Photo By Matthew S Riggs | 151107-N-YD641-023 EAST CHINA SEA (Nov. 7, 2015) Seaman Fenesha Daniels, front, from...... read more read more
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By Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Matthew Riggs
USS Ronald Reagan Public Affairs
EAST CHINA SEA— Tired and need a pick-me-up? Need to catch a quick break? Maybe you just want to get a nice drink to help you through your day? Then you should drop by the Hellcat Café, the U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan’s (CVN 76) very own coffee shop, run by Supply Department’s S3 division.
The Hellcat Café is a place where Sailors can take a moment to relax and chat with friends, buy a smoothie, or follow along with their slogan and have a ‘Hot Drink with Cool People.'
“Our goal is to make getting coffee more than just a boring ritual,” said Senior Chief Ship’s Serviceman Charles Mason, Ronald Reagan’s Supply Department S3 division leading chief petty officer. “We created a place where Sailors aren’t just visiting a regular, boring store. The Hellcat Café is more of a fun experience with a cool atmosphere.”
According to Mason, U.S. Navy Type Commander directed that all aircraft carriers are to operate their own coffee shops in 2010.
“The idea to add cafés came from suggestions made by Sailors,” said Mason. “Depending on each ship’s schedule, they renovated certain sections of the ship for their respective shops and christened them with unique names. Ours was added to the ship’s forward mess decks in 2011 and dubbed the ‘Hellcat Café’ to follow along with the Ronald Reagan theme aboard the ship.”
At the Hellcat Café, Sailors have the opportunity to experience the familiarity of a coffee shop while the ship is out to sea.
“We aim to be just like a coffee shop back home,” said Mason. “It’s a good spot to meet up and greet friends, enjoy a quick break and of course, buy a cup of coffee.”
The café offers a wide variety of drinks to enjoy, from coffee and teas to more exotic smoothies and customized drinks.
“We have about 15 different kinds of drinks available,” said Ship’s Serviceman Seaman Darren Thomas, from Bronx, New York. “We have all the basic drinks most people are familiar with, like mochas and macchiatos. We also have special drinks we make ourselves, like the ‘White Zebra’ – a mix of white and milk chocolate, espresso, vanilla and milk.”
If you are looking for something special or feel the need to add something extra to your drink, the Hellcat Café has you covered.
“We want to be able to give people a choice,” said Ship’s Serviceman 2nd Class Albert Tabino, S3’s retail supervisor from Cebu, Philippines. “We understand everybody has their own tastes and how they like their drinks. If you feel like you need a strawberry flavoring to your coffee, that’s fine – we can do that.”
The store is run by a total of six personnel – three during the day and three at night who are given special training to serve as the ship’s baristas.
“Civilian contractors will come visit the ship when we’re in port,” said Tabino. “They fix and help maintain the machines we use, as well as train our personnel how to make the quality products we put out.”
Despite their small numbers, the café’s personnel are more than ready to deal with the large amounts of customers they receive.
“On a given day, we can serve more than 250 beverages,” said Thomas. “How quick we can make it depends on how complicated the drink is and who’s making it. We’re still able to make everything in a minute or two.”
According to Tabino, all S3 profits are transferred to the ship’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR).
“The café alone can generate $1,000 in sales per day,” said Tabino. “This, when coupled with the profits from all the other S3 outlets, helps us fund MWR. Depending on our total profits we are able to send anywhere from $60,000 to $120,000 every quarter.”
Thomas added that the coffee shop has proven to have a positive, or perhaps stimulating, effect on the ship’s crew.
“It’s a great idea to run this store,” said Thomas. “It lets people know that they’ve got something from back home and some of the flavors they’re used to. Here, you can get a quality drink made for you, enjoy some good music and enjoy ‘hot drinks with cool people’.”
Ronald Reagan and its embarked air wing, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, provide a combat-ready force that protects and defends the collective maritime interests of the U.S. and its allies and partners in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.
| Date Taken: | 11.07.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 11.07.2015 05:25 |
| Story ID: | 181274 |
| Location: | USS RONALD REAGAN, EAST CHINA SEA |
| Web Views: | 198 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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