What
is your definition of a "Christian Coffeehouse"?
A place that serves good coffee and provides a clean wholesome atmosphere
where one can enjoy Christian fellowship and share the Gospel message to the
community in a non-threatening manner.
What is the purpose of your coffeehouse?
To provide an alternative to what the world has to offer in the area of "things
to do" (i.e. movies, restaurants or nightclubs) for the local community.
We also are not afraid of the term Christian Entertainment but the primary
purpose is to provide a place where one can evangelize their friends and family
members in a non-church environment. It is also our goal to provide a top-notch
professional place to perform for the local Christian artist.
Please give a brief history of your coffeehouse.
We have been in operation since January of 1993. We started off hosting one
coffeehouse per month and switched to twice a month in 1994. In 1995, we added
a third coffeehouse per month on months with five Fridays. And as of March
15 , 1996, we have been open weekly (every Friday night).
What was the original reason for opening your coffeehouse?
I was tired of expending a lot of effort to put on quarterly concerts that
were only attended by small groups of people. Also, my wife and I were tired
of having to go out to a concert or a bar to enjoy local music. And we were
looking for a way to provide a venue for local Christian artists to have a
great place to play.
What kind of atmosphere does your coffeehouse provide?
Koinonia is a cross between a coffeehouse and a Christian nightclub. Before
the music starts and at the set breaks, it's a coffeehouse, but once the music
starts and the lights go down, it's a nightclub type setting. We strive to
provide the most comfortable and best professionally run place possible. No
"junk for Jesus" at Koinonia.
What kind of entertainment does your coffeehouse provide?
Our bands range from Rock to Jazz to Blues to Alternative. All acts are "live"
and we don't select artists who sing to tracks. We are willing to book bands
that are in a particular niche but never out on the fringe of a particular
style. We also provide Comedy on occasion. And now that we are open weekly,
we may try drama or more "artsy" stuff.
What kind of people frequent your coffeehouse? Christians in the area? Unsaved
souls looking for the Lord?
This is a hard question as we don't ask people to sign a statement at the
door. From what we can tell, most of our patrons are Christians, but, we get
a steady flow of unchurched folks who are invited by friends. Our crowd is
in the 20 to 50 age range but it varies with the band.
Do you try to evangelize the lost ones who visit? If so, how?
Yes, we definitely try to evangelize each night. If the band doesn't say anything,
then I go up and communicate the message to the crowd. Alter calls are rarely
given, but, we always let the people know that we are willing to talk and
pray with them if they want to know more about what they've heard and bibles
are available.
What kind of future do you see for your coffeehouse and those like it?
Do you think Christian Coffeehouses will continue to increase in popularity?
This is in God's capable hands. We just follow His lead. And so far, He seems
to be leading many to start coffeehouses and continues to expand places like
Koinonia. I think that coffeehouses are a perfect way to reach the
Bay Area communities as this area is so "regional", and, who better
to touch a community on its own level than a local intimate coffeehouse.
Any additional comments?
Please help us spread the word as the biggest complaint I hear about our coffeehouse
is, "How come I didn't hear about this place sooner".
