Tower Caf

Mike Buzalka

Aramark Tower Philadelphia

Segment: B&I
Location: 15th floor of the Aramark Tower in Philadelphia
Building Population: approx. 1,600
Size: 750,000 sq.ft.
Seating: 88
Staff: 19 FTEs and 4 managers
Hours: 7 am - 2 pm (cafe); 7 am - 5 pm (Java City)

Details: Tower Café combines the features of a restaurant, specialty gourmet shop, fast-casual dining, and a wi-fi café, with a mix of booths, workstations, high and low tables. A counter along one window has height appropriate chairs so that diners can comfortably log onto the Aramark intranet on laptops (the entire dining room has wireless internet access). The European-designed display cases allow chefs to efficiently display ingredients for the Market Fresh "made-to-order" station (see below), and the glass fronts complement attractively-merchandised food selections.

Meanwhile, the café's dining room offers an inviting environment in which to "experience" the selections. Three glass walls bathe it in natural sunlight, with two of the windows also providing views of the Philadelphia skyline. The third is a 48-ft. opaque glass wall programmed to provide changing colors throughout the hours of operation. The customer base is primarily Aramark employees but a few law firms and other city agencies lease office space in the building and they are also potential customers.

Menu: The café features five food zones: Market Fresh, where diners select the often-seasonal ingredients chefs assemble into custom entrees, pizzas and salads; Authentic Cuisine Exhibition Zone, where customers can sample authentic dishes (some prepared by guest chefs) from various cultures on a weekly rotation; Deli Zone ( custom-built hot and cold sandwiches on artisan bread); Grill Zone (grilled items made exhibition style); and Soup Zone (two fresh choices daily).

In addition, Java City is a full-service specialty coffee bar, and one of five sites in the country that offers infused teas, as well as 100% fruit juice smoothies and fresh baked goods from local distributors.

Opened: December 2006

Design: Dan Muenzberg, Design Team Manager, Aramark Innovative Dining Solutions