In Somerville, Someday may be a memory
Regulars at the coffee shop in Davis Square express outrage
SOMERVILLE -- Call the Someday Cafe in Davis Square a coffee shop, and regulars stiffen.
It is not ``just a coffee shop," they retort. The Someday is a ``place of healing," where the dreadlocked server behind the counter asks, how are you, and ``actually means it."
But come September, the shop's threadbare couches, local artwork , and strong macchiatos could be gone, replaced by a new eatery, Mr. Crepe.
Just days ago, residents learned that Someday's owner, Gus Rancatore, had failed to renew his lease -- he says he forgot -- and that the landlord was on the verge of signing Mr. Crepe, a purveyor of thin, European-style pancakes, soups, and salads.
Someday's pending demise has sparked an outcry in Davis Square, where the Someday, Diesel, and
On Wednesday, about 50 people packed a meeting of the Davis Square Task Force to vent.
Loyalists assailed the building's landlord, Richard Fraiman, for not reminding Rancatore to renew his lease, and pleaded with Mr. Crepe's owner, Peter Creyf, to go elsewhere.
``The only way you can get what you want is at the expense of hundreds of people," said Lisa Williams, 35, who met her husband, Evan, at Someday 11 years ago.
``It's wrong," Williams told Creyf, a 41-year-old Belgian immigrant, who looked back at her with wide eyes. ``It's morally wrong. Don't sign that lease."
Rancatore took responsibility for his oversight and asked for a compromise, offering to share the shop with Creyf.
``I hope we can work something out," he said.
Fraiman, however, said the matter is settled. ``Someday is out, and Mr. Crepe is in," he said.
A trio of college buddies opened the Someday Cafe about 13 years ago, hoping to capitalize on the coffeehouse trend that had swept Seattle. Jeff Hale, Glen Wallace, and Steve Stevens started the business in a cart in Central Square.
When the shop opened in the heart of the square, it was quickly embraced by coffee aficionados eager for quality java and by city officials anxious to turn around Davis Square, where small businesses had been struggling to bounce back from the economic lag of the 1970s and '80s.
Today, the coffee shop draws a diverse group of tattooed artists, students and professors, die-hard sports fans, and retirees, who mingle easily while sitting on the shop's armchairs and battered couches. Most customers know each other by name.
``When some of us have had losses, divorces, or death, you go to the cafe in the morning, people know about it," said longtime regular Rivkah Lapidus. ``They try to help you out."
Paul Colozzo, 88, whose wife died three years ago, goes to the shop daily and spends hours there, complaining about the weather or just chatting with other regulars. Sometimes, he doesn't buy anything.
He has other hangouts -- Dunkin' Donuts,
``Sometimes I go to the pastry shop," said Colozzo. ``But nobody there sits down and talks."
But for all its personality, Someday has been looking shabby, acknowledges Rancatore, who took over the business about four to five years ago. Customers often lament that the dingy carpet is torn and that the walls need repainting.
People have complained about loud music and sketchy-looking customers, who loiter on the streets, Rancatore said Fraiman told him.
For these reasons, Rancatore, who also owns Toscanini's ice cream shops, believes that Fraiman was not eager to remind him about the lease.
``I blew past" the deadline, he admitted. ``But in 25 years of working in small businesses, the landlord always calls up and says, `What do you want to do about the lease?'"
Fraiman said his decision to seek another tenant was purely business.
``I wasn't standing there with a stopwatch waiting for 12 o'clock midnight, saying, `Ah, ha, you missed your option to renew, and you're out,'" he said. Rancatore ``could have stayed there for years."
Creyf hopes that Someday's fans will overcome their resentment and visit his shop, which he expects to open in late October. Mr. Crepe did well at its old location next to Dave's Fresh Pasta, he said, but Creyf was forced to leave in 2004 when the restaurant's owners decided to expand.
``We really want to be back in the square and be part of the city," Creyf said during Wednesday's meeting. ``If you give it a chance, you will see Mr. Crepe can be a service to Davis Square, as well."
Rancatore said he will consider reopening in the square if he can find a suitable location.
But without Someday, many customers said they do not know where they will while away their free time.
``There are just so many people who rely on this place for their social life," said Someday employee Rachel Phillips, 23.
She blinked back tears as she watched Colozzo, one of her favorite customers, talking to another regular. ``I'm never going to see any of them again," she said.
Maria Cramer can be reached at mcramer@globe.com. 
