A mother-son team is cooking up two new dining concepts in Greater Sacramento.
Bobbi and Nate Torrez, the duo behind The Hangout bubble tea shop in Lodi, are transforming the original Hangout in Galt into Chopping Block Deli and launching 9 Bars Coffee this winter in Sacramento.
Slated to open in about three weeks at 905 C Street, Suite 140, the fully renovated Chopping Block Deli will pay tribute to “old-school deli culture” with wraps, soups, salads, and house-made sandwiches served on fresh, locally baked Genova Bakery bread.
Nate said they decided to make the shift because regulars repeatedly requested more sandwich options. “The community [was] asking for an expanded sandwich menu,” he told What Now Sacramento, noting that The Hangout’s broader menu was tough to execute in the small kitchen. With limited commercial real estate available in Galt, reimagining the space made the most sense.
Next up, 9 Bars Coffee is expected to debut in December at 2543 Fair Oaks Blvd, in the former Grateful Bread space at Loehmann’s Plaza Shopping Center. Named for the pressure used to pull espresso, the elevated café will tap into modern specialty coffee culture.
On the menu, guests can expect espresso-driven drinks featuring house-made syrups; imported Japanese matcha topped with scratch-made creams and toppings; and locally baked pastries, including gluten-free options.
And the Torrezes are already thinking ahead. If 9 Bars takes off, they plan to expand the concept throughout Sacramento and create a second location with an on-site roastery that could also support their other brands.
Rather than replicate The Hangout, Nate said they hope to grow a collection of eateries with distinct personalities. “All of our restaurants take pride in unique one-of-a-kind menus that you can’t get anywhere else,” he explained, adding that everything is made in-house—never premade or frozen.
But The Hangout isn’t going anywhere; a second location is scheduled to open in the Elk Grove area between late 2026 and mid-2027. While they haven’t secured a space yet, they expect to begin the search once their two new concepts are established.
For Nate, opening restaurants with his Mom fulfills a childhood dream. “Growing up, we loved to try one new restaurant a week and talk about the menu, dreaming and talking about all the restaurant concepts we wanted to open,” he shared.
During the pandemic, Nate moved home from San Francisco, where he had been working in real estate, built a mini café in his apartment, and began recipe-testing with Bobbi. Spiral notebooks soon filled with ideas, many of which are now taking shape.
“We love the restaurant business and find so much joy in creating new concepts throughout various communities,” Nate enthused. “We enjoy the creative challenges new concepts give us as restaurateurs.”
