Rob Weislocher has always appreciated the idea of including food service in a library setting.

He and artist Brian King opened the MudHouse, their iconic downtown café and coffeehouse on December 31, 1998, a year before the Library Center opened its doors to the public at 4653 South Campbell Avenue.

The “destination library” concept of the Springfield-Greene County Library District’s 83,000-square-foot major resource facility on the south side combined the traditional library services you’d expect with conveniences and amenities, such as a drive-up window, numerous meeting rooms, a gift shop and, very importantly, food.

“When we took surveys about what patrons wanted in a new library, food and beverages were at the top of the list,” said Executive Director Annie Busch.

Initially in November 1999 when the Library Center opened, Churchill’s operated the café located off the main concourse for five years. As a stopgap measure, the library operated Café 641 in the space.

Now, on Monday [January 7, 2008], Weislocher and King will bring their innovative food service model to the Library Center. “We jumped at the chance to put in a MudHouse at the Library Center,” said Weislocher. “It’s a good fit. The library’s customer base is similar to ours and our customer service philosophy and way of doing business is the same as the library’s.”

Their mix of coffees, teas, soups, sandwiches, smoothies, muffins and scones will be similar, but grilled Panini sandwiches will be added to the menu. “We’ll keep the décor the same for a while and it will take us some time to make the complete transition,” said Weislocher.

And will King’s famous pottery be displayed and sold? It depends on whether he can create enough pots to sell both places and at his studio space in the Monarch Gallery.

Of course, food is also an important patron amenity and convenience at  the transportation-themed Library Station; a popular Panera Bread outlet leases space at the facility at 2535 North Kansas Expressway.  

And, early in the new year, the new Park Central Branch Library will open adjacent and attached to another downtown food service, The Coffee Ethic, on the southwest side of the Square. Bon appetit!

Jeanne C. Duffey, the community relations director for the Springfield-Greene County Library District, can be reached at jeanned@thelibrary.org.