OASIS Cafe will be celebrating six years in business today. Proprietor Nisa Walker said opening and running the cafe continues to be a great experience for her. She feels that over the years she has managed to maintain and even improve the standards for both the products and the service the cafe offers. “It’s been exciting, it’s been a great learning experience and at times a lot of hard work, but we always try to keep the focus on satisfying each customer at a time, whether through meeting special requests, or if they simply need a coffee in a hurry,” she said.
She praised many of the longstanding employees, both in the kitchen and out on the floor, some of whom have been with the business from the early days.
“They work hard, they work beyond the call of duty. And we have become close and shared in each other’s happiness with weddings and births, and on occasion we have supported each other in times of sorrow. We are, in many ways, like a family and I think our staff knows that we are there for them and they are there for us.”
She also thanked her husband and children for their support. “Being in business as a mother can be hard on the children but they have been great, very understanding.”
Nisa also thanked the numerous customers for continuing to visit every day. Many of them have since become good friends. “Sometimes I feel we are not even in the coffee business, but that Oasis is like a community centre, where people come to meet and talk. It’s amazing how after six years they keep coming every day, sometimes several times a day!”
As part of the day’s celebrations the cafe is baking a large birthday cake to share out and a special lunch will be available. As for the future, Nisa is keeping it low key and simple.
“We want to improve what we do, offer more, and just make people happier.”