Gjinovefa “Gina” Luari, 33, the owner of the flashy Connecticut brunch chain The Place 2 Be, is facing a felony larceny charge after allegedly writing fraudulent checks to a local supplier—all while creditors line up in court claiming she owes nearly $1 million and as she resides in a $1.3 million West Hartford mansion.

The rise of a restaurateur

Luari’s story has long been framed as an immigrant success. At six years old, she came to the U.S. from Albania, where her family had operated a restaurant. In Connecticut, her father started out at a diner, eventually buying it and hiring his daughter. Luari has said she worked every role from dishwasher to host before striking out on her own.

After a stint running the Rocky Hill Chamber of Commerce, she spotted a gap in Hartford’s brunch market. In 2016, at 24, she launched The Place 2 Be. Her mother had to co-sign the lease because the landlord thought she was too young. She took out a $26,000 line of credit, set up her LLC, and hustled through payroll, liquor licensing, and menu development. The restaurant’s blend of Instagram-ready décor and over-the-top brunch offerings caught fire, leading to three more locations, over 200 employees, and reported net sales of $6.8 million in 2021. A fifth location was slated to open this year.

Allegations of fraud

The latest setback comes from an East Hartford arrest warrant. Restaurant Equipment Paradise manager Richard Singer told police Luari wrote him two checks, one for $2,620 and another for $8,201, that bounced because the accounts were closed. He alleged it was the fifth time she had written bad checks. Police said Luari insisted she was handling the matter through her lawyers and that a judge had given her 30 days to pay. She claimed she was waiting for a credit from Blue Back Square, where her West Hartford restaurant is located, to cover the balance.

A long list of creditors

The bounced checks are just the tip of the iceberg. Court dockets show over ten active or recent cases against Luari and her businesses, including eviction filings, debt collections, and lawsuits from landlords and suppliers. The complaints collectively allege close to $1 million in unpaid obligations, some seeking immediate possession of restaurant spaces, others pressing for repayment of equipment and services. Several landlords say her companies have defaulted on leases, while vendors accuse her of stringing them along with broken promises and partial payments.

Mansion optics

At the same time, Luari lives in a luxurious West Hartford mansion valued at around $1.3 million. For creditors, the optics are damning: lavish personal living arrangements paired with unpaid business debts and bounced checks. The contrast has become a central talking point in the lawsuits, casting her not only as a struggling entrepreneur but as someone who continues to project wealth while allegedly leaving others holding the bill.

The crossroads

Luari is still entitled to defend herself in court, and many of the claims remain allegations awaiting judgment. But the legal and financial cloud threatens to overshadow the brand she built. The Place 2 Be became a symbol of brunch culture in Connecticut; now its future may hinge less on cocktails and décor than on whether its founder can convince judges, landlords, and vendors that she can pay what they say she owes.

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