Last summer, as Eleni Zafiris prepared to open a brunch café in San Jose, she opted for a soft opening to ease into operating her first restaurant. But when she opened the doors at Morning Lobby, lines formed almost immediately, with customers vying for foamy, specialty coffees and breakfast sandwiches in the sleek, pink-themed space.
“People started showing up; the younger crowd started showing up, posting it — TikTok, Instagram,” Zafiris said. “And it sort of blew up from there.”
Just over a year later, Zafiris’ business is already expanding. Morning Lobby will open a second, larger restaurant early next year at 47 E. Main St. in Los Gatos. It will offer much the same menu — breakfast sandwiches, toasts, coffees made with beans from Saint Frank Coffee — and continue the original restaurant’s distinctive pink color palette…