CineMug: Movie rentals with a side of coffee

Dan Creskoff knows what you may be thinking:

Cable and Netflix have killed the video store.

But that's a pity. Video stores, for the two decades or so they were around, were gathering places for cinephiles, especially TLA Video. Creskoff managed two of those stores.

"People would hang out at TLA," Creskoff said. "How do you keep it going? Bring it to a nice neighborhood and give them coffee."

Creskoff figured that combining a coffee shop - the social hub of city life today - with a modest specialty DVD shop would a good business move. In his East Passyunk neighborhood, no less.

Monday, Jan. 12 is the premiere of CineMug (1607 S. Broad St., 267-314-5936), just off the Tasker-Morris subway stop on the Broad Street line.

Creskoff has hired only movie geeks to pull the ReAnimator espresso (made in a restored Nuova Simonelli Yacht Club machine) and handle the DVDs, whose genres include art, cult, horror, documentary and foreign titles.

He said he quizzes job applicants on their film knowledge. (Quick! Three films by Carl Theodor Dreyer! Tick-tock-tick-tock...)

Besides coffee and Le Bus pastries, he will serve his own soup and chai tea; bagels and spreads from South Street Bagels; and hoagies from Cosmi's.

He has a projector and screen for movie nights.

CineMug will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.