Eurest’s cafe operation at Visa in Northern California benefitted from a renovation that enhanced the menu and made the space more customer friendly.

The renovated Metro 1 Cafe at the Northern California campus of financial services giant Visa has been a great success since its re-opening in January. The cafe, managed by Eurest, has seen a participation increase of around 10 percent while maintaining its pre-renovation check average of $5.30—with no price increase.

“One thing Visa had was an absolute clarity about what they wanted the foodservice to provide for their associates,” says Eurest District General Manager Peter Barnett about the understanding underlying the completion of Metro 1. “They want as many of their associates eating onsite every day as possible so that they’re super productive. They also want the cafe to be an enhancement to the associate’s experience in the workplace.”

When Metro 1 reopened after six months, customer habits shifted in beneficial ways, he adds. “Before the construction, about 40 percent of patrons ate in the dining room. Afterwards, 60 percent did and our paper and disposable usage has dropped as a result.”

The renovated space has a number of new features, including…

• a new Rise ‘n Dine breakfast concept,

• a Starbucks branded credit card payment espresso machine operable round the clock

• a Chef ’s Corner entree station that switches out its menu concept daily, giving the cafe a place to run special themed choices such for holidays

• a zip-through cashless system,

• a Woodstone oven that produces pizzas and other hot delicacies,

• a grill with a pager ordering system,

• Eurest’s proprietary Whole + Sum healthy dining station,

• Coca-Cola’s new Freestyle fountain that dispenses over a hundred different beverages.

Also, a Starbucks branded coffee bar offers full service from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.