Jennifer: The official opening day of the bike shop was May 4th, which was Sunday Streets in the Bayview. The cafe opened for coffee a week later, and we've been steadily increasing our offerings since.

What are your respective roles in running VeloBrews?

Jennifer: We both serve as general managers, though I lean more toward the cafe side of things. One of the nice things about our relationship is that our strengths complement each other; we balance out each others weaknesses pretty well. It's nice that this has carried over from our personal relationship into our professional one. I've done much of the sourcing in regards to suppliers on the food end, and I'm working on company policy and procedure. I'm also trying to be there as much as I can before I go back to work in August [in education] to help get things together.

Ross: I'm a bit spoiled; I get to be the "vision" guy. While I am involved in the operations of the cafe, I tend to focus most of my efforts on the bicycle retail side, as well as helping out our shop manager to run the repair services. I also spend a lot of my time reaching out to local bicycle groups and organizations to find out what we can offer them.

What was the inspiration for creating VeloBrews?

Jennifer: For me, it was a desire to build community and have a place where people could hang out. I've lived in Bayview-Hunter's Point for about nine years now. A few years ago, I met up with a former student; it was disappointing, because there was no place where we could sit down, have a cup of coffee and talk. I realized that our neighborhood was really lacking in places where people could go to meet, and I wished that I had a way to provide something like that for myself and other members of the community.

Ross: I've basically been building the place that I've always wanted to have available myself. I'm passionate about cycling and love hanging out and talking about bikes -- in all applications. So the idea is a place where you can meet with your local riding club, or just grab a cup of coffee and share cycling stories with other cyclists. Somewhere where the competitive cyclist can sit next to the daily bicycle commuter, share a sandwich and their interests in the bicycle.

What's your related experience in restaurant management and/or cycling?

Jennifer: I have absolutely no restaurant management experience and EXTREMELY limited food service experience. I am an educator, and any management experience I have comes from running a classroom. I love food and I love to eat -- that's where most of my experience comes from. As for cycling, well, I hadn't been on a bike since I was in high school. After meeting Ross and knowing his passion for cycling, I was inspired to get a bike myself. I love my commuter bike, and we've had a few fun rides out in the city. I like to stay in shape but I rarely have much time for the gym, so it's good for me to remember that I can ride my bike from time to time.

Ross: I've been riding for awhile now. I've also been running a cycling media company called VeloReviews. That got me a lot of exposure to the bicycle retail business as a person reporting on products and companies. Restaurant management is a new endeavor for both of us.

Where do you source the items on your menu, or is all of the food and drinks prepared from scratch on site?

The Contador Sandwich: hummus; Monterey Jack cheese; avocado; artichoke hearts; roasted red peppers; red onion; bell pepper; sprouts; Italian dressing (but free of clenbuterol-tainted beef.) $6.50 — The description for the Alberto "Contador" sandwich ($6.50) jokes about the 2-year ban the pro racer faced after testing positive for a prohibited drug, which he claimed he obtained through tainted beef. It's prepared with hummus; Monterey Jack cheese; avocado; artichoke hearts; roasted red peppers; red onion; bell pepper; sprouts; and Italian dressing (but of course, free of clenbuterol-tainted beef.) They've also recently revamped their sandwich menu with other references to popular cycling rides, races and athletes.

Jennifer: We're keeping things simple and just making sandwiches, which we offer along with products from other local vendors. Our goal is to keep all our food offerings as local as possible. Our coffee comes from The Ubuntu Coffee Cooperative in Emeryville and we serve chai from Bay Chai here in SF. Our bagels are from Sour Flour and the pastries from La Victoria Bakery in SF. We also carry cookies from Salty Sweet. We just started using jams and chutneys from Jake's Castro Kitchen, as well as carrying chicken salad from Comfort Foods National, Inc. We've connected with King Knish and will be hosting Saturday pop-ups over the next couple months. There are some other small, local businesses we hope to partner with soon; we'd like to use the Bayview honey from SF Honey and Pollen Company and some gluten-free options from Wholesome Bakery. Keep checking back for new offerings!

King KnishKing Knish

VeloBrews Cafe and Cycling Community Center Now Open in Bayview