Middle Ground Café

Middle Ground CafeIf Kenyon had an official phrase book, one of the most important entries would be "Meet me at Middle Ground." Repeat, please: "Meet me at Middle Ground." In fact, the phrase is repeated almost as often as its close cousin, "Meet me at the bookstore," because Middle Ground is the same kind of indispensable campus gathering place, both practical and social.

Located in the bustling heart of downtown Gambier (well, bustling on a village scale), Middle Ground is a coffeehouse, but it's much more. It's literally more, because in addition to a full array of coffee creations, teas, and cold drinks, as well as a selection of homemade bagels, muffins, and cookies, you can get inventive soups, sandwiches, salads, and wraps, mostly made with organic and locally grown foods. And it's figuratively more, because Middle Ground provides community as well as caffeine. It's a place where friends meet for a snack, professors have lunch with students, and classes sometimes gather to elucidate texts between sips. Day or night, the booths and sofas are occupied by people chatting, reading, writing, tapping at a laptop, browsing through a newspaper, or just taking a quiet break.

Middle Ground Café Fast Facts
Middle Ground Café: In Our Own Words

Built: 1840, but renovated often over the years, most recently in 2003.

Named for: Middle (as in Middle Path, the middle of Gambier, or perhaps, more spiritually, the Middle Way) and Ground (as in ground coffee beans, a common ground for conversation, or perhaps the idea of being spiritually grounded or centered)

Original use: For most of its history, the building was a variety store. At one point it housed the Gambier post office together with a drug store, and from 1937 to 1966 it was the home of the Hayes Grocery Store, forerunner of the present Village Market. In the mid-1970s, it became the "KC," a space for student activities and a welcome center for events such as Family Weekend and Reunion Weekend.

Current use: Coffeehouse and restaurant

Historical notes: The building is actually the oldest frame structure owned by Kenyon, and the College's second oldest building of original construction, after Bexley Hall. (Old Kenyon and Rosse have longer histories, but the originals of both buildings were lost to fire.)

Middle Ground trivia: The on-site proprietors, Joel Gunderson and his wife, Margaret Lewis, have strong Gambier ties. Joel grew up in Gambier, the son of Professor of Art Barry Gunderson, who teaches sculpture at Kenyon. The coffeehouse's attractive decor, including the table tops and the long, curving wood-and-metal counter, were designed by Joel's sister, Sari Gunderson.

Insider information: Middle Ground is one of three places in Gambier where you can find public copies of the New York Times (the others are the bookstore and the library).

Middle Ground is fantastic. I can sit at one of the smaller tables and spread my work out. It brings in pretty much everyone."
—Brian Schiller, Class of 2005, mathematics major