Kitchen + Kocktails Set To Expand And Become The Largest Black-Owned Restaurant In Philadelphia
It’s never too late to find a new calling, and this was the case for litigation attorney Kevin Kelley.
Kitchen + Kocktails
According to his LinkedIn profile, Kelley has spent the past 22 years running his own law firm in downtown Dallas. With an interest in hospitality and entertainment, he had the idea to open a restaurant that reflected his love for comfort food. However, people were not looking to lease a building to him, so he took matters into his own hands and purchased the historic Hart Building in downtown Dallas, launching soul food restaurant Kitchen + Kocktails in 2020, according to the company’s website.
“No one would lease it, and I knew it was ideal for a restaurant, so I built it out,” he told Inquirer. “I hired a fantastic team of chefs and bar professionals,” Kelley said.
“We were surprised to see the massive response that we got from day one,” he continued. “From there, we realized that we’ve got what we believe is the best comfort-food concept in the entire country.”
Menu
Kitchen + Kocktails offers entrees such as honey hot chicken, southern fried catfish, and blackened salmon, which can be paired with sides such as cornbread, grits, and collard greens with smoked turkey, according to its website. Appetizers include Cajun crab bites, gumbo, trinity egg rolls, and chargrilled oysters. Speciality items are shrimp and grits, braised short rib, chicken fried chicken, and fried salmon and grits. The restaurant also includes a bar that serves signature cocktails and frozen drinks.
Expansion
The restaurant has received a lot of love from customers, which has aided in its expansion over the years in areas such as Chicago, Washington DC, Atlanta, and Charlotte, NC. Its next location is slated for Philadelphia.
“I’ve had another 50 offers for spaces over the past several months,” Kelley expressed, according to Inquirer. “It’s a blessing.”
The Philadelphia location is expected to open on Oct. 18 and will be located at the Cambria Hotel on South Broad Street, Philadelphia Today reports. At 7,200 square feet, it will reportedly be the largest Black-owned restaurant in Philadelphia and create 125 hospitality jobs.
“With hospitality, I get a chance to have a positive effect on the hundreds of thousands of customers we service every year. I can’t wait to get into the Philadelphia market to give them our absolute best,” Kelley expressed to Inquirer.
