SARATOGA SPRINGS — Kaffee House, a coffee shop located on the second floor of 120 West Avenue, is starting a biweekly Tango Night program open to all dance skill levels and those who simply want to enjoy some food and watch others dancing.
According to co-owner Marcus Solga, every other week starting at 6:30 p.m., participants are given a three-course meal consisting of a soup entrée, a main course and one of the desserts displayed next to the counter. Kafee House has no liquor license, so there is no alcohol available.
At the previous Tango Night, the main course was sauerbraten, according to Solga. He said “The literal translation would be ‘sour roast.’ What we do is we take beef, we marinade it in red vinegar for two days, so it gets nice and tender and so it also soaks up all that sour flavor, and we then serve that sauerbraten with red cabbage and all of that is of course made here.”
After people finish eating, they separate based on skill level, with beginners, intermediate and advanced dancers. The beginners are in the front area, near the window facing the street, while the advanced group is in the more open floor space near the window facing the parking lot. The dining area is set up around the middle of the shop, on a carpeted area.
Dancers can continue until around 9 p.m. For beginners, Tango Fusion, which also provides the music and presents the event, gives lessons.
Solga added that as the night progresses, they lower the lights to create a more intimate atmosphere. In terms of participation, he said that the attendees have ranged in age from 20 to 68, with the median being around 45 years old. The shop has a maximum occupancy of 46 people.
Kaffee House started last year, in February, 2018. Solga said that his father is a urologist working nearby, which brought the family to the area. Marcus said he was sick of the corporate, 9-5 world, so decided to change paths so that he could be his own boss.
In the current setup, Solga’s mother takes care of the culinary side of the business, while Marcus uses his Industrial Engineering background to streamline most everything else needed to keep the business running.
Now, Kaffee House has a drive thru for people who do not have time to stop, and Solga said that the store’s peak times are between 8 and 10 a.m., 1:30 to 2 p.m. and 3:30 to 4 p.m., and that recently they started to get a boost from the nearby high school crowd taking notice.
Additionally, Solga said that they try to adjust for the season, such as how for Christmas they will have the likes of Stollen, a traditional German holiday fruit bread which uses nuts, spices and dried or candied fruit, apple strudel and poppy seed cake.
On the supply side of the business, Solga said that they try to get as much of their food as possible from local sources, such as Pitney Meadows Farm, Winny’s Farm, Saratoga Apple and Primal.
He said that test runs for Tango Night started back in January, and the first full event was earlier in the month, on Oct. 23. The next Tango Night is scheduled for next Wednesday, Nov. 6.
He added that in the future, they are looking into having another dance night on the weeks opposite Tango Night. He speculated some kind of Latin dance night.
Admission to Tango Night is $20 per person, or $35 for a couple. Those wanting to participate do not need to bring a partner.
For more information, visit Kaffee House’s website, at www. kaffeehousesaratoga.com.
