McKenzie's Takeout: homemade comfort food
Apr 9, 2018MINERVA – After tossing the idea around, Mike and Cody McKenzie opened McKenzie’s Takeout Oct. 20 in Cap’s Plaza in Minerva.The restaurant features home-cooked meals made with fresh, locally sourced ingredients.“We have no freezer or fryer,” explained Mike.Cody makes grocery runs on Monday and Thursday each week, buying local and seasonal ingredients as much as she can. Mike and Cody grow their own herbs and have a garden.“This is something we always talked about doing,” Cody stated. “But we wanted life to stay the same for our daughter until she graduated high school and college.”Mike plans the menus each week and posts them on the business Facebook page. Daily choices often include an entrée, sandwich, side and soup.“I try to do soup and a sandwich through the week because lunch time is very busy,” Mike said.Menus run on an approximate three-week rotation but Mike admits he is always adding new items. The menu also states, “Being that we use fresh ingredients, our supply for the day is all we have. Once an item sells out, that’s it until the next time. Sorry for the inconvenience.” A daily feature may include rigatoni with homemade meat sauce, served with bread, Shrimp Po Boy and Homemade Broccoli Cheese Soup.All the recipes used at the takeout are Mike’s own and are made from scratch. Mike makes his own sauces, soups and homemade noodles. A smoker allows him to offer brisket sandwiches with homemade potato salad, smoked pulled pork sandwiches or smoked BBQ meatloaf. He uses Brothers Fresh Sausage of Massillon for choices such as mild or hot sausage sandwich served with tri-colored peppers and onions.“I always liked to cook,” Mike explained. “In high school, I was one of the few dudes in Home Ec.”The couple went to an authentic Cuban restaurant in Florida. That experience became the inspiration for the popular Cuban sandwich. Mike tweeked the recipe until he was satisfied. The sandwich is made of ham, pulled pork, Swiss cheese, spicy mustard and pickles on a crispy French baguette.Through the lunch hour... (The Free Press Standard)
