I still chuckle when I think back to all the people who told Prish Moran that she was crazy to invest on Grant Street. Since the opening Sweet_ness 7, the café has turned into an essential think tank. Each morning, community activists can be seen occupying table after table - members of PUSH, ReUse, Great Lakes United, Grant/Ferry Association... the list goes on and on. Then, as evening draws near, the activists regroup and convene with different parties.
The networking potential has been inspiring to say the least. At any given time Sam Hoyt and David Rivera can be seen strolling in and out, and just yesterday I ran into Barbra Kavanaugh and Judy Einach. Moments ago Marti Gorman reached out saying that the Buffalo Freelance Writers group is planning on meeting there at 7pm this evening. Sightings of Kirk Laubenstein, Justin Booth, Anthony Armstrong, Tom Gleed, Harvey Garrett, Catherine Schweitzer - for a lot of reasons these people have found common ground in an inspiring café that symbolizes what is both right and wrong with our city. The old sentiments of "It'll never work, you're throwing your money out the window" has thankfully been squashed in this case - and as a matter of course, it has had the complete opposite results on the business.
Now, the creation of a mid-sized coffee house on the city's West Side has captivated the imaginations of a wide breadth of people. And it all happened naturally. It just goes to show you that if you have the right concept and you do it for the right reasons, supporters will rally around your cause.
Sweet-ness 7 Café | 216 Grant Street (at Lafayette) | Buffalo, NY 14213 | 716-883-1738
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The networking potential has been inspiring to say the least. At any given time Sam Hoyt and David Rivera can be seen strolling in and out, and just yesterday I ran into Barbra Kavanaugh and Judy Einach. Moments ago Marti Gorman reached out saying that the Buffalo Freelance Writers group is planning on meeting there at 7pm this evening. Sightings of Kirk Laubenstein, Justin Booth, Anthony Armstrong, Tom Gleed, Harvey Garrett, Catherine Schweitzer - for a lot of reasons these people have found common ground in an inspiring café that symbolizes what is both right and wrong with our city. The old sentiments of "It'll never work, you're throwing your money out the window" has thankfully been squashed in this case - and as a matter of course, it has had the complete opposite results on the business.
Now, the creation of a mid-sized coffee house on the city's West Side has captivated the imaginations of a wide breadth of people. And it all happened naturally. It just goes to show you that if you have the right concept and you do it for the right reasons, supporters will rally around your cause.
Sweet-ness 7 Café | 216 Grant Street (at Lafayette) | Buffalo, NY 14213 | 716-883-1738
This is an absolutely wonderful coffee shop. Think tank, yes; great coffee and turkey wrap, absolutely!