By Joe Olenick<br><a href="mailto:joe.olenick@lockportjournal.com">E-mail Joe</a>
Donna Eick’s homemade soups and salads needed a place to call home.
Eick and Jeff Hayes opened a new cafe, The Flavorful Palette, last month on Market Street. Located next door to the Market Street Art Center, The Flavorful Palette offers homemade dishes such as soups, chili, paninis and salads. Known in the community for her catering business, Eick has been making lunches and dinners for people for more than 27 years. And it was some of those people who inspired Eick to open The Flavorful Palette.
“People kept saying, ‘When are you going to open a place?’” Eick said.
The Flavorful Palette is in the same building as the art center. Hayes said the building used to be a factory for the Western Block Co., a block-and-tackle manufacturer for ships. Eick said they were looking for a place and had asked about the empty space next to the art center. In about two month’s time, the space went from having no plumbing to having no place to sit during lunch.
Among the features of The Flavorful Palette is a wall-size mural created of a photograph. It is a picturesque view of a stream in the woods, which adds to the positive, calm atmosphere that Eick loves about the restaurant.
“We just fell in love with this place,” she said. “Everyone says they can’t wait to come back.”
The restaurant opened at the end of September. And so far, the Palette has been a hit — Eick said the place can get pretty busy.
“People are loving it. We’ve gotten some good reviews,” Eick said.
Located at 247 Market St., The Flavorful Palette is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11 a.m. until 10 p.m. Saturday. Every day, two of Eick’s well-known homemade soups and a healthy vegetable soup are offered. Popular salads include chicken, broccoli and apple. There also are all kinds of desserts, including Hall’s pies.
The Flavorful Palette also serves paninis of all types. Three of them include: the Picasso, which is ham, provolone cheese, pepperoni and roasted red peppers; the Caprisi, made up of mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, pesto and fresh basil on Italian bread; and the turkey muenster panini, which includes Eick’s cranberry spread.
Running a pair of businesses every day would leave some exhausted, but that’s not how Eick looks at it. She said the support of her catering employees was something she is very appreciative of. It also has made opening The Flavorful Palette possible.
“I am grateful,” she said. “Their support has enabled me to branch out into this adventure.”
Contact reporter Joe Olenick at 439-9222, ext. 6241.
