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Tiffany Tanaka, the 29-year-old owner of Fresh Café, may be understated and camera-shy. But when it comes to her Kakaako coffee shop and eatery, which celebrates its grand opening Sunday, Tanaka boldly discusses her ambitious plans, including launching an adjacent clothing shop and turning the Queen Street building — also home to her Wesell-things4u business — into a late-night spot, shave-ice parlor and hub for art and live music.
It’s a combination of independence, thrift and creativity that enabled the Punahou grad, who studied fashion design in San Francisco, New York and Paris, to open a cafe during an economic downturn.
“A lot of people think it’s not a good time to start a business,” she said. “But with so many people becoming jobless, the best way to make money is to make your own money and start your own business. When no one else can provide, you provide for yourself.”
Tanaka, a former club kid and socialite with lots of connections in the Honolulu entertainment scene, envisions Fresh Café as being a hangout for the younger set. And judging from the customers who show up both day and night for coffee, a meal or to catch up with friends, it’s well on its way to becoming a hip, twentysomething destination.
“The younger generation feeds off change,” Tanaka said. “I want to be known for keeping things fresh, constantly changing, kind of like a chameleon.”
From the look of the cafe, with its industrial, modern green-and-white theme and water lilies in bright buckets outside the door, it’s clear this is not your typical chain coffee shop. Fresh Café offers free Wi-Fi, hangs local artists’ work on the walls and stays open late into the night. (Until 1 a.m. Mondays through Thursdays, and 2 a.m on Fridays and Saturdays.) Tanaka also screens free movies at the cafe on Thursdays, plans to give up-and-coming musicians a platform to show off their talents, and hopes to secure a liquor license in November to help transform the eatery into a late-night hub.
On her menu, Tanaka serves fresh, made-to-order sandwiches, soups, salads and pastries, prepared by Brandon Stover and cafe manager Dae W. Son. Although the offerings are gourmet (ginger wasabi chicken salad, scones and turkey pesto melt bagel), Tanaka has made it a priority to keep prices affordable (sandwiches range from $4.95 to $8.95).
“It’s a combination of all the things I really enjoy,” Tanaka said of the cafe. “I love bagel sandwiches. Studying in New York, we had the baguette, and that’s all I’d eat there. Cookies ... everybody loves auntie’s cookies. And coffee? If I didn’t hang out here, I’d be hanging out at the coffee shop, people-watching.”
Although there are some kinks that need ironing out, like the length of time customers have to wait for their order, Tanaka’s creativity and wherewithal have begun to pay off. More and more people are discovering Fresh Café, despite its somewhat obscure location in an industrial neighborhood off Cooke Street. And although it’s been open only since July, the cafe definitely has a buzz.
“I think it’s really cute,” said Melissa McEachron, 25, of Liliha. “It’s nice to find a coffee shop that reminds me of home (Minnesota), a big-city coffee shop with a small-town feel.”
There’s good reason to believe Tanaka will be successful in the venture. She’s already built a successful online business, selling Hawaiiana, antiques, clothing and accessories. And with the money she made from selling online and a small loan, she jumped on the cafe’s lease when it became available. She also minimized costs by buying furniture on Craigslist, painting the walls with paint samples and using Facebook and Twitter for free viral marketing.
In a world full of Starbucks, Tanaka is confident there’s still a place for small, independent coffee shops. “It’s in the little things that we’re different,” she said. “Customer service, $1 coffee after 8 p.m., getting the community involved, plus things like having shave ice, alcohol, live entertainment … All that will make a big difference.”
