Restaurateur invites neighbors to discover innovative menu
POTTSTOWN — While there’s nothing like owning your own business, it’s never an easy road, according to restaurateur Michael Falcone.
A trained chef, and his fiancee Tonda Woodling own Funky Lil’ Kitchen restaurant in downtown Pottstown.
The 232 King St. location had previously been home to a popular, less upscale eatery, Pat’s Luncheonette, before Falcone bought the 120-year-old stately brick building in June 2004. He and Woodling transformed the space into a 30-seat hip, artsy BYOB bistro, where Falcone cooks up his eclectic creations We d n e s d a y through Saturday evenings.
“We like to say we’re a casual fine dining bistro in style, serving a seasonal American menu,” Falcone said.
Entrees typically cost around $25. Typically, a full three-course meal, including appetizer and dessert, costs about $35 per person, he said.
Customers seem to like whatever Falcone is cooking: the prestigious Zagat restaurant guide recently gave Funky Lil’ Kitchen a 27 out of 30 rating.
The couple live upstairs from the restaurant, “European” style.
Community support, Falcone said, goes both ways.
“We try to be part of the community, but you can only do so much to be part of something when people stop coming in, and the community doesn’t return that to you,” Falcone said. “We do things here in town to try to turn Pottstown around. There are a lot of great places to go downtown — the bike shop, the farmers market, the theater. If the community doesn’t come in and support us, then eventually no one’s going to be here.”
He added, “If you want the community to turn around, it’s not that expensive to buy season tickets to the theater,” or enjoy a meal downtown. “I don’t think people do that enough here, and that gets me frustrated.”
Falcone puts his “Buy Local” philosophy into practice daily, cooking with locally grown foods and, wherever possible, supporting other local businesses.
He prefers to use locallygrown produce in his recipes, and does his food shopping at area farmers markets and farms in Chester, Montgomery and Lancaster counties — or in his own garden, in season.
Falcone buys the pasta he cooks at the restaurant from Chris Foster at Positively Pasta. Specialty cheeses and farmraised meats come from Sue Miller at Birchrun Hills Farm, among other area producers. Seafood comes from East Coast vendors.
“We use local and sustainable food — organic as much as possible — and support local farms,” Falcone said. “But I don’t want to preach to anyone. I do it because I believe in it.”
Years ago, Falcone, now 42, left what he calls a “dead-end job” as a bookkeeper to become a chef. After sharpening his craft at Philadelphia restaurants such as Sonoma and Adriatica, and 110 Restaurant and Bar in Wayne, he struck out on his own and bought his Pottstown location.
A Philadelphia native, Falcone dreams of opening a restaurant in the city. When he opted to move here, Pottstown was a much more economic option, where he could buy a building instead of leasing one.
Almost a decade later, Falcone says the gamble was a good one. But the restaurant business is fickle and the economy has taken Funky Lil’ Kitchen for a ride. Falcone said his profit is down 40 percent since the recession started, and recovery has been painfully slow.
“Business is still more down than up,” he said.
He’s had to cut staff — he started out with two sous chefs and now the kitchen staff is just Falcone. Attempts at making lunch service work proved unprofitable. So the restaurant is dinner only.
Fortunately, Falcone’s talents in the kitchen have attracted a loyal following of customers.
“We have a good core group of regulars that have kept us here for 8½ years,” he said. “Friday and Saturday nights are the big days. But you need more than that to carry you.”
Partnering with OpenTable, a website and mobile app that allows people to make reservations digitally, has been a boon to business. To bring in new customers and get people to come out on weeknights, Falcone tries fixedprice dinners or special themed meals every couple of months. The most recent dinner was a partnership with Birchrun Hills Farm featuring its veal and pork.
“We sold out in two-and-a-half days,” Falcone said.
Charity benefits, such as nights were a portion of profits go to nonprofits such as Chester County SPCA — a cause near to Michael and Tonda’s hearts — have been a good way to get noticed as well. Falcone acknowledged those sorts of special events can’t be done too often.
“Some places do stuff every single month and then it’s not special anymore,” he said. “I think it takes away from the experience.”
Getting people in the door is the key.
“Hopefully next time they’ll come here instead of driving an hour into Philly,” Falcone said.
Funky Lil’ Kitchen, 232 King St., Pottstown, is open from 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Reservations are suggested, but walk-ins are welcome. To make a reservation, call the restaurant at 610-326-7400 or use Open Table.
Follow Michelle Karas on Twitter @mercbiz