A stroll down Main Street last spring revealed a potential location for Ronnie and Tabitha Clark to open their Internet cafe, More Than Java.
North Laurel residents since 1997, Tabitha Clark said she wasn't aware of the city of Laurel's urban redevelopment plan to revitalize Main Street, and that she and her husband had not even discussed a location for their cafe when opportunity knocked.
"Main Street has always been just Main Street," she said. "Then one day, we decided on the spot to turn down Main Street and start walking."
On March 17, they stumbled across the empty storefront adjacent to Bellavive Jewelry Connection and struck up a conversation with Bellavive owner Vickie Bell.
Bell had a key and showed them the vacant property.
"My husband and I just looked at each other like this could not be happening this quickly. This could not be so perfect," Clark said.
Then, in the same breath, Alicia Fields from the city's Office of Economic Development, and landlord representative Cheryl Hinchcliffe, happened by to show the property to someone else.
Clark said Fields was "so supportive and really, really jumped on our idea for More Than Java Cafe."
Feeling that the "space was just waiting for us," the Clarks signed a year's lease the following day. They expect to be open for business in early June.
Clark said they've worked closely with Fields, who has advised them on applications and permits and the legalities of the "ins and outs of what needed to be done."
According to Fields, Main Street is attracting more viable businesses with staying power than Laurel has had in years; and More Than Java Cafe fits right in.
"We are thoroughly excited about their presence on Main Street," she said. "They have immediately acclimated themselves into our little community."
A certified life and career coach, Tabitha Clark has catered for family and school events for a decade, and said she and Ronnie had been thinking about opening an Internet cafe for a while.
They expect to do some hiring eventually, but family members will run the cafe exclusively at first, with Tabitha Clark on site full time.
"It just seemed so natural to want to do this cafe," she said.
Warm welcome
Clark said she and Ronnie want More Than Java Cafe to be "a good place to come after a bad day."
Soothing earth tones in the decor, comfortable seating, music, books (including Tabitha Clark's soon-to-be-released book, "Speak To Me So I Understand What You're Saying"), free wireless Internet and art on display will set the tone for customers to relax and enjoy their coffee and healthy food.
A signature blend of java, under development with Dublin Roasters Coffee, of Frederick, will be on the menu. Plans include open mic nights, meet-the-artist events, live music and karaoke.
Tabitha Clark credits her 89-year-old grandmother, Lodell McGilvery, with inspiring her to perfect her own favorite dishes, such as macaroni and cheese and black bean salad.
"Growing up, I spent a lot of time with my grandma. She was always cooking everything with fresh ingredients and I was amazed with how she did it, with a pinch of this and a pinch of that," said Clark.
She said the cafe will offer signature homemade "Southern comfort food" such as Grandma's Chicken Noodle Soup, created from recipes that she's developed and collected from her grandmother, mother, mother-in-law and aunts and cousins.
The food, Clark said, will resonate with the warm family atmosphere she and her husband aim to create on Main Street.
Clark is working with Ada Ghuman, president of the Laurel Arts District Committee, to reach out to local artists interested in showcasing their work. The cafe space will be also available for rent for private functions and fundraisers.
As a good business neighbor, Clark said More Than Java will seek opportunities to help others with food and monetary donations to nonprofit organizations, such as those who feed the homeless.
"We have to take care of the community," she said, "We won't leave anybody out."
Clark's friend Shene Magee has booked the cafe on June 13 from 7-10 p.m. for a wine tasting fundraiser for the Nehe Foundation, a new nonprofit that Magee said partners with the House of Ruth and the National Hotline for Domestic Violence to offer domestic violence education and assistance for victims in Prince George's County.
Tickets for the fundraiser cost $25 and include four wine tastings with additional glasses of wine on sale for $5; jazz player Bo Fridie will perform live.
More Than Java Cafe had its name freshly painted on the front window in time for the Main Street Festival earlier this month.
Although the cafe interior was still under construction, the Clarks vended a limited menu — wraps, chicken salad and homemade pastries and dessert items — at a table outside the cafe during the festival.
Clark said the lines never stopped; one local woman came back to make purchases five times. And a couple stopped back three hours after purchasing their food just to shake hands and compliment its flavor.
"This type of welcome is just unheard of," Clark said. "It was amazing."