Twisted Kitchen Boasts Fresh Ingredients, Neat Wine Selection and Reasonable Prices

Upon walking into the , the first thing I noticed was the refreshing facelift given to this restaurant space. The ceiling has been cleverly painted to give it an almost wood-like and sandstone appearance. The walls are a warm and earthy color and it is a nice invigorating change. 

I had a lot of time to actually view my surroundings as I stood by the counter and waited with the eyes of every curious diner focused on me. Could it be that they had experienced the same thing too? I am a fairly smart person, or so I have been told, but it was hard to figure out exactly what to do when I entered.  Should I find a table and sit or do I grab a menu and sit in the cool little lounge area? It’s a good thing I saw the little sign that said, “Place order at counter.” However, that did not solve my seating dilemma.

Then out of the blue a cheerful woman said, “I’ll take your order here.”  So of course being at the counter I looked to see where this voice was coming from.  And that’s when I spotted the register! Oh well, register/counter—same thing.  The simply wonderful thing, other than realizing I was not in a clouded dream was the yummy homemade goodies to sample such as carrot cake with some divine cream cheese frosting on little plates at the register. Okay, so the sweets made up for my semi-hurt feelings of thinking I was being ignored.

I found I could sit anywhere so I did indeed find a cozy table by some soft brown leather couches by the fireplace. I could totally imagine sitting in the evening with the fire on, chatting with friends while enjoying some nice wine. Behind me was a nice set up to read the paper or enjoy the free Wi-Fi and a cup of coffee.

And now for the food.

Twisted Kitchen’s menu is fairly simple which for a new restaurant, I applaud. So many try to overdo and offer so many choices that it kills their bottom line and waste is typically abundant. However, on this menu one can find breakfast items (a big hoorah for breakfast!) such as bagels and smears, egg skillets, egg wraps and breakfast bagel sandwiches. Bagels are top notch quality and shipped from a specialty bagel company in Seattle.

I overheard the words ‘sold out’ and was of course intrigued when any food item is sold out because usually that means one thing—it’s dang good. Come to find out that among the home-baked goodies are enormous cinnamon rolls which seem to be all the rage on the Plateau. Eager buyers line up just to get a taste of these cinnamon sweeties so rumor is to come early…really early.

Lunch includes, but is not limited to, sandwiches such as egg salad, roast beef and veggie or one can choose from a variety of delicious looking melts or wraps.  You can also choose from paninis, salads, soups and of course my favorite…burgers.

I could lie and say that according to my new healthy diet challenge, I ordered one of their crunchy delightful salads, but that would be one big fat fib. The only thing I ordered was a big fat Bacon Cheese Angus Burger. I am not sorry and I am not guilt-ridden and besides, it did come with lettuce and tomato. 

Is bacon a vegetable?

Well, it should be.  This bacon on the burger was plump and not too crisp and was a perfect winning combination of smoky salty goodness. The burger itself came on a nice bun and the patty was juicy and hot. A little more mayonnaise would have done the trick as the bread was a little dry. Now what made this meal exceptional were the crispy golden homemade potato chips. These thinly sliced pieces of potato heaven came out steaming hot and sprinkled with the perfect amount of salt.   

I already have the perfect plan for my next visit:  an order of chips and a glass of Clois du Bois by the fire. 

Speaking of wine, Twisted Kitchen offers a small but nice selection of wines that are nicely priced around $5 - $6 a glass and include their own varietals. They also feature live music on Saturday night which could possibly be the new hot spot for those sexy seniors across the street at the community center. Watch out, grandma’s got her dancin’ shoes on!

All in all, I think Twisted City has great thing going for them. Fresh ingredients, reasonable prices and a nice space make for future success. One on one, the people that work there are very friendly and as far as the walk-in confusion I could see it actually being addressed while I was there. The owner, Cheryl McGuffin, who turned out to be the cheerful one who addressed me, was definitely aware of her customers and the confusion about counter service and offered gentle guidance to her employee on what to do better.   

Now I already said I would be back but that was for the chips but now I’m asking myself what wine pairs well with a cinnamon roll?

Twisted City can be reached by dialing 360-825-2446.