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Gregorys Coffee is opening its first Monmouth County location at 360 Route 9 in Manalapan, N.J., on September 17 — and the debut introduces a new format milestone for the brand: its first double-lane drive-thru. The specialty coffee chain, founded in New York City in 2006 and now part of the Craveworthy Brands portfolio, has grown to more than 50 locations nationwide. The Manalapan café represents both a geographic expansion into suburban New Jersey and a meaningful operational shift toward higher-throughput drive-thru service.
Opening Week Events
Founder Gregory Zamfotis will be on-site for both days of grand opening festivities. On September 16, an invite-only Coffee & Chat runs from 6 to 8 p.m., featuring a live latte art demonstration by Zamfotis alongside food and pastry samples from the café's in-house baking program. The public grand opening on September 17 runs from 5:30 a.m. to noon, with small hot coffees and cold brews priced at $1 during that window. Guests ordering at the 20th minute of each hour receive their full order free — a nod to the brand's 20th anniversary — while those ordering at the 28th minute receive a signed bag of Gregs House coffee, a number Zamfotis has called his longtime lucky number. Zamfotis will personally serve guests from 8 to 10 a.m. before a community ribbon-cutting at 10 a.m.
Format Strategy and Brand Context
The double-lane drive-thru is a notable evolution for Gregorys, which built its reputation on Manhattan café culture centered on quality espresso, house-roasted coffee, and daily in-house pastry production. Adapting that positioning to a suburban drive-thru format reflects a broader shift in specialty coffee retail strategy, as independent and emerging chains compete with quick-service operators for the convenience-driven consumer. For multi-unit operators watching format innovation, Gregorys' approach — pairing a founder-led hospitality story with drive-thru throughput — offers a case study in extending a premium brand into higher-volume formats without diluting identity.
Craveworthy Brands, which backs more than 20 concepts across 300-plus domestic and international locations, has positioned Gregorys as a key growth vehicle within its portfolio. "Having grown up in this area, opening our first Monmouth County café feels especially meaningful," said Gregory Zamfotis, founder of Gregorys Coffee. "This celebration is our opportunity to thank the Manalapan community for welcoming us and to give guests a closer look at the coffee, craft and people behind Gregorys."
For operators tracking coffee and beverage-driven restaurant expansion, Gregorys' Manalapan opening is worth watching as the brand tests whether its craft-first identity can scale efficiently through a drive-thru-forward suburban footprint — a question facing many specialty concepts eyeing growth beyond dense urban cores.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
