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This is my happy place. Man, I miss it. And the way everything’s going, who knows if I’ll have a chance to stop by again? I feel for small businesses like Ray’s Cafe. I do what I can to support them, but I and so many regular customers are just out of the equation indefinitely…
Last time I visited, calling ahead so I could stop in for lunch and coffee, I was the only person there beyond the family who owns Ray’s. I’ve been going for 12 years and have gotten to know them. We chatted about their experience staying open during lockdown, quarantine, riots…
Grace, the owner, came to the U.S. 3 decades ago and opened Ray’s in a very different Philly. No boutique coffee shops, no Starbucks every 15 feet, and certainly no place styles like the cafes she loved in China — meeting places. Conversation. Quality coffee, not grab-and-go mud.
Grace still stresses quality and a personal touch. Hand-brewed siphon coffee. Slow-drip iced coffee that uses those big fishbowl-looking globes for 24 hours. Cool blends. Great food. And she greets you with a smile, knows your name and order...the perfect coffee place. HOWEVER!
In chatting with Grace’s son, who had just been yelled at by a Door Dash delivery guy for not instantly having an order ready, he talked about how frustrating it has been to evolve into something they never wanted to be. They aren’t fast food takeout. He called it “humiliating.”
They’re glad to still be in business, of course. They’ll do what they have to and hope for better days. But with literally hundreds of daily regular customers like me not coming back anytime soon...and one or two call-ahead tables when COVID allows…it’s takeout and online sales.
It was scary to be in the city during the craziest moments of this past year. Doors locked. Creepy wanderers, fear of random vandalism, no one a friendly face – or potential customer. If not for police HQ literally around the corner buying coffee, they might not have made it.
They streets were never empty; they were terrifying. And the word “humiliating” has stuck with me. They love their business and are proud of what mom built. They love their customers. This isn’t what that place was intended to be, and there’s no guarantee “normal” ever returns.
They’re stepping up their online game. I’ve been ordering coffee beans since March, but they’re adding merch, offering holiday gift baskets, and just kind of moving ahead in this weird reality. Still here. But definitely struggling, like so many small businesses. Nightmare year.
I like their posts. I’m proud to champion places I love, even if I’m just another Twitter schmuck with no real influence. It’s positive vibes. But at the same time, I know that there’s a bit of pain and hurt pride behind those Instagram pics and FB posts. And that makes me sad.
Here’s to better days. I hope they’re able to weather this and get back to running the cafe I love the way it was meant to be enjoyed. And I’m just more and more bitter seeing all the ignorant, belligerent, dangerous “COVID is fake, live your life” stuff going around. Disgusting.
