Marvin Price, working at his café, “Marvin’s Munchies,” in the upper level of the Eastern Branch Monmouth County Library. Price opened his café last February with the help of The N.J. Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired. SHREWSBURY – Those in search of a good place to read or study while enjoying a cup of coffee and a snack need look no farther thanMarvin’sMunchies at the Eastern Branch of theMonmouth County Library.
Marvin Price, the sole proprietor of the small café, offers friendly service and refreshments at a rarely seen price to the library patrons who venture upstairs to his business.
What many may not realize when visiting the café is that Price, a resident of East Orange, is legally blind.
Price opened the café in February with the help of theCommission for theBlind and Visually Impaired, part of the New Jersey Department of Human Services.
Price explained that the commission trains, places, and provides tools so that blind or visually impaired people can operate cafés.Heworkswith the help of a speaking cash register and a machine that identifies bills.
Located in the upper floor of the recently refurbished library, Marvin’s Munchies boasts an attractive, cozy setting that overlooks the main lobby.
For under $3 and often less than $2, Price serves everything from coffee and bagels to hamburgers and french fries.
“It’s the best deal in town,” Price said with a laugh.
Commuting by train and para-transit from Newark every day except for Sunday, Price often goes to the market to shop and bring his goods to the library, since most companies will not deliver.
“I need small quantities of things, so a lot of places that generally deliver to snack bars won’t deliver here,” Price said.
The recent tax-filing season brought quite a few new customers into the café, according to Price.
“Business has been sporadic,” Price said. “It’s up and down. I had a lot of customers who were here to do their taxes. That was really good business. Since April 15, it has slowed down a bit. This is kind of a down period for the library.”
Shrewsbury resident Peggy Herchakowskiwas one customerwho discovered Price’s café while filing taxes at the library. Shewas amazed at howhard heworked and expressed the hope that his business would be successful.
“Aperson who works that hard deserves that, and more, in my opinion,” Herchakowski said.
Nice weather and kids in school were likely factors in the slowbusiness, according to Price who hopes that the summer brings hot weather and more people hoping to cool down at the library.
Most are not aware that there is a café on the upper floor, said Price, who added that they are surprised and pleased when they discover it.
“It has nice ambience,” Price said. “Everyone that comes here loves the atmosphere, and a lot of people didn’t even know the library was remodeled.”
The $7million renovation and expansion of the library began on May 3, 2004, and is still ongoing. It was reopened in February 2007, and continued to move gradually toward completion throughout the year.
“This is just a really nice library,” Price said. “I’ve never seen a library like this.”
Price operates from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. He encourages locals to come up and read a book, have a snack and some coffee.
“I love it up here,” Price said. “Business is slow right now, but hopefully it will catch on.”