A Syracuse University senior is helping to revamp Café Kubal with a fresh look and improved service.

Last month, Café Kubal’s Marshall Street location saw changes in the lighting, furniture, menu boards and front counter area. The outside of the café was also painted a lighter color with the logo to reflect the brighter lighting inside, said Danielle Lewis, who thought of all the design elements. Many of the new features inside come from local vendors in Syracuse, she said.

Lewis, an environmental and interior design major, has been working as a barista at Café Kubal on the Hill for more than a year and a half. When owner Matt Godard discovered her major, he asked her to help with the redesign project, she said.

“I definitely wanted to keep it pretty consistent with the space already,” Lewis said. “But then just also based on the feel of our other cafés, but keeping this one kind of unique to the SU Hill.”

Lewis and Godard worked within a short time frame to complete the project. Most of the redesign process was done during Winter Break, but Lewis said she did a majority of the revamping within a two-week period.

“The biggest is the lighting,” Lewis said. “A lot of the problems with the space is just that it’s really dark. People used to come in and ask if we were open when we definitely were, just because it’s so dark in here.” They have since added more lights and bigger mason jars to cover them.

Godard said the reasons for updating the space were for aesthetics and functionality. With the addition of a second cashier, there will now be shorter waits for coffee. A larger espresso machine was added in the back, and the baked goods display case was lowered to align with the counter.

“We had to redo the front area, as well as the merchandising area so that it was more conducive to speed,” Godard said.

The little changes in the café have already brought in more customers, he added. In addition to these adjustments, the SU location will offer an in-store coffee classroom in the spring, where coffee lovers can learn about coffee and how to brew it.

Lewis credits her project management skills to the environmental and interior design program in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. She said the program taught her basic knowledge about what materials to use. Although the program gives students hypothetical projects, she calls her actual redesign of Café Kubal “refreshing.”

A new Café Kubal opened inside the Medical Center West in Camillus on Monday morning, and Lewis also played a role in designing the new café. She is now working on updating the Jefferson Tower location on the other side of Interstate 81, Godard said. She started out with smaller design roles, but is soon going to be updating other small cafés within the Café Kubal company, he said.

Tatiana Fogt, a freshman communications design major and a Café Kubal regular, said she is at the café two to three times a week and barely noticed the changes. However, she still prefers the quiet atmosphere for working or studying compared to the rush of Starbucks.

“I always like to come here to study, so the little changes are definitely a good perk,” Fogt said. “Also, the coffee’s better.”

Published on February 13, 2014 at 1:26 am

Contact Jackie: jmfrere@syr.edu | @jackie_frere