Type Consumers' cooperative Website newdealcafe.com | Founded 1995 (1995) | |
Headquarters Greenbelt, Maryland, United States Key people Operations and Restaurant Manager
Rich Graystone
Bar Manager and Music Coordinator
Amethyst Dwyer
Assistant Manager and Arts Coordinator
Meg Haney
Board of Directors
Michael Hartman (President)
Nancy Melandry (Secretary)
Frank Gervasi
Tom LeaMond
Terri Goodnow
Treasurer
Bill Jones
Audit Committee
Tom Jones, Chair
Dorian Winterfeld
Mike Stark
Friends of New Deal Café Arts (FONDCA)
Board of Directors
Peter May, Acting President
Leeann Irwin, Acting Vice-President and Secretary
Chris Logan, Treasurer
Michael Smallwood, member
Talia Kowitt, member Products Restaurant, coffee house and music venue | ||
The New Deal Cafe is a restaurant and community coffee house in the historic Roosevelt Center of Greenbelt, Maryland. It is a rare example of a restaurant operated as a consumers' cooperative, as it is owned by over 200 member patrons.
The Cafe, which has a small beer/wine bar in the back room, features nightly and some daytime performances by regional musicians, and sponsors several outdoor music festivals each year, including the Crazy Quilt Festival and the Greenbelt Blues Festival. The Cafe walls are decorated with art by local artists which is changed bi-monthly. The arts and entertainment activities are supported by the Friends of New Deal Café Arts (FONDCA), a separate tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization. The New Deal Cafe won WTOP's Top-10 2012 best music venue in the DC region.
The Cafe is in transition until January, 2017, and, until then, is offering a limited menu. The full menu will offer a variety of healthy food choices with both American and international influences. We feature all food options for Vegans, Vegetarians, and Carnivores. We also are mindful of food sensitivities including customers who are lactose-free, diabetic, gluten-free, or who have other needs.
The Cafe is a commonly referred to by customers as "Greenbelt's community living room" or "third place", part of the Third place movement.
Its name comes from Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal, which was responsible for the Cafe's home in Roosevelt Center, and the founding of Greenbelt.
History
The New Deal Cafe was founded by a group of Greenbelt residents in 1995. In November 2004, over 600 people attended an open house to support the project. From 1995 to 2000, the Cafe operated as a part-time coffeehouse in the Greenbelt Community Center. In April, 2000, the Cafe obtained a lease and opened its current full-time retail space, which was doubled its size in 2005 with expansion into an adjacent space. For several years, it struggled without a kitchen on the premises, and debt increased. However, in June 2008, the Cafe built a kitchen as part of a 4-month renovation using volunteer and professional contract labor, and contracted the Restaurant operations with chef Karim Kmaiha and his wife, Maria Almeida to operate the restaurant.
On November 30, 2016, the Cafe ended the restaurant operations contract with chef Karim Kmaiha. In his place, the Cafe Board of Directors hired Rich Graystone, to operate the restaurant as an employee of the Cafe. This change will bring all proceeds of the restaurant directly back to the Cooperative instead of to a contractor.