After closing this summer, Greg's Bagels will soon reopen under the ownership of a former employee who hopes to maintain the home-away-from-home atmosphere cherished at the shop.

Greg's Bagels closed in August after nearly 30 years in business when owner Greg Novik was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Tommy Hearn, 22, is taking over the Belvedere Square staple with plans to reopen in early January.

Hearn said he had been going to Greg's Bagels since he was a child, and spent his youth trying to get a job there. There wasn't an opening until just over a year ago, when he joined the staff.

During that time, he became close with Novik and the staff, he said.

“It was really unique because it was like one gigantic family,” Hearn said. “It was an escape for a lot of kids. People would come there and it was like a second home.”

Hearn spent time shadowing Novik, he said, and learned about the business and the bagel-making process. When Novik decided to close the shop, Hearn stayed in touch with him and asked if he would convince the next owner to keep him on board. But while people approached Novik about buying the shop, he didn't find a good fit.

Hearn expressed interest in taking over the shop, which was “about the product, not the profit,” he said.

“He's worked at the store for a while — he loves the store,” Novik said. “Some of the other people I talked to were more interested in how much money they would make.”

When Novick and Hearn discussed what it would mean for a more profit-driven business to take over Greg's, Hearn said, “the conversation ended up [with] me saying, 'Maybe I could make something work with you, and we could try to keep the security and uniqueness of this place together.'?”

Hearn will be the full owner of Greg's Bagels, but Novik will be there as often as he's able to help with the transition.

“This is Greg's creation, Greg's legacy, and I'm just somebody that's trying to keep something that meant a lot to me going,” Hearn said.

Novik said he's often tired and uncomfortable as a result of the cancer, and he may only be able to devote an hour or two a day to teaching Hearn. When the shop reopens, it will have limited hours and a limited menu as Hearn learns what it takes to run the shop, Novik said.

“We'll start off slow and build up,” Novik said. “I'm playing on the love and loyalty of our customers to give us some time to get this guy to where he's got to be.”

He said if Hearn can make it through the first few months, he's confident the shop will succeed under the new ownership.

“For the shop, I think the mission is pretty simple: just do whatever it takes to keep your regular customers coming back, and that's always what we've done,” Novik said. “If you don't walk out of there with a smile on your face, I haven't done my job.”

In brief

Matt Robicelli, co-owner of the popular Robicelli's Bakery, is returning to the savory side of dining as the new chef at Trinacria Cafe.

Robicelli will take over the kitchen at the Mount Vernon restaurant the first week of January, and plans to overhaul the dinner menu.

“[We're] keeping some of the old favorites that people love but also bringing on a more simple, Southern Italian menu to kind of brighten up what's going on,” he said.

The new job marks a change of pace for Robicelli, who moved to Baltimore with his wife, Allison, after closing their popular New York bakery, Robicelli's. The Robicellis planned to open a bakery in Baltimore, but those plans were put on hold while Matt Robicellli dealt with health problems. He's healthy now, he said, but bakery plans are still in flux.

A new restaurant and bar is opening in the Federal Hill space where Porter's Pub closed two years ago. The Outpost American Tavern is aiming to open in mid-January at 1032 Riverside Ave., at the corner of East Cross Street.

Jesse Sandlin, a “Top Chef” alumna, will serve as executive chef at the restaurant. She said the pub will cater to neighbors who stop in multiple times throughout the week, as well as patrons looking for a foodie destination.

The menu will include standard American fare — think burgers, sandwiches, pasta, steak and chicken dishes — as well as daily specials that “let us have some fun,” like sweetbreads and bone marrow, she said.

“We want to keep things accessible for the neighborhood,” Sandlin said. “You can go for a special occasion, but you can also come in in sweats and a T-shirt and sit at the bar and eat a burger and feel totally comfortable.”

The Outpost will serve dinner daily and brunch on Saturdays and Sundays.

Zeke's Coffee is moving to new, larger digs in its Northeast Baltimore neighborhood.

Currently located at 4607 Harford Road, Zeke's has plans to relocate to 4719 Harford Road in the spring, according to owner Thomas Rhodes.

Rhodes said he hopes to have the new shop open in May, pending city permits and construction.

The new space is about 4,000 square feet, three times the size of Zeke's current location.

The new cafe will provide more seating — about 42 seats indoors and outdoors, compared to the 30 at Zeke's now — in addition to space to expand baking and coffee roasting operations.

Zeke's Baltimore cafe opened in 2010; the coffee shop has since opened locations in Pittsburgh and Washington.

Dining dates

Mark your calendar for these upcoming foodie events.

Wednesday: Holiday Spirits; 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Gordon Biersch Baltimore (1000 Lancaster St.); $6 per cocktail.

Thursday: Champagne and Caviar; 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Bin 604 Wine Sellers (604 S. Exeter St.); $39.

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Baltimore Sun reporter Ellen Fishel contributed to this article.