My dad rarely texts me about restaurants that he has discovered. That’s because when he heads to a new restaurant, it’s usually with me. So I was surprised to get a text from him a couple of days ago that read, “Burgers at The Kitchen Table are great. Serves breakfast all day. Homemade soup – terrific. Owner is wonderful and our waitress is so pleasant.” Now that I think about it, that was the first time that my dad ever sent a text to me to tell me about a restaurant, period.
Today I decided that I would stop in to see what he was texting about. He was right about the waitress – she was pleasant and attentive. The three menu pages were all hand-written, which to me is novelty and an endearing quality. The coffee was brewed to perfection – not too muddy or watered down (a good sign). As I looked around the place, I could tell that the the owner was in the midst of some change-ups… a new front counter was being installed and a refrigerated display rack was empty. Other than that, The Kitchen Table is a “no frills” type of place where the emphasis is on the diner-style comfort food.
I first wrote about the aspirations of the restaurant owners back in May. At that time they were just getting their ducks in row, and felt that their ice cream business would be good thing to concentrate on during the summer months. Fast forward to January and it’s the all-day breakfast fare and comfort food lunches that are the base of the sales. It pained me to skip the breakfast-for-lunch plan, but when I asked my waitress about the fish sandwich, she raved about it. I didn’t need much convincing… plus I felt that the fish would be a telltale sign of the food quality and preparation.
When my meal arrived, I felt as if I had just walked onto the set of Man Vs. Food. I couldn’t believe the size of the haddock that was squeezed inside of a Costanzo’s roll (toasted on the grill). The fish was fried nicely, and was super tasty. If you order this creation, make sure that you ask for additional napkins… and don’t feel bad if you have to resort to a fork half way through your meal. When I got my bill, I couldn’t believe the price of the meal. After ordering the most expensive sandwich on the menu, a large orange juice and a bottomless coffee, my tally came to a whopping $9.68.
In the future, The Kitchen Table will be incorporating some vegetarian offerings onto the menu (I was told this without asking), as well as smoothies and protein shakes. If you live in the neighborhood, you should support The Kitchen Table, as it’s these types of places that make a neighborhood special. Plus, the more that you stop in, the more offerings they will have. After my meal I ran into a friend who told me that he tries to stop in a couple of days a week. “The food is, across the board, really good… and there are new menu items all the time,” he told me. “And the help is great.”
Sounds like people are really enjoying themselves at The Kitchen Table. Why not give it a try?
Open seven days a week!
The Kitchen Table – Facebook
1595 Elmwood Avenue
Buffalo NY 14207
716-877-3777