In the mornings and early afternoons, passersby may notice a back door at Rock & Reilly’s is propped open. Inside the hallmark of USC Village life, one will find the restaurant’s long tables, classic decorations … and a coffee cart. 

This is Eruta Nature, founded by student Justin Solomon, and it opened a pop-up collaboration with the bar Oct. 21.

Solomon, a senior majoring in business administration, originally wanted to start an eco-friendly clothing business. During a leave of absence from USC in his sophomore year, he planned to open the business in Europe. 

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At the last minute, Russia’s war in Ukraine resulted in a drastic jump in the price of travel and living in the continent. Instead, Solomon decided to come back to USC during a chance trip to the West Coast.

“I had a meeting in California, and I said, ‘Why not just go back to school?’” Solomon said. “I got bored being home.”

Solomon began his clothing business back in Los Angeles but had issues getting investors to latch on because his sales did not come in as fast as he would have liked. He attributed this to the cost of being an eco-friendly brand. 

How did Eruta Nature go from clothing to coffee? Solomon credits listening to podcasts about two popular coffee brands: Dutch Bros and La Colombe. 

“I utilized their two mindsets and how they started things, and said, ‘USC needed a better coffee shop.’ I wasn’t a fan of any of the local spots, so I said, ‘I can do it better,’” Solomon said.

On Sept. 14, 2023, Solomon set up Eruta Nature’s coffee cart for the first time by the North Trousdale entrance, joining the group of tabling organizations he would leave behind a year later. The cart became a regular, appearing every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. 

This is when Solomon’s girlfriend, Erin Roffe, began to get nervous. She said she trusted Solomon would succeed at whatever he did, but the sudden shift was a bit nerve-wracking. 

“When it started off as clothing and then switched to the coffee cart, it was very crazy,” she said. “I was so nervous. I believed in him a lot because he’s never failed at anything, really. But it was very stressful to hear that.” 

Nevertheless, the coffee cart continued and built a following on social media by selling flavored coffee along with a rotating menu of seasonal flavors for holidays such as Halloween and St. Patrick’s Day. In line with Solomon’s commitment to eco-friendliness, the cups he uses are compostable. 

 

After a year of selling coffee on Trousdale, Solomon moved from a dorm in USC Village to an off-campus apartment, making it difficult to bring supplies to his usual spot. 

He began looking for vacant stores in USC Village to rent, but no one gave him a deal. Finally, he went to Rock & Reilly’s and pitched a plan to use a normally vacant back room.

“I walked into Rock & Reilly’s and said, ‘You guys tried breakfast and I haven’t seen it in a while, and I have a following for coffee,’” he said. “‘I’ll stand with my coffee cart outside your shop and bring in customers for you for breakfast, and you’ll get pretty much free publicity and utilize this space that you’re paying for.’”

To his surprise, the owner let him use the room in the mornings as a pop-up collaboration with the restaurant. Patrons can order food and drinks at Solomon’s cart and instead of making drinks at the cart like he used to, Solomon or an employee will make it in Rock & Reilly’s kitchen. Food preparation is handled by restaurant staff. 

Solomon said despite USC Village rules not allowing him to advertise his shop through signage, business is doing well. He advertises through Eruta Nature’s Instagram account and said half of the customers he sees are new faces who tell him they found the shop through a friend — and come back. 

“We’ve had people who, for the first time, heard of us on the Monday we opened, and they’ve been here 10 days straight,” he said. 

Roffe said she is elated that the collaboration with Rock & Reilly’s worked out for a number of reasons. Among them is that Solomon’s cart and supplies no longer take over his dorm. 

“When I came to visit, I couldn’t even put my suitcase in his room,” she said. “And then before the popup with Rock and Reilly’s, everything was in our house or a storage unit. So now it’s nice to have it away from home.” 

Roffe said she also is excited that the business has turned into a learning opportunity for her and Solomon. 

Before Solomon began working with coffee, she was the “coffee snob” in the relationship. Now, Solomon is teaching her new things about coffee. Roffe said this is a testament to his dedication to his work. 

Marcelino Martinez, a Spring 2024 graduate who has been friends with Solomon since the first football game their sophomore year, echoed Roffe’s statement. He said Solomon puts his all into whatever task is in front of him.

“Justin has always been a very entrepreneurial mindset person. He’s very devoted to his craft,” Martinez said. 

Solomon said the biggest lesson he learned during his time building Eruta Nature has been no matter how prepared you are, something will come up that you need to fix. His solution is to never take no for an answer. 

“I am stubborn — more stubborn than I’d like to admit. I get it from my mom,” Solomon said. “She has a quote for herself that she wants on her gravestone: ‘Jen, she got things done,’ and I thought that was always hilarious as a kid, so I try to do the same. Where there’s a will, there’s a way, and I’ll get it done.”