In 1985, during the fall of their sophomore year, Willamette students Eric Fishman and John Donovan realized that their campus had a problem: there was nowhere for students to hang out in the evening, much less late at night. After the cafeterias closed for dinner, there was no place for a hungry student to grab a snack without going off-campus. Eric and John believed that they had the solution to this problem: a student-run coffee house that would provide food, beverages, and musical entertainment to Willamette's campus. The following spring, they pitched their idea to then-president Jerry Hudson. To the surprize of many Willamette administrators, President Hudson supported Fishman and Donovan's idea, and gave them the start-up cash to make their vision a reality. In the fall of 1986, the Bistro opened its doors for the first time. Armed with their grandmother's recipes, hand-me-down cafe tables, and a group of 10 enthusiastic student staff, Fishman and Donovan laid the groundwork for what has become a unique Willamette institution. Ten years after the Bistro's founding, it was renovated and expanded to its current size. By this time, Open Mic was already a long-standing tradition, and students were almost unable to imagine a Willamette without the Bistro. Today, it has been nearly twenty years since the Bistro went into business. The Bistro is now a self-sustaining business, almost entirely financially independent from the University. Well over 200 Willamette students have spent a portion of their college years serving lattes behind the counter and baking bars in the kitchen. The Bistro today is a testimony to the innovation, hard work, fun-loving spirit, and “Bistro love” of each of those students.

We at the Bistro have high standards for our food and beverages. Everything you see in the Bistro's case is made completely from scratch right here in our kitchen, often using the family recipes of current or former employees. Our kitchen is running 16 hours a day cranking out warm cookies, our famous bars, and fresh lunch and dinner items. The Bistro takes pride in the vendors that we use to provide our coffee, bagels, produce, and milk. All of these vendors are local, so that our ingredients are as fresh as possible when they arrive at our store. New York Bagels of Monmouth provides us with fresh bagels every morning, hand-rolled and boiled the old-fashioned way. Portland Roasting, our coffee supplier, is an innovative local coffee roasting company with a global conscience. All of our coffees are organically grown and are fair-trade certified, which ensures that the farmers who grow the Bistro's coffee are getting a fair price for their product. Because the coffee is roasted locally, we can ensure that each cup of coffee you drink is made from beans roasted within the past ten days. Combined with the fact that we grind our coffee immediately before we brew it, that makes for one of the best cups of coffee in town. The Bistro is proud to show that a student-run business can maintain high standards both for quality and for environmental and social responsibility.

The Bistro Willamette is a completely student-designed and student-run business. When Eric Fishman and John Donovan founded the Bistro in 1986, they conceived of it as a place for students to come late at night ­ to meet up with their friends, do homework, or just enjoy a well-made latte. But the Bistro quickly became much more than just a late-night student hangout. Today, students, faculty and staff stop in for their morning coffee and scone, for a quick lunch, or for an afternoon tea. But if you're craving sweets at midnight ­ or at any other time of day ­ you can still come to the Bistro for a warm, homemade chocolate chip cookie. The Bistro is also one of the main sources of musical entertainment on Willamette's campus. Our bi-weekly open mics and annual art gallery openings showcase students' talents. In addition, we show our commitment to the local and regional independent music scene by bringing a variety of bands to our venue each year. In addition to being a memorable part of many students' experiences at Willamette, the Bistro prepares Willamette students for the future. A team of student managers oversees every aspect of the Bistro's operation ­ from hiring and training our staff, to contracting with outside vendors, to reinvesting our profits back into the business. The unique management opportunities that the Bistro provides have served Willamette students well, as former Bistro managers and staff have gone on to be successful leaders in a variety of fields. We at the Bistro believe wholeheartedly in the lasting value of student entrepreneurship, both for the students involved and for the campus at large. We are proud of the Bistro's history and identity and look forward to many more successful years of providing coffee, cookies, and a rollicking good time to the Willamette community.