There are countless lessons people learn when opening their first business, especially a restaurant in San Francisco. Unforeseen expenses, permitting delays and the slog of red tape are some of them. But the one the Lozanos didn’t see coming was the vitriol they would get from locals over some images in their window.

AJ and Lyndsey Lozano, the Marin couple behind Grind & Unwind, opened their restaurant on Haight Street in May. They took over the space formerly housing Citrus Club, a longtime Asian fusion eatery and bar that closed in April, according to Lyndsey. Their all-day concept — with a menu of coffee, pastries and sandwiches that gives way to pub fare and beer at night — played to Lyndsey’s experience running a microbakery and working in coffee shops, along with AJ’s desire to run a bar. So far, her banana bread and chocolate chip cookies have been selling out almost daily. 

Less beloved, however, was their marketing strategy. When the Lozanos put AI-generated images of menu items in their window, things got ugly. 

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“Yum, slop” is the title of a Reddit post from June 30 that has more than 670 upvotes and features a close-up picture of the Lozanos’ menu........

© SFGate