The sweet smell of success will soon take up occupancy in downtown Buffalo. Delish!, the awesome sweet-shop and cooking school is going to have a counterpart of sorts. Deborah Clark, the proprietor of Delish! has been thinking about a new venture for a while, but the question was always 'where' and 'when'. And when those questions were answered the 'what' would follow close behind.
I called Deb yesterday to ask her about the particulars of her future eatery and she was more than excited to share her good fortune. She started by saying (regarding the new space), "The way it was set up would be tough for many businesses, but it’s perfect for what I’m looking for. I’ve had an idea (pre-Delish!) to do this type of lunch spot. I originally thought about the Medical Corridor… then the students at Canisius did a demographic study (as part of a class project), and the time for that part of the city (to really kick in) was still five years out… at least for what I wanted to do. I then decided to look downtown and found the Theo’s Place (300 Main Street) location. We (the building owner and Deb) finally agreed on everything a week ago Friday… I originally wanted to be open in October... now we’ll be open towards the end of January."
I biked down to see Deb's new location this past Sunday and when I looked through the window I was shocked to see the amount of space inside. From the outside entrances, on both Main Street and Cathedral Park, the restaurant looked very quaint. Then upon peering in, I noticed that the floor-plan wrapped around providing a whopping 1700 sq.' of space.
Deb told me that Cathedral Park was going through some big improvements next year and that she was excited to be part of the blossoming commercial district. Globe Market, Pearl Street Brew Pub, the Webb Building, Sound Lab, HSBC Arena, Erie Canal Terminus, Erie Basin Marina... ring a bell or two from a series of recent posts? When asked about the capital improvements to the former Theo's, Deb said, "It doesn’t need a whole lot. Café curtains will be added to both entrances. The interior just needs to be cleaned and I’ll add tables and chairs. Lorie Sweet will be there to greet people and make sure that operations run smoothly. We’ll have vegetables, meats and fish to pick from. Then you can have the ingredients tossed into a salad, or wrapped into a sandwich (with Lebanese flatbread) or added into stir fried with udon noodles… think beef tenderloin, blackened chicken, poached salmon, albacore tuna… it’s going to be a real step up from the typical salad bar. People can take their food with them, or sit down and eat there. I’ll stay open for special events, but Chop-Chop will mostly be open Monday thru Friday from 11am – 3pm."
If you are still not familiar with this urban slice of paradise, you soon will be. Having Amy and Lisa from Globe Market in that neck of the woods along with Deb from Delish!... well, that is exciting news. Globe has already become a downtown staple for many, and I'm sure that they'll welcome another eatery that has Elmwood ties and plenty of culinary experience.
Here's a teaser from her developing menu:
Chop-Chop Salad Originals
1. COWBOY STEAK- Lettuce, beef tenderloin, black beans, red onion, cucumber, tomato & blue cheese dressing
2. CALIFORNIA COBB- field greens, grilled chicken, cucumbers, hard boiled egg, bacon, blue cheese & honey-dijon dressing
3. CAESAR CHICKEN, BEEF or SALMON- romaine, blackened salmon, grilled chicken or beef tenderloin, tomatoes, cucumbers & classic Caesar dressing
4. BUFFALO CHICKEN- crispy chicken, romaine, blue cheese, tomatoes, spicy Buffalo sauce & blue cheese dressing
5. MANDARIN BEEF or CHICKEN- field greens, crispy noodles, grilled chicken or beef tenderloin, mandarin oranges, bell peppers, red onion & sesame ginger dressing
6. CITY CLUB- field greens, black forest ham, smoked turkey, hard boiled egg, bacon, cucumbers, tomato, swiss cheese & thousand island dressing
7. GREEK CHICKEN or BEEF- romaine, grilled chicken or beef tenderloin, black olives, cucumbers, red onion, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, feta cheese & balsamic vinaigrette
8. ASIAN TUNA- field greens, albacore tuna, carrots, cucumbers, red onion, sesame ginger dressing
9. CHICKEN CORDON BLEU- crispy chicken, black forest ham, swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato & honey Dijon
10. SICILIAN STEAK- romaine, grilled beef tenderloin, portabella mushrooms, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, red onion & balsamic vinaigrette
11. SALAD NICOISE- field greens. white tuna, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, black olives, hard boiled eggs & balsamic vinaigrette
...and of course there will always be plenty of sweets to go around - prepared fresh at the Elmwood Delish! location.
802 Elmwood Ave. Buffalo, NY 14222 | (716) 881-2022