the employees should offer an express line for non-latte or credit cards. She also suggested setting up a fan behind the register to help with the heat.

"Some small changes can definitely be made," she said.

Williams tells me how when the Campus Center is built, it will house a roomier Java City.

"The new place won't be as hot," Williams says, "and there will be more registers."

Williams checks the soups of the day (vegetable beef and black bean) and looks around, leaning one hand on the counter. She says maybe the student had one big experience in Java City, but the whole thing can't be judged because of that.

"What else can we do but try?" she asks.

Comments on this story?
E-mail Nicole Smith at
smithn@thejohnsonian.com.

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