Photo by Neidy Gutierrez / SOC Images.
Seven minutes south from the buzz of Downtown Jersey City, you’ll come across a more hushed area.
Tucked away under two trees, you’ll see a green awning with faded letters peeking out. If it’s your first time visiting, father-son duo Chris and Christian Escudero will still greet you with a smile and—if you get there at 8 a.m. or 12 p.m.—a hoard of students will follow right behind you, already knowing what they want off the menu.
Legal Grounds Coffee has called 170 Grand Street its home since 2004. For 20 years, Chris Escudero has been running the shop, a place filled with Christian’s childhood memories. Now 23 years old, Christian and his father talked with Slice of Culture about their 20-year journey, what they’ve been able to offer the community and what’s next for them.
“For a long time, I didn’t know any of these kids that come here or [our other] customers. And now I feel very close to all of them because I’m able to spend time here and my son now has been here so long that everyone remembers him as well,” Chris nodded.
“So it’s really a neighborhood business. It truly is. 20 years is a long time.”
It’s Never Too Late To Start Again
In Chris’ past life, he was a lawyer. But after Sept. 11, 2001, he decided not to practice law anymore. Instead, Chris and Christian’s mother decided to transition into the restaurant business.
Christian smiled recalling growing up at the store, “I would help out, make lattes and stuff a little bit here and there. So it’s just like a core part of my memory growing up. Just being in the store, like the smells and the coffee and all that good stuff.”
Besides the 170 Grand Street location, they owned a few other places in Hoboken and Jersey City—including one where they made and sold lechon, or roasted pig—and they did pharmaceutical catering. All of their businesses took off and grew, but “got outta control really quickly,” Chris recalled.
“It became a 16 hour, seven day a week thing for 15 years while [Christian] was growing up. He saw it,” Chris said. “And we learned a lot from that time not to do that again, to [instead] create one place, give it all your attention, give it all your focus [and] give it as much quality as you can give it.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Chris was forced to temporarily close his businesses for health and safety reasons, but the owner noted how this was a blessing in disguise because it allowed him to re-evaluate his business plan.
Ultimately Chris chose to scale down to just Legal Grounds Coffee in Paulus Hook.
“[COVID] allowed us to go from this huge thing down to [just] this. We used to have 19 employees, now it’s just him and I and Bryce… We’ve given this place all the attention [and] it allows my son to do the things that he likes to do, such as jiu jitsu and music. He’s very good at both of them,” Chris added.
“I feel proud as a father to be able to give him that… I couldn’t stop [the businesses] before, but now it was stopped by the act of God or whatever. We’re now able to tailor [Legal Grounds] perfectly for our lifestyle.”
The name “Legal Grounds” is a play on words because, originally, Chris wanted the shop to be a place where people could come in, have a coffee and be assisted by pro-bono work if they had problems with the law.
But, today, it’s grown into something more than that.
Customers—whether it be students from Saint Peter’s Prep, residents down the block or passersby—most of the time, know what they want before approaching the counter; they get a coffee to go, a bacon, egg and cheese or—for the students—they opt for pancakes and a protein shake. As they wait for their order, they talk with Chris and Christian about which Saint Peter’s Prep football player is making it to the NFL; an update on their job search; or what move they’re predicting a professional athlete will make.
Being open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the weekdays and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the weekends, the rush comes in waves, but it seems that every customer has found their own home within the shop.
Slice of Culture first spoke with Legal Grounds—then Above Grounds Coffee—back in 2023, and just one year later, it seems that their vision for the shop is even clearer.
“My son is now a 23-year-old man and he wanted to pursue doing this rather than going to college for now. And I supported it. So I am supporting him in this venture of redoing it,” Chris said.
“I [was] pretty much tired of it, but now I feel good again now that I’m doing it with my son.”
The Rebirth Of Legal Grounds
Of the many things that’s expanded within the shop, their menu is one of them.
People can choose from classic breakfast options like: bacon, egg and cheese, a taylor ham sandwich, pancakes or french toast. For lunch, you can get a BLT, turkey sub or more. On the far right, you’ll see “daily specials” which are named after customers like JJ and Xavier.
“JJ’s Avo Supreme is a good friend–his kids go to St. Peter’s Prep now. Joe’s Double is another…They all became friends… Xavier’s mac was [named after] a student, he gets all the meats on his sandwich,” Chris smiled. “… We keep it very real [and] very personal.”
According to the duo, this how you can have a speciality sandwich named after you:
- Figure out what you want
- If they have the ingredients, they’ll do it
- You must order the speciality at least three times
Aside from the food—which they try to keep at an affordable price, especially for the students—Legal Grounds also hosts jam sessions every second and fourth Sunday of the month from 2 p.m. until 10 p.m. When they’re able to, they utilize their backyard for some tunes, barbecue and an outdoor experience.
“We have people coming from Brooklyn, local musicians [and] even people that aren’t musicians, but just like music…,” Chris added. “That’s part of the quality of life I’m talking about.”
Looking ahead, Christian wants to start a grappling club—meshing his passion for music and jiu jitsu—, Chris mentioned learning yoga, elevating the shop into an event space and they’re working on a bed-and-breakfast upstairs.
“It’s important to us that every customer feels some sort of connection to us as a father and son. That’s kind of rare in the United States now [that] you see a father and son that really enjoy being in the same space and it enhances our operation because now he’s young blood. I’m the old blood. I’m like, ‘you got this,’” Chris smiled.
“… The future’s bright.”
