Photo: The Flaming Eggplant by Alice McIntyre
By Allegra Simpkins
A beloved Evergreen establishment, The Flaming Eggplant, will re-open its doors this coming Winter quarter, after a brief closure to implement some changes to the café. These changes are preceded by ten years of operating at a loss that ultimately generated a serious budget crisis and a debt of $155,000.
The café paused its operations earlier this year in March, to begin tackling the budget problem. As enrollment at Evergreen has been declining since 2008, the revenue of The Flaming Eggplant has suffered, but the café collective and Student Activities are working tirelessly to make sure it continues to be a staple of campus life.
The Flaming Eggplant is “a community space that feels uniquely Evergreen,” Kayla Mahnke, the Eggplant’s Student Activities Advisor told The Cooper Point Journal. It is “a crossroads for students, staff, and faculty to interact with the food system on campus.” As it approaches its 11th operational year, the café, which resides on the third floor of the College Activities Building (CAB) is looking at a complete revitalization internally and externally, with its end goal being fiscal sustainability.
The Flaming Eggplant section of the Student Activities website states that “the Eggplant will now be a hybrid of a year-long academic program and paid student employment.” The academic program will study and practice the managerial and administrative components of a small cooperative business. The student employment positions have the essential functions of food production and customer service including but not limited to: line cooking, prep cooking, cashiering, barista work, ordering, inventory, quality assurance, cleaning, kitchen maintenance, and cash-handling. The program credits are variable and will prepare students for possible careers in food systems, cooperative leadership, business management, communications, human resources, organizational systems, and sustainable development.
“It’s not going to be the same Eggplant,” says Mahnke. Previously, the Eggplant employed students who generally already had a relatively full course load. Adding a classroom component to the structure of the café will give students a better chance at maintaining a work-life balance. It will also provide an opportunity to see exactly how the decisions they make in class affect day-to-day operations of the café in real time.
Some of those decisions will be about the sourcing of food. The Flaming Eggplant is dedicated to regionally sourcing as much as (they) possibly can, but “prefer to source locally,” Mahnke explained. Much of the produce necessary for menu items will come from the Organic Farm on campus, the next stop will be Olympia Food Cooperatives and other local farms. The last resort is imported food from California and other states in the Northwest region for items, such as rice and avocado.
Sourcing from local farms is more than just good food, it’s good business. “There is a deep desire to build stronger connections with other campus areas,” said Mahnke, who loves to see students getting to know the maintenance staff, organic farm students, and those who work for campus and RAD facilities who are helping to assure The Flaming Eggplant gets back in fighting shape. “It is [important] for students to be able to ask for help and develop connections through networking,” Mahnke said.
As part of this networking, the student-run restaurant will be working with the Northwest Cooperative Development Center (NWCDC); a not-for-profit organization whose mission is “to foster community economic development, primarily through the cooperative business model,” according to their website. The NWCDC works with all types of cooperatives and democratically-controlled businesses, and their involvement with the Eggplant is sure to have long-term positive effects on its collective. Alumni who worked at The Flaming Eggplant in the past have gone on to work at the NWCDC and some have even started their own cooperatives.
On their blog, The Flaming Eggplant has released a new vision, mission statement, and values that include food justice, cooperative leadership, anti-oppression and access, solidarity and collective care, as well as transparency and accountability. There will also be changes in governance, with three appointed advisors helping to develop business strategy. A faculty advisor, Student Activities advisor, and an advisor from the NWCDC will work weekly with students as they make decisions before submitting plans to the Student Activities Board, which has the ability to approve or deny set plans. This system allows board approval to happen periodically throughout the year, keeping communication and transparency for both organizations as a top priority.
Patrons can also expect to see a number of external updates, including a refreshed space and refined menu with rotating seasonal entrées; and luckily for those who just don’t like change, favorites like the tempeh grizzle and fritter fratters will remain. There is also talk of expanding business hours to accommodate evening and weekend students, but those hours have not yet been confirmed.
Mahnke made a point to address some of the frustrations that patrons have faced in the past, including running out of menu items, unexpected closures, and long lines.
“The Eggplant is aware of these inconsistencies and will really be working towards a business model that addresses these concerns,” she told the CPJ.
So, as Fall withers away, the students and advisors of the Flaming Eggplant program will be diligently working to bring a treasured sense of collectivism back to Evergreen’s campus; and in the meantime, students, staff and faculty can support the café by taking the course, attending the pop-up that is rumored to appear during Fall quarter, and utilizing the café space upon its re-opening for lunches or meetings or just to relax, refresh, and have a sustainable bite to eat.
