Cafe Loftus Celebrates with Free Coffee

Even coffee lovers are tightening pursestrings, sacrificing their morning fixes of espresso drinks for supermarket blends. We have to admit, grabbing a cup on-the-go was always part of our morning routines, but since cutting back can save some of us over $15 a week, we’ve gotten used to home-brewed substitutes. There’s something to be missed, though, about standing in line half-conscious and having a barista know exactly what we want.

In center city, independent coffee shop owner Chris Gabello has noted a decline in customers over the past few months, but he considers himself lucky. Three years ago, Gabello, 30, opened Café Loftus, and for the most part, business has been very good. To celebrate the café’s 3-year anniversary, he is offering free coffee (La Colombe) every Friday in April between 7 and 10 AM. Cafe Loftus is located at 136 S. 15th Street, just off of Walnut.

Originally from the Poconos, Chris Gabello came to Philadelphia to study food marketing at St. Joe’s University. He spent most of his twenties at work in corporate marketing before deciding to pursue the dream of many: opening an urban coffee shop. “It makes me feel alive,” he says. When asked whether he blamed Starbucks for the deaths of other independent coffee houses, Gabello shook his head. “I have no problem with Starbucks,” he answered. He credits the chain for generating interest in coffee culture but doesn’t consider it a major competitor for his every day sales. He laughed when asked whether his customers admitted to stopping there on occasion. Chris, one of his employees, answered the question. “You see them walking by with Starbucks cups, and they try to hide them,” he said, doing an imitation by swinging his hand behind his back. “They’re ashamed,” Gabello agreed. “The bottom line,” he continued, “is there wouldn’t be a business for me if not for Starbucks.”