Brunch and coffee concept MorninGlory opens in Lakeway

A new brunch and coffee concept called MorninGlory held its soft opening July 17 at 2121 Lohmans Crossing Road, Lakeway, after months of planning and renovations to the space.

Chef and co-owner Gabriel Chaparro is opening the venture with his fiancee, Briana Balint, and Dripping Springs-based business partners Evan and Chelsea Richardson.

Chaparro has worked in restaurants and the service industry for about three decades and has helped open a handful of restaurants throughout the country, including Hawaii, California and Utah.

The Richardson’s met Chaparro at the restaurant he helped open in Park City, Utah, and hoped to open a concept together for several years. The timing was never right, until early 2022 when it finally became a possibility.

“We’re trying to bring an elevated brunch experience to Lakeway,” Chaparro said. “What I mean by elevated is we’ll take some traditional dishes and have our own spin to it. Like regular [eggs] Benedict, we’ll do a pulled pork Benedict with an apple cider gastrique.”

Chaparro added that the menu items will use the highest quality ingredients and will feature healthier alternatives like coconut yogurt as opposed to full cream.

Another important aspect of MorninGlory is the coffee.

“We worked really closely with Texas Coffee Roasters to develop a blend of beans and roasting that is really close to the traditional Italian espresso,” Chaparro said. “Coffee is a very big part of what we’re doing.”