AN INSTAGRAM FRIENDLY MURAL, READY FOR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS. | PHOTO: HEATHER LALLEY
gluten-free dishes like the best-selling Pesto Panini, Breakfast Sandwich and Pumpkin Toast. (“The food, basically, is stuff we would eat,” Gonzalez said. “We brought it to people because this is a desert of different foods, especially vegan food.”) The use Chicago-based roaster Dark Matter for their coffee and buy purees and other ingredients from small, local producers. Every weekend, artists, craftspeople and other small businesses can sell their wares in the shop for free. The coffee shop regularly hosts fundraisers, sip & paint events, movie nights, live music and more. Just a few months after opening, the two expanded the cafe into the space next door. And, eventually, they hope to be able to do the same on the other side of the building. After two years, the pair said the shop is breaking even. They haven’t raised prices
and run a regular $5 value meal for students— there are several schools in the area—with a grilled cheese, tater tots and a lemonade. Keeping the prices affordable for the neighborhood while also managing costs is a perpetual balancing act. Since everything in the café is made to order, wait times can be higher than customers might expect, especially compared to a chain coffee shop. Changing that process would sacrifice quality, they said, which is something they don’t intend to do. If someone is racing to catch a train, they’ll bump the order to the front of the line, the pair said. “One time, this family came in and they ordered drinks, but the train was coming and they were like, ‘We’re gonna have to leave,’” Gonzalez recalled. “We had the family go, and then one of our employees made the
drinks and ran over to the Metra and made it on time, and they got their drinks.” They have good reason for wanting to expand the coffee shop even further: With so many families coming in, they’d like to add a playroom for kids. It would be useful for their growing family, too. As the two announced on social media in June, they’re about to be adding “a new Pumpkin to the Patch.” Borden is pregnant with the couple’s first child, due in January. Gonzalez’ cousin works in the back of house and her mom, the store’s manager, often works the cash register. So, they said, it would be nice to include their child in the day-to-day operations as much as possible. “It’s very family-owned,” she said. “That’s my cousin closing in the back. When I say small business, I mean small business.”
ALL CUSTOMERS ENTERING THE CAFE ARE GREETED WITH A FRIENDLY, “HELLO, PUMPKIN!” | PHOTO: HEATHER LALLEY
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RESTAURANT BUSINESS OCTOBER 2025
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