Café Good
STORIES

Café Good

Two ladies who launched

We discovered a hidden gem in the little town of Rapperswil: a café called Good. This charming café is just a short walk from the lakeshore. It does good waffles, good cake, good coffee and good deeds.

When Barbara Berra and Beatrice Bös decided to pursue their long-held dream of opening their own café, they were sure of one thing from the start: «We didn't just want to create a welcoming café, we wanted to give something back to society too.» They wanted their business to offer real added value, hence the name: «Good – Kafi und meh» translates to «Good – A café and more».

True to their concept, Barbara and Beatrice not only throw their all into serving their customers, but also get involved in things which bring good to the world. For example they support the «Wasser für Wasser» (water for water) project: cafés charge customers for drinking water and all the takings go toward providing clean drinking water in Zambia. 

The pair sell bakery goods from the previous day at lower prices under their "gnüssbar" (still good to eat) label, thus helping to stop food waste.

And they are also reviving the Neapolitan tradition of the Caffè Sospeso (suspended coffee), which they call the Café Surprise. Café guests pay for an additional coffee which can then be claimed later by someone who otherwise couldn't afford to buy one.

Guests at Good are definitely onto a good thing. The café serves speciality coffees and wonderful home-made cakes, while the lunch menu boasts fresh salads, hearty bagels and juicy burgers. The absolute hits at Good are warm waffles with seasonal fruits and the super-chocolatey chocolate cake – you simply have to try it.

Info

Caffè Sospeso: An old tradition in a modern age

The «suspended coffee» tradition began in Naples at the beginning of the 20th century. As well as buying a coffee for themselves, people would buy a second coffee which would be given out later to someone who otherwise couldn't afford to buy one. This wonderful custom is thought to have started because in Naples there was often a lack of coordination by the authorities, leaving citizens in hardship to fend for themselves. A number of cafés across the globe have now decided to revive this tradition.

Almost everything is made in the café's own kitchen, where the owners are ably supported by fantastic staff who they call their «kitchen fairies». «Cooking, baking and making coffee are all creative tasks that we really enjoy», says Barbara.

And you can tell: everything in the café is done with loving care, which you can see from the beautiful presentation of the food. «It's a great feeling when you can see that guests appreciate the way their food has been presented,» adds Beatrice. «We want our guests to enjoy being here.»

A café as cosy as your own living room

The two of them achieve this easily: we feel immediately at home in Good. The warm interior with lots of wood, daylight and beautiful decorative details is inviting and reminiscent of a cosy living room. «We were very lucky with the furnishings», Barbara tells us. «The comfy chairs were given to us by a friend and we were able to take on many of the chairs and tables from the previous owner.»

Before becoming a café, the Good premises were used as a workshop by two artists. They also left behind the deep wooden frames that are mounted on the walls as over-sized display cases. Beatrice and Barbara use them to present carefully chosen products which can be bought by guests at the café. «It's our little pop-up store», smiles Beatrice. The attractive items on show change constantly, so there is always something new to discover.

 

Children are also welcome at Good. Up a child-sized staircase there is a delightful play corner with a rocking horse, books and toys, and a sign on the wall invites children to «play like you would at home» while mummy and daddy enjoy a well-earned rest.

It's no real surprise that the café is so parent and child-friendly, as Barbara and Beatrice are themselves both mothers. «Juggling the café and our families is probably the biggest challenge of Good», they reveal to us. A café is hard work, but so is a family. By dividing their work up well, employing a great deal of creativity and having the right people around them, however, these two hard-working entrepreneurs manage to make it work.

At heart we both love making people feel welcome.

Beatrice and Barbara.

 

The rewards for their hard work? These can come in the smallest of guises, say the two of them: «Lots of great things have happened to us with Good», Beatrice Bös tells us. «For example we never expected so much help to be given to us: The gifts of furniture. Our kitchen fairies who help us make the café what it is. The way people pitch in when we don't have enough hands. The positive feedback from our guests. The support of our families. These seem like little things, but they make us immensely happy. We are incredibly thankful for all the good things we are given in return for our efforts.»

It certainly seems to be true that you reap what you sow. With Good, Beatrice Bös and Barbara Berra really have created a «Café and more» which truly deserves all the good things that come its way.

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