Refuge Café, a local eatery offering smoothies, sandwiches and stuffed avocados, is expected to open its fourth location in the Catholic Financial Life building on campus this May.
CFL President Bill O’Toole said the store will be a nice amenity to his building, according to Refuge Café Owner Joshua Janis.
“Our concept fit nicely into what CFL wanted, so it was a perfect match from the beginning,” Janis said in an email.
Janis said there was not much competition for the available space because he doesn’t think any other cafes or restaurants knew about the location.
“It’s a highly visible location,” Janis said. “It is a couple blocks away from a hospital, two dorms, the Al McGuire Center, the courthouse and other business buildings. Along with the residential and workers in the CFL building itself, it works out perfectly.”
The cafe offers mobile text ordering so students can text in an order and have it ready for a quick pickup before class.
For the first month after it opens, there will be ways for customers to receive a small discount on their orders. Those include dressing up in a full golden eagle costume to receive 30 percent off, doing 25 squats or pushups for a 5 percent discount or sporting a Refuge Café sticker on backpacks, phones or computers for 5 percent off.
Janis said his menu will benefit the Marquette community because it’s fashioned for healthy people who are constantly running around.
“We are going to supply you with food that you can eat with confidence,” Janis said. “From our chicken being antibiotic and hormone-free to our smoothies having whole fruits and vegetables, we will make sure that Marquette is fed with the right food, not just fast food.”
Emily Petersen, a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences, said she is unsure if opening Refuge Café in the CFL building is the most optimal location.
“I think that Refuge Café sounds like a great idea for students to get healthy food, but I think its location is going to hurt its longevity,” Petersen said. “The closest Marquette students are those who live in Carpenter (Tower) and Cobeen (Hall,) and they have the meal plan, so it’s unlikely they’re going to spend extra money.”
Although there are some Marquette students who are unfamiliar with Refuge Café, they think it has potential to grow in popularity among the Marquette Community.
“I think Refuge Café will be popular because college students love smoothie places, and there is nothing like that on campus yet,” said Haley Gainer, a junior in the College of Health Sciences. “I have never heard of (Refuge), but I would definitely consider trying it out – I love smoothies.”
