New Kingwood café offers peaceful setting, healthy food

By JENNIFER SUMMER
Updated: 03.20.09
Filled with the smells of freshly brewed coffee and fresh baked goods, Java Pi Café in Kingwood offers a variety of healthy options and special treats for the community.

The new deli and bakery opened its doors March 18, providing a unique experience and a personalized atmosphere.

With grab-and-go foods such as bagels, scones, muffins, fresh fruit and refreshments to name a few, the self-service café provides options for customers.

“Java Pi Café strives to offer our customers the choice of ‘grab ‘n’ go or stay ‘n’ relax,’ plus everything is fresh ‘n’ healthy,” owner Rita Ritter said.

A business three years in the making, longtime Kingwood resident Ritter had always dreamed of owning her own café and she found the vacant spot on Northpark Drive which sparked her interest.

“I remember I used to look in vacant shop store windows, looking for that perfect place, when one of my friends said to me, ‘Why don’t you stop talking about it and just do it?’ That’s when I found this location,” Ritter said.

Ritter visited a small business development center to develop a plan for her business and start working on the Java Pi Café.

She started negotiating the lease for the location in August 2007 and sealed the deal August 2008 and then construction on the space began.

“One thing led to another and I found a builder and now we are open and greeting customers. It was a lot of struggle to get everything together but I learned a lot along the way and it gave me a little bit more time to be prepared for anything that may happen,” Ritter said.

Ritter tossed around several ideas for the name of the café when she settled on Java Pi Café because she serves coffee and because of the significance of pi in math.

With three siblings and three children, the number three has always been significant for Ritter so pi, whose value is approximately 3.14, was very fitting.

The cafe even has the symbol for pi on its signs and displays throughout the café as well as a plate with pi spaced around the edge

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