Tuesday Nights at Inman Street Coffee

Joel Rogers & Noel Allgood share an embrace

Photo by: Senior Photographer, Riley Evans

Under the ambiance of candlelight in the back room of Inman Street Coffee, students from every background gather for a meal carefully prepared for them by none other than Joel Rogers, owner of Inman Street.

Every Tuesday evening for the past six years, Inman Street Coffee has opened its doors for college aged students to disconnect from the rush of life and enjoy fellowship and unity with others. Every month, the themes cycle between game night, movie night, trivia night and a special night called ‘Hygge Night.’ Every Tuesday night at 8 o’clock, the group gathers for a conversation led bible study. The Bible study topics are submitted by members of the group and the topic is chosen by a roulette wheel every night.

Hygge night holds a very special place in Rogers’ heart.

“Hygge is this Danish idea of comfort, welcome, comfy, and cozy ... in Denmark when they use the phrase hygge they’re saying that something is the penultimate of feeling welcomed, wanted, and cared for,” Rogers explained.

This idea was introduced to Roger’s when he, his wife Cheryl and his daughter travelled to Denmark to visit Inman Street’s sister coffee house called ‘Other’s Cafe’. There, they were celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Salvation Army in Denmark. They were received by Bobby and Ann Westmoreland with an extravagant feast prepared just for Rogers and his family. After coming back from Denmark with that experience, Rogers and his wife set out to make Hygge night a part of their college ministry.

“We wanted to make a true community that cares about you, not just another event that packs a program,” Rogers said.

Tuesday nights at Inman have never been publicly announced, it is communicated purely by word of mouth in order to bring in people that actually want to come. While Hygge night attracts many people, the consistent number of people that come ranges from four to eight people.

A Hygge night always involves food because, “What doesn’t make you feel more welcomed than food?” Rogers asked.

Rogers will spend several hours before a Hygge night preparing a spread of food for those who come, and has been doing this since 2018.

There is one rule when it comes to Hygge night: one must lay down anything controversial and find things to unite with others about. Lee student Noel Allgood was “roped into the group” shortly after Christmas and has been attending Tuesday nights since.

“I feel like this is the year where God is telling me to do the things I regretted not doing my freshman year, and I feel like Inman is apart of that ... it feels like home,” Allgood said.

Caleb Douglas (left), Joel Rogers (center), & Ashlynn Akiona (right) speaking about the creation of Hygge night.

Photo by: Senior Photographer, Riley Evans

“All of our barista workers are hired as ministry workers as well because we want them to learn how to make great coffee, yes, but also to learn how to love people well here too,” Rogers said referring to the barista on bar for every Tuesday night, Caleb Douglas.

Douglas soon found that Tuesday nights “keep him going” because he gets to help kids move through hard things. Douglas was apart of the creation of these Tuesday nights from the beginning. When he was a student at Lee, he found community at Inman Street Coffee and now he wants to “give community back to the community that gave him community.”

Inman Street closes its doors every Tuesday evening to host these events, but are always happy to see new faces, especially on Hygge night.

For more information about Inman Street Coffee and their upcoming events click here.