Vision:

El Taller, a third space for all, is a place to consider the written word, the spoken word and the daily shared word through conversations. It is focused on bringing the community together around good books and great food. 

People have said that El Taller doesn’t feel like Lawrence, but it is Lawrence. It is the Lawrence that often goes unseen, the Lawrence abundant with joy, overflowing with passion and talent, a caring community. 

I started El Taller when Cafe Verde closed. I didn’t want another bar in our city. I wanted the kind of place I would want to hang out in when I retired as a public school teacher. 

Often taking writing classes in Boston, I heard people discussing where the best cafes where people could write. I wanted a place nearby in our city, Lawrence, where people could write and read. 

Adding to the integrity of a cafe is the fact that El Taller is a bookstore too. Here we offer books curated by people in the community so that they decide what is important to read. The community and the books make El Taller a hub for knowledge and creative energy.

In the Owner’s Words: 

“Many great writers and artists such as Picasso, Matisse, the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa have spent time in cafes relaxing, sharing ideas, seeing the community and being seen by others. The café has been in these cases the creative heart of the community, a gathering space where people can learn from each other, share their thoughts, and be part of something bigger than themselves. 

My question after opening El Taller has been, “if a community doesn’t have a local café does that mean it doesn’t have artists, writers and thinkers If we don’t witness the talent present in our community can we assume it doesn’t exist?”  If so, then in order to appreciate what our community has to offer we need a venue where people feel welcome and see each other. I have had many people walk in, look at the art in our gallery, listen to the poetry during an open mic night and ask how I helped all these talented people become so talented. I have had to explain that the people they were seeing were the people that have always existed but we didn’t know they were there because they were not in public spaces where they could be observed. We need to see our talent in order to appreciate what our community has to offer. When we come together and recognize the talent in ourselves, in our community we create a new vision of who we are together.” 

- Mary Guerrero