Pretend that I am the gorilla and you are the customer. Come to my restaurant and I’m going to hug you, said John Gelastopoulos, owner of Broken Yolk Café (BYC) in Pacific Beach. “But I’m not going to hug you with my hands. I’m going to hug you with my actions.” BYC fans and customers can expect a really big hug on Wednesday, March 21 as the cafe celebrates its 33rd anniversary. Like it has done for the last eight years, all seven BYC locations will be operating under a limited menu, with all meals priced at $2.99 and drinks at 99 cents. The original Pacific Beach location opened in 1979 and, 33 years later, the Broken Yolk now has six other locations around the county — the newest site opening in Point Loma. Gelastopoulos said celebrating the cafe’s anniversary with low prices is a way for BYC to thank its customers. It’s the loyalty of those customers that has allowed the cafe to franchise and expand throughout the county, even when many other restaurants are facing hard economic times. “The clientele is loyal because we give them value,” Gelastopoulos said. “We give them good food, homemade food and a reasonable price.” Value and quality are two things Gelastopoulos is happy to boast about. BYC uses only fresh ingredients in all its meals. Guacamole and salsa are made fresh in-house every day and Gelastopoulos is especially proud of the fact that the cafe always has fresh fruit and potatoes. He said they peel, dice and boil all the potatoes themselves, and while that means paying a little bit more in labor, that’s what the customers want and that’s what keeps them happy. The fresh ingredients are one of the things helping keep customers’ love for the brand from going stale. It’s the high priority on quality and value that has led customers to happily follow the Broken Yolk Cafe as it keeps franchising across the county. “When we started franchising, we already had a name that was well known in San Diego,” Gelastopoulos said. “So, every time we have opened a store, the expectation was there that we would do very well.” The first step in franchising came in trademarking the Broken Yolk’s logo and brand. Even though success isn’t guaranteed with each new location, Gelastopoulos said they are and will continue to be successful because the cafe has a good name and because he is very hands-on. He guides each new franchisee during each step of the opening process — he helps with the design of the new restaurant, stays with them for an additional two to three months after it opens and is always there when they need him. Looking ahead, the next step for Broken Yolk Cafe is to continue expanding. There are already plans for the cafe to move into Orange County and Gelastopoulos said he wants to someday open franchises in Los Angeles, Arizona and San Francisco. In the meantime, the Broken Yolk Café will continue to keep its faithful legions of San Diego customers happy and satisfied. Its 33rd anniversary will be drawing in customers all day. The Broken Yolk will maintain its normal operating hours of 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., with some customers stopping by for breakfast and even returning for lunch, said Gelastopoulos. “We’re here to make people happy,” Gelastopoulos said, and there will undoubtedly be long lines of people happily celebrating along with the Broken Yolk on March 21. The Broken Yolk Café in Pacific Beach is located at 1851 Garnet Ave. For more information, call (858) 270-9655, or visit www.thebrokenyolkcafe.com.