In 2020, The Little Garden Café opened its second location within walking distance of the Whitworth University campus and has been serving the Whitworth community as if they were one. The locally owned café has an environment full of decorative lighting, chairs, cozy coaches and a spacious area for kids. They serve coffee, tea, breakfast, lunch and specialty seasonal drinks. Faith and David Alderete own the Little Garden café. Additionally, Faith has been working at Whitworth Church for 14 years. While working at the church, she recognized the need for an off-campus space for students to study, hang out and take breaks.
“There were no closer places that opened up early for students to come in and study before and after class,” Alderete said. “While some said we would not make money in this location, we are not in it for profit. Our parent company [Mt2545 LLC] is named after the bible verse Matthew 25:45 which embodies hospitality. And we knew, from the beginning, that is what we will be doing” she said and further explained that their mission focuses on “serving the community, our employees and customers.”
Gantumur Battumur, a senior computer science student at Whitworth University, shared his thoughts, “I love coming to Little Garden because it is a nice and cozy spot to study while enjoying their seasonal drinks, especially, during the weekend I like to study somewhere else than campus.” Battumur also noted that the café is often filled with fellow students and faculty making it feel like an extension of the campus environment in a refreshing new setting.
Alderete’s favorite time at Little Garden is the beginning of the school year. After a quiet summer, the café starts filling with students and parents as they help their kids to move in. She mentioned the relationship between the café and the university has been strong in the past few years. She expresses her wish to keep this relationship alive and the desire to continue to serve the community more in the future.
Little Garden Cafe is open between 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Sunday and has two locations, one at 9918 N. Waikiki Road and another at 2901 W. Northwest Blvd. To learn more about Little Garden, visit their website.
