Neil Hueber isn’t like most deliverymen.

Hueber works at Mello Velo, a combined bike shop and café on Westcott Street, and he always makes deliveries on his bike — no matter the weather.

He plans to deliver throughout the winter, but isn’t concerned about the imminent snow.

“I’m actually kind of excited for the winter,” Hueber said, “just to see people’s reactions when I show up in the middle of February when there is snow on the ground.”

Mello Velo recently announced that it now offers free deliveries for all items in its café, which include sandwiches, salads, smoothies and a variety of coffee drinks. Everything from their espressos to their Americanos and lattes can be delivered, as long as the purchase is $10 or more.

Delivery hours are from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturdays, according to the shop’s website.

Steve Morris, one of the founding owners of Mello Velo, decided to start the delivery service to make more people aware of the bike shop and café. He also wanted to give his employees, including himself, more opportunities to indulge their love of biking.

“We wanted to offer just another way for people to taste our food,” Morris said, “Plus we wanted to ride our bikes more — that was actually a big part of it.”

About 90 percent of those who have ordered delivery from Mello Velo are students, Morris said. They’ve also delivered to some people who have never been in the shop before.

Mello Velo became better known in the area after being added to GrubHub, the online ordering website that includes many other restaurants in the SU area, said Oriana Brenzo, a part-time student at University College who prepares food in Mello Velo’s café.

Brenzo, who is studying social work, helps make almost every meal on the café menu by hand from local ingredients, she said.

The busiest delivery days at Mello Velo usually include about 10 deliveries, Morris said. They will deliver to anyone within an area that stretches roughly from Interstate 81 to Crawford Avenue, which includes the Marshall Street area, all of South Campus and a portion of East Fayette Street.

Hueber, one of the shop’s deliverymen, said Mello Velo uses insulated messenger bags to help keep items such as soups and paninis warm. He added that he has been using a pink lunchbox to carry food temporarily.

Although they are using normal bikes for now, Morris said they will soon have special delivery bikes painted lime green to go with the color scheme of the shop. The new bikes will also feature built-in racks and insulated bags to keep food hot or cold, Morris said.

He said he hopes generator lights and the bright green color will make help employees doing bike deliveries more visible to cars since one of the few downsides of the delivery program is that it puts some employees more at risk.

While delivering two smoothies on Friday, Morris said he almost got into an accident on Euclid when a car slammed on its brakes directly in front of him and another car.

“They were clearly not paying close attention,” Morris said.

Katie Shifley, a graduate public administrations student who got her bike from Mello Velo several years ago, said that she thinks the business is in a challenging position.

“They are up against a city that doesn’t fully support their efforts,” she said of the lack of safe bike lanes in Syracuse.

Shifley created a petition urging the City of Syracuse to install designated bike lanes on Euclid Avenue that, if successful, she hopes will make bike deliveries safer for Mello Velo employees.

For now, with the work and risks of biking in Syracuse, she said she thinks the minimum of $10 for a delivery is a fair amount.

“I love Mello Velo’s alternative transportation system.” Shifley said. “Plus, most places, even pizza, have a minimum limit. Just find a friend and order with them.”

Published on November 18, 2013 at 1:19 am

Contact Shannon: smhazlit@syr.edu