Introducing the Husky Den Café

October 13, 2025 by HFS Staff

Exciting changes are brewing at the Husky Den! This fall, the former Starbucks location in the Husky Union Building (HUB) is transitioning into a “We Proudly Serve” (WPS) café, offering the same high-quality Starbucks coffee with a streamlined menu tailored to campus needs. The other two Starbucks on campus located at Suzzallo Library and the Hans Rosling Center for Population Health will remain full-service licensed Starbucks franchises.

The new WPS store will be named the Husky Den Café and will feature traditional favorites, seasonal specials and limited-time offerings, alongside a fresh food program that includes hot breakfast and lunch sandwiches. While it won’t offer the Starbucks Rewards program or Starbucks food, it will serve grab-and-go items made on campus. Like other WPS cafés on campus, the Husky Den Café will evolve based on student feedback to ensure it lives up to the community’s expectations.

This transition comes after the Starbucks HUB location’s license expired. Rather than renewing and investing heavily in store modifications to meet updated Starbucks brand standards, UW Housing & Food Services (HFS) chose to pivot to a WPS café model, allowing us to reinvest in our own dining program and keep revenue local. HFS still maintains a strong partnership with Starbucks for our franchise locations. Our goal with converting this location to the Husky Den Café is to provide more resources for campus dining while continuing access to Starbucks coffee in the HUB.