Comfort FOOD
Fresh Pot Café introduces hearty winter dishes
Fresh Pot Café is cheerful and homey; from the menu neatly handwritten in colorful chalk on one of the restaurant’s walls, to its smiling and kind owners, the Garrido-Mullo family.
I watched as daughter Gaby Garrido entered through the front door and bee-lined for her father Marco, who sat at a front table enjoying the slow part of the afternoon. She bent and kissed his cheek, then went behind the counter where she greeted her mother, Blanco Mullo, in the same way. Then, Gaby turned her smile to me.
It is refreshing to see close families — particularly ones who work together day in and day out.
Gaby says her role in the restaurant is customer care. Her mother is inventor and her father is grill-master. Together, the trio makes up Fresh Pot Café, specializing in Ecuadorian and American Southern cuisine. This time of year, the menu introduces a bevy of new hearty specials as well.
First, there is a new roundup of rotating scratch-made soups: butternut squash, lentils and cabbage, and tomato basil, which Gaby says is the best-seller.
Next, there is the anticipated new Ecuadorian rice pilaf. The entrée is made with rice, grilled vegetables, chicken and sausage and is topped with egg and sweet plantains. Gaby describes it as a more tomato-based take on a traditionally Japanese fried rice recipe.
Another dish to look for is the forthcoming roasted chicken special. The family is still working on the presentation of this entrée, but Gaby said the meal will be made with house-roasted chicken and potatoes and topped with Blanco’s creamy peanut sauce.
Speaking of Blanco’s special recipes, her bread pudding — creamy, spongy and served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and sweet, made-from-scratch whiskey sauce — is unbelievable.
“People just love it. It’s great this time of year because it’s warm,” said Gaby.
Other things that sell well this time of year: gift cards. Fresh Pot Café has gift cards now available. And reservations.
“People probably don’t know we do reservations, but we do,” said Gaby. In fact, customers are able to rent out the entire store to host private events. The space can accommodate up to 40 and the Fresh Pot family can write a menu to fit the party’s needs. Whether it be pastas, sandwich platters or vegetable shish kabobs, the Garrido-Mullo family crafts all its food with tight-knit tradition.