Jerry’s Cafe Opens in the Gerald R. Sherratt Library

In an inspired, yet spontaneous decision, Chartwells and the Gerald R. Sherratt Library opened Jerry’s Café on Thursday, April 7. Located on the 1st Level of the library in the old Honors Commons room, Jerry’s Café will offer library patrons coffee, bottled beverages, grab n’ go items and snacks.

“Bringing a food establishment into the library has been in the works for several years,” says Phil Roché, library professor and liaison. “When Dr. Saunders became the dean in fall 2014, it was among the first projects on his list.” Saunders and his team then approached Chartwells and former Director of Dining Jory Corsi with the idea. Corsi enthusiastically approved it. However, when Chick-fil-A was announced as the next food establishment on campus in fall 2015, Jerry’s Café was placed on the backburner.

There’s a method to the madness opening Jerry’s Café three weeks before the spring semester ends. When Anthony Lazenby, the new Chartwells Director of Dining took the helm in March 2016, he couldn’t understand why the café hadn’t opened yet. “The library was eager to provide students with a food option, and one of Chartwells biggest requests is to have something open later,” says Chartwells retail manager Josh Hart. “Jerry’s Café won’t look fancy right now; it’ll be a simple convenience store to meet the demand.”

As for the food and drink policy in the library? “We encourage students to bring their snacks and beverages to the library,” Roche says. “We ask that food items aren’t messy, and that drinks are in spill proof containers. Everything available to purchase at Jerry’s Café will fit inside that policy.”

Jerry’s Café will be open Sunday 2 p.m. – 10 p.m., Monday – Thursday 7 a.m. – 10 p.m., Friday 7 a.m. – 7 p.m., and closed Saturday. Summer hours will vary. Construction on Jerry’s Café will begin this summer to add in counters, take out walls and windows, and change the carpet to tile. An official grand opening will occur during the fall 2016 semester.