08/18/2026
Official Statement from Ownership & Staff of Brewed Awakening Cafe:
Disclaimer: This statement was written by a Brewed Awakening staff member without the use of artificial intelligence.
August 18, 2026
In recent days there has been an incredibly high volume of social media commentary relating to our business and some of the people who work within it. While we are taking a “no such thing as bad publicity” approach to this matter, in the interest of transparency to our patrons and community we will make this official statement. We will not engage or respond to this matter in any way following this post.
A now-former employee was taken off the schedule in previous weeks following issues with attitude and confrontational behavior towards other staff in the Front-of-House. Upon receiving combative responses to this decision from the former employee, we felt it best to end our professional relationship with this individual last week. The reason for termination was limited to their conduct unbecoming of a customer-facing employee.
The digital fracas that occurred in the days following this decision has been decidedly a mixed bag. We greatly appreciate everyone who has defended our business and staff in the digital town square. Some of the vitriolic comments we have read have met legal guidelines for slander and libel and are being reviewed by our legal representation. Other comments have been legitimate and fair criticisms of our new business. As such we have the following things to say:
There have been times where wait times have been longer than we are happy with, both for seating and for food. Some of this is “working out the kinks” of a business that is less than 2 months old. Some of it represents opportunities for training and learning on the part of our staff. As those of you who have visited us have noticed, we are currently operating a more limited menu in the interest of providing lower kitchen ticket times as we continue our talent search for line and prep cooks. We are also taking a more active approach to monitoring and improving employee performance. We offer every guest an opportunity at check-out to review their experience. If we did something well, let us know. If we need to improve in other areas, we are happy to receive that feedback too.
We are reviewing our full menu to see where we can streamline operations and deliver a strong value proposition to our guests. There are dishes where we believe we currently do this well. There are also dishes where we can make changes to improve the happiness of our guests. We have heard you and we are committed to doing this work. We appreciate your trust and support as our menu continues to evolve.
It is our goal to please every person we serve, but in this line of work we recognize that is not always going to be possible. It is our sincerest belief that every person who walks through our doors deserves hospitality. However, if for some reason we are not able to do that for you, we encourage you to exercise the beautiful freedom of our economic system. There are other excellent and established breakfast offerings in the courthouse area. If you find the Brewed Awakening experience to not meet your expectations, we hope you find “your breakfast spot” in a place that makes you happy. If you like the way that we Brew Breakfast, we can’t wait to see you again and we appreciate your business and your support.
There are decades of history in our great building, dating back long before it was The Courthouse Restaurant, Krystal’s, or any of the businesses that came before. We did our best to respect this history during our remodel. We left historic brick and wood exposed and intact for a reason. Underneath the butcher paper that bears our logo still sits the same Courthouse Restaurant checkered table tops that many of you grew to see as synonymous with your breakfast routine. We are so thankful to everyone who continues to support us from that era of this building. With all that said, even though we all call Gloucester and Mathews our home, we are a different business and different people. We hope to continue to honor the history of our building while providing new experiences and new things to love too.
Lastly, we encourage you to practice educated skepticism of anything you read online. Be aware of its source and consider its validity. It can be entertaining and satisfying to engage in gossip and speculation; it is human nature. But be aware that your words and decisions do have consequences for nearly two dozen real people who make their livelihoods and pay their bills in the act of service. We are always happy to accept legitimate positive or negative criticism. If you find yourself with too much free time on your hands, we’d be happy to get you away from the keyboard with a part-time or full-time job opportunity. We are always accepting applications and resumes for all positions and are happy to hire qualified, hard-working, and honest employees.
Thank you all for being part of this journey with us. If you like your coffee from a real espresso machine, your latte with our custom-made all-natural syrups, and eggs cracked fresh for you every day, we’ll see you soon!
