As the month of April kicked off, American University students ventured to The Bridge for their pre-class coffees to be greeted with bright colors, drink specials and elaborate decorations.
The Bridge’s annual week-long spring pop-up features a new theme each year. This year’s “Candyland” theme brought aspects of the beloved game to life. From colored floor tiles, to gingerbread house decorations and signs reading, “Candy Castle” and “Lollipop Forest,” the coffee shop was transformed into a sweet wonderland.
However, the pop-up is more than just its decorations and fun treats. It also celebrates The Bridge’s graduating seniors. Each senior creates their own drink to match the pop-up theme, coming together to plan and decorate for the week.
For Sophia Cummings, a senior in the School of International Service and The Bridge’s assistant general manager, the annual pop-up is a way for the coffee shop’s community to work together and create the best final memories for the seniors. She said she will always remember her first pop-up experience.
“I joined when I was a freshman, and it was really scary, but setting up a pop-up is a huge bonding experience,” Cummings said. “That’s really when I started to connect a lot with everyone working here.”
As assistant manager, Cummings was in charge of the decorations. She said the planning usually starts in December, when all Bridge workers vote on a theme. A decorations committee is also established to sort through leftover materials from prior years and brainstorm new ideas. The weekend before the pop-up, the team brings the array of decorations and ideas to life.
The pop-up also included several events throughout the week. Nitya Bam, a senior in the School of Communication and The Bridge’s events and social media manager, planned and led the committee that created events like “Board Game Night,” “Candy Challenges” and “Candy Imposter.”
Bam said that, although there was a designated event planning committee, everyone could contribute ideas and time to help set up.
“The weekend before, we all come in every single day and just get everything sorted out,” Bam said. “It’s fun and a great bonding experience for our staff, too.”
As Bam completes her time at The Bridge, she said it is more than a place she’s worked for three years — it’s a home.
“It’s a nice home on campus where I get to see all my friends,” Bam said. “It’s a great place to be around.”
Another component of the pop-up is each senior’s creative drink. Cummings said the seniors brainstorm what drink they want to feature with the help of the second assistant manager.
Cumming’s drink, “Sophia’s Twix Fix,” was a shortbread latte with caramel and mocha drizzle, whipped cream and crushed Twix. She said wanted to turn the iconic candy bar into a drink, and wanted to choose a treat that many people enjoy.
Bam’s creation, “Nitya’s GingerBam Cold Brew,” was a nitro cold brew with gingerbread cold foam and a gingerbread cookie on top, complementing the matching gingerbread decorations adorning the coffee shop.
Linh Duong, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences and The Bridge’s shift manager, decided to make her drink with Vietnamese coffee. Having previously hated the taste of coffee, Duong said it wasn’t until she tried Vietnamese coffee and a drink with ube foam that she liked it, so she decided to combine the two elements in one drink: the “Linny-Land Coffee.”
Duong said she found many of her closest friends during her last three years at The Bridge, and working there helped her find her community at AU.
“It’s the community that keeps you still working there,” Duong said. “They’re some of the closest people I’ve met at AU and they’re what really made me integrate. I just love working with them.”
This article was edited by Isabella Polak, Payton Anderson and Walker Whalen. Copy editing done by Avery Grossman and Mattie Lupo.
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