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The basics:

• After passing the bar exam, Gregory Zamfotis shifted from law to coffee, launching Gregorys Coffee.
• The brand differentiates itself by committing to quality and innovation without compromising on service or price.
• The business has steadily expanded through strategic growth and now operates more than 50 locations across the U.S.

After passing the New York State Bar Exam, Gregory Zamfotis’ legal career took an unusual turn. Instead of pursuing corporate law, the Holmdel native decided to launch a specialty coffee shop 19 years ago near Madison Square Park in New York City.

Guided by a credo of “challenging the status quo by seeing coffee differently,” Gregorys Coffee is positioning itself as a leader in the ever-competitive coffee space by committing to quality and innovation without compromising on service or price.

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the country’s $88.9 billion coffee industry is in growth mode, fueled partially by a rising demand for specialty coffee and unique coffee-drinking experiences. Millennials and Gen Z are particularly interested in brands touting sustainability and ethical sourcing, as well as novel options like creamy nitrogen-infused brews and on-the-go cold drinks.

Gregorys Coffee focuses on curating special experiences for customers. That means brewing coffee every 30 minutes, baking fresh pastries in-house daily, pouring custom latte art for customers and serving dairy-free milk alternatives at no extra cost. Along with a bevy of vegan options, specialty beverages and exclusive items, Gregorys Coffee stands out for its quirkily named specialty drinks, like “Hall & Oats,” “Purple Rain” and “Fall Oat Boy.”

Since 2006, Gregorys Coffee has expanded to more than 50 locations across the U.S. Within New Jersey, the family-run chain has six shops, including a recently opened drive-thru in Old Bridge and upcoming outposts in Manalapan and East Hanover.

‘What excites me?’

Before starting the business, Zamfotis was halfway through his time at Brooklyn Law School when he began evaluating career paths. And while the job offers and opportunities being presented were impressive, Zamfotis admits he wasn’t feeling very passionate about them.

“I felt like it would be more of a way to earn money as opposed to something that would get me excited every day,” he recalled.

“My father [George Zamfotis] was an operator of fast-casual food concepts in New York City. So, I grew up in an entrepreneurial household. Naturally I worked alongside him my whole life, but I did not think that was going to be a career for myself,” Zamfotis said. “But, when I stopped to think ‘What excites me? And what do I think I could be really good at but also blend some passion in this?’ I realized I had this whole life’s experience working with food. So, why not think about trying to do something of my own?”

“I spoke to my father about the potential of starting my own business and at first, he was a little surprised to hear that I might not want to pursue a career in law after spending all this time at law school. And then I think when he came to understanding, he was excited to be able to help me do something that I was going to really be passionate and love,” he said.

While earning his law degree, Zamfotis spent a lot of time at coffeehouses, which helped him gain “an understanding and love what the coffee industry was and stood for.”

“I was in New York and there really weren’t very many options for a great cup of coffee where my father’s businesses historically operated – midtown and the Financial District. So, it seemed like there would be a really great opportunity for me to try and do something a little different – bringing a really high-quality product and experience to parts of the city that were underserved in that regard,” Zamfotis explained.

“My father helped me find our first location … just a block away from the first Shake Shack at Madison Square Park. We got our start just really with the idea of trying to do something different and trying to create something where our guests didn’t have to make any sacrifices,” he explained.

“Our mission statement is to challenge the status quo by seeing coffee differently. And to me that always meant all those stereotypes that came with getting a great cup of coffee — it’s going to be hard to find, it’s going to be slow, that the barista might not make you feel so warm and welcome if you don’t really know everything there is to know about coffee or that there’s limited menus,” he said.

“I worked hard to create a menu and systems that would allow us to deliver really high quality in a quick service setting. I think from the get-go, that was something that our customers loved and appreciated, they just weren’t used to receiving anywhere else. So that got us off and running on that first location. It certainly took a little bit of time for people to get the word out and build a little bit of popularity, but once people started to see what we were all about and understand what set us apart from others, that’s when we were able to start expanding and opening more locations,” he said.

The sweet spot

When Zamfotis opened his first store, he didn’t set out to become a challenger brand.

“I was pretty young – 24. Honestly, I don’t know how far ahead I was really thinking. I was just so excited about getting the first one up and running. I guess I could look to my father, where, at his peak, he had about eight locations in his concept. So, I felt like maybe at some point that could be something I could work toward,” he said. “But I was just focused on that first one and trying to get it right. I think once we started growing and started to see some success with the brand and what we were creating really catching on then, the ambitions grow over time.”

“That first year was about just trying to understand how to fine tune the program and the menu. And also working with the team to make sure they felt confident,” he said. “Because I couldn’t really leave and do other stores if I didn’t feel confident in the team’s ability to run the one that was originally there.”

Two-and-a-half years after the first shop, Gregorys Coffee added a spot in midtown. Now, it has 22 locations across Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn, as well as coffee roasting facilities in Long Island City.

Zamfotis didn’t cross the Hudson River until 2016, when he opened at 10 Exchange Place in Jersey City. After receiving a warm welcome, the brand went on to unveil a second café in Jersey City, near Newport Centre. Over the past five years, Gregorys Coffee has gone on to launch shops in Paramus, Hoboken, Summit, Lawrenceville and Old Bridge.

Growing coffee

Initially, Gregorys Coffee focused on the daytime office population in New York City. It wasn’t until several years later that Zamfotis said they began to “find opportunities that weren’t quite so office centric.”

“Even though we were still in the city, it was in areas that were a bit more residential as a way to try slightly different demographics or traffic patterns. Depending on where you are in the city, you can see very different activities,” he said. “As we started seeing success in all different sorts of locations for us across the city, we started to think, ‘Well, if it works in residential part of Manhattan, why wouldn’t it work in Jersey City, Long Island or Paramus?’ I think the more data points we got as we’re testing the business, it gave us more confidence to test in other markets, as well.”

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“I think the biggest trick has been jumping into entirely new markets. In New York and the tri-state area, we’ve been operating for 19 years now, so people understand or have a good feeling about Gregorys and the brand. They recognize us, they believe in what we do and what we stand for,” he said. “But it takes time to do that in other parts of the country. So, when we made this decision to roll out nationwide, it was part of the partnership with Simon Property Group.”

As part of the agreement with Simon, the largest shopping mall operator in the U.S., Gregorys Coffee was brought in to replace vacant coffee spaces at 19 properties.

“It’s been great. They identified us as a partner and a coffee company that can deliver quality but doesn’t feel so niche or so limited. So, in that way we’re very accessible to different sorts of people, whether it’s someone looking for super high-quality single origin coffee from Colombia that has tasting notes of white grape, pear and hazelnut, or if they want a salted caramel cold brew. We can do all different versions of coffee in a really delicious high-quality way. And, it gives us opportunity to create great impressions and experiences for people,” he said.

Scaling the business, Zamfotis said, “comes down to a balance of having a great team and building robust systems.”

“Whether it’s operations checklists to training programs to continuing education, you try to create a really robust environment for people to be able to develop into coffee professionals who fall in love with coffee … I think the balance of how you do all those various elements while also trying to create the best possible experience for a guest,” he said.

“It was important to build our value system so that way when we bring on new people or elevate team members, we give them opportunities to take on more responsibilities and it’s pretty clear as to what they need to be able to do so to deliver a Gregorys Coffee experience to our guest and to create the right culture and environment with the team,” he said of the company’s 500-plus employees.

‘Selling to ourselves’

Often, chains will add one or two vegan items onto the menu to appease those following a plant-based diet. For Zamfotis, it’s important that there are many options for those customers.

It’s also personal.

After becoming a vegan in 2017 for health reasons, Zamfotis said, “It made me realize it doesn’t necessarily have to be a sacrifice. You can make an amazing product that just so happens to be plant-based.”

“Anybody who is vegan or plant-based that comes to Gregorys knows that very clearly the person building this menu must practice this lifestyle as well and it’s not just ‘let me throw an Impossible patty on a sandwich or a token vegan item into the case,” he said. “And I think it comes down to we want to sell to ourselves first. We think about how we can continue developing a really interesting innovative program incorporating high-quality ingredients whenever possible.”

Vegan items at Gregorys Coffee include deluxe breakfast sandwiches and burritos, chia seed croissants, spicy avocado toast, apple cinnamon oats, coconut almond bites and s’mores brownies.

“We have a great reputation in health and wellness and especially the vegan community because of all the work and consistent effort with what we put out there that aligns with what they’re looking for,” he said. “I just always start by selling to ourselves. I start by making sure it’s something that not only am I interested in, but I can really get behind it that way. It’s not just lip service when I’m talking about a product. It’s something we really believe in.”

Another innovation Zamfotis is especially proud of is the chain’s newly added clean energy drink offerings: Blue Steel (blue spirulina, lime, mint, blueberries) and Island Bolt (passionfruit, guava, orange).

“The energy category has been pretty massive. But I didn’t want to just do it the way everybody else was – which typically involves natural flavors, chemicals, added sugar and the like. We wanted to do it the Gregorys’ way – a bit more clean and health forward. And it took a long time, but we finally came up with a recipe we loved and it’s using real fruit, no added sugar, and 160 milligrams of caffeine and we make it on the spot for you,” he said. “The official launch was in January and people are loving it,” he said.

Like many fast-food chains, quick-serve brands and fast-casual concepts, Gregorys Coffee embraces limited time offers and seasonal items to attract customers and drive visits.

“That’s the name of the game right now. And we always ask, how do we continue to excite ourselves and how we can push the limits, whether it’s with coffee or other items,” Zamfotis said. “We sprinkle in limited offers and new products quite frequently.”

Just a few of the latest seasonal specialties include:

• Fall 2024: Banana Chai (chai tea, turmeric, banana & rum syrup and customer’s choice of milk)
• Halloween 2024: Snickers Latte (salted caramel cold brew, mocha sauce and whipped cream with caramel drizzle)
• Holiday 2024: Iced Mint Brew (cold brew with Nutella and peppermint, topped with whipped cream and peppermint pieces)
• Valentine’s Day 2025: Love Affair (espresso with house-made strawberry syrup, mocha sauce and milk)

“It’s literally been every month for the last six or seven months that we’re introducing a new LTO or special offerings,” he said. “Customers of ours tend to say the menu feels unique and definitely not copy-and-pasted from what others are doing. We are always asking ourselves, ‘How can we make products that are unique, delicious and things that we’re interested in, too?’”

Reflecting on his experiences as an entrepreneur and CEO, Zamfotis said, “Growth is always exciting, but it’s also a challenge.” That’s especially true as his brand’s footprint grows in states like California, Florida, Illinois and Washington.

Our mission statement is to challenge the status quo by seeing coffee differently.
– Gregory Zamfotis, Gregorys Coffee founder

“How do you stay consistent and feel confident in the experience you’re delivering when you can’t just pop in? For a long time, I could just bounce around and visit all my stores in a day and feel comfortable about what’s happening, but I can’t do that anymore. And it all comes down to, again, people and systems,” Zamfotis said. “And I have a great team with me here and our systems are constantly evolving. We’re constantly trying to think through how we be more effective with our training. How could we continue to double down our culture and the quality program we’re putting together? It’s certainly not perfect, but it’s a constant labor of love to get those systems as tight as we possibly can.”

The 43-year-old husband and father is also proud of the fact that Gregorys Coffee remains family owned, with his father, wife, sister and cousins all involved. Zamfotis recently moved back to New Jersey, settling down in Rumson near many of his relatives.

Though Zamfotis said the idea of franchising the business comes up from time to time, for now he wants locations to remain company operated.

“I can be a bit of a control freak and I want to make sure things are to the standard that I have,” he said, “I guess I’m not quite ready to entrust others to take that on because I see how hard and how much work it takes to deliver the kind of experience we have or we expect. It takes a lot of work and effort – and I feel like we’re still building up that confidence to be able to hand off to somebody else. I can’t say we have a plan to do it anytime soon, but it’s certainly something we talk about.”