It’s common to see the students of Tabor Academy stepping off campus for a snack at Dunkin’ Donuts and Uncle Jon’s. Now, they’ve got a much closer option to get their caffeine and pastry fix.

The Marion and Mattapoisett coffee hotspot Uncle Jon’s now runs Beebe Grill, a café in the student center. (Sorry, it’s Tabor only.) The school’s food service previously ran the grill but was open limited hours and had a limited menu.

“To try and populate this with as many hours of the day that we wanted, it was a lot of extra stress on them,” said Communications Director Kerry Saltonstall.

The new establishment opened after Thanksgiving and offers much of the same menu options as it does at its headquarters just up the street, but with some reduced prices and much more convenience for students.

On Monday, Uncle Jon’s owner Jonathan Pope was in the kitchen as students came in for an afternoon snack. He said the new café was all Tabor’s idea.

“It’s wonderful that they made the move to do this,” said Pope.

While not far, the walk to Dunkin’ Donuts or Uncle Jon’s can take a student an entire free class period. Plus, the new eatery helps with Tabor’s goal to build community.

“If they come in here they don’t have to order anything, and it strengthens the community to have this kind of option here where everybody can access it,” Saltonstall said.

Pope is still working on pricing as he figures out what students want, but the goal is to offer many items at a discounted price.

“We’re dealing with students of all backgrounds, and we want to make sure that everyone is able to afford a cookie here,” he said.

The Beebe’s Uncle Jon’s is open Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. and noon to 10 p.m. on Saturdays. It’s also open Sunday, though the hours are still a work in progress.

In an effort to make the common area more user-friendly, new, more comfortable couches were purchased to go with the pool table and foosball table in the space. Students definitely noticed the upgrade.

“It’s amazing. I was here for eight hours yesterday,” gushed Aiden McEnroe, a student from Marion. “We got here when it opened. We were doing work, we were playing pool, we were hanging out.”

Soon there will be even more options for students. During the winter break, Pope plans to add an espresso bar and install new display cases that will allow him to carry healthier items including salads. The “grille fare,” such as French fries and hamburgers that was on the old menu, isn’t going away, and Pope is going to institute a Thursday doughnut night. The long-time coffee shop owner even learned to fry himself.

“I’ve never used a fryloator until last week,” he said. Now that he knows how to operate it, there’s no telling what may come out of the kitchen.

Pope said he’s open to experimenting with the menu and wants to interact with students. He may even pick up a cue and challenge a few of them to a pool game.

Most of all, Pope, like the Tabor leadership, want to see the space become a meeting point for students, just as Uncle Jon’s has been over the years.

“It’s a place to connect,” he said.