A coffee shop with movies: Two weeks in, it's a hit
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
Not only a spot for movie lovers.
Dan Creskoff, right, and Ed, CineMug's first customer.
Facebook.com/cinemug
Facebook.com/cinemug
Dan Creskoff’s two-and-a-half-week-old cafe and movie rental shop, CineMug, is proving to be just what he wanted: a social hub for artists and movie-lovers.
When he worked at TLA Video, he said people would come in and just talk about movies for an hour at a time. He wanted to recreate that with CineMug, and it’s working.
“One of my coworkers and I were talking about movies, and a customer who was sitting at the bar said, ‘Sorry to listen in, but….’ And then we all started talking about movies,” Creskoff said. “That’s exactly what I was hoping for.”
But it’s not only a spot for movie-lovers.
“There are plenty of people who come in, put their headphones on, and dig into their work,” said Creskoff. “There’s always that element, too — it is a cafe.”
Creskoff has a love for film, coffee and all things arts. Every Thursday at 8 p.m. is movie night at CineMug, where anyone is invited to come and watch little-viewed movies and have a discussion afterward. The first week brought an okay turnout, Creskoff said, but the second week was doubled. Creskoff hopes it’ll continue to grow, and even showcase short films by local filmmakers.
“After the last showing, people stuck around and talked about the movie for ten minutes,” Creskoff said. “Which was great. For me it was worth it, all for that.”
Creskoff got the idea for CineMug from the old books-and-music chain, Borders. He said his cafe is the reverse: not movies with a coffee shop, but a coffee shop with movies.
He was hoping the movie rental would be a hit, but was uncertain because of the ease of online streaming. But on day one the rental room was completely packed (a small room with a few hundred movies). Week one yielded around 70 rentals. Creskoff was ecstatic.
Even though many of his movies are available on Netflix, they’re often only available for direct mail. “If you feel like watching it tonight,” he said, “come on in.”
Creskoff is already thinking about expanding. He wants to continually expand the movie collection, but he’s even considering opening a new store.
“CineBrew could happen,” he said with a laugh.
CineMug is located at 1607 S. Broad St., 215-315-5936, cinemug.coffee/
