Angie's introduces delivery, more additions on the horizon

“It was nice to wake up on a Saturday morning and be like, ‘I think I want an omelet, and I just want to sit on my couch. I don’t want to leave.’”

Recalling her formative years in Kenyon, restaurant owner Angie Anderson can rattle off the names of delivery spots she once enjoyed.

Options have dwindled over the years, even as delivery services are exploding in popularity nationwide.

Now the owner of Angie’s, Anderson began offering delivery in February, doing her part to bring back the old days.

Currently, they only deliver to customers within Kenyon city limits, but she’s received a number of requests to expand their service area. She’s considering it, though she expressed reservations about sending employees out onto country roads during inclement winter weather.

However, it seems many customers within city limits are willing to make the trip to her restaurant to avoid the $4 delivery charge. Though many of Anderson’s customers were excited at the announcement, the new service hasn’t actually impacted the business much. Anderson said they typically receive one delivery order a day, perhaps four on a busy day.

While they accept orders online and over the phone, Anderson said she’s able to make some exceptions for customers who call in — for instance, delivering slightly outside city limits in some cases.

Anderson said adding new offerings and services is essential to holding patrons’ interest in the restaurant business. While the response to delivery has been underwhelming, adding pizza to the menu last fall was a major success.

“We’re trying to just listen to our customers and see what they want,” she said.

To that end, Anderson is cooking up a number of ideas for the future.

First on the agenda, she plans to add protein bowls. She envisions an assembly line at the counter, where customers can choose their preferred meats, grains, sauces and veggies for a quick nutritious meal.

Of the new items she hopes to roll out this year, Anderson feels protein bowls are the highest priority for customers.

“Because the gym’s right there,” she explained with a chuckle.

Anderson also plans to offer a kid’s menu and pizza by the slice at the counter.

Dreaming up new menu items is one thing — finding the time to implement them is another.

“I’m here 90% of my life. I go home to sleep and to maybe take my shoes off for a couple hours and rest. Some weeks are 90 hours, some weeks are 70. There’s never a 40-hour week,” said Anderson.

Occasionally someone walks through the front door looking for a drink, and immediately walks out upon learning they don’t serve alcohol. Anderson didn’t foresee serving alcohol when she started the restaurant and it’s still not a high priority for her — but it’s “on the back burner.”

Someday, she’d like to serve brunch drinks like Bloody Marys and mimosas, and introduce a few beers and wines and a seltzer to the menu. Anderson isn’t quite ready to tackle that idea, considering how few of her employees are old enough to serve alcohol.

Part of the impetus for serving alcohol comes from the closure of Lacey’s Kitchen and Cocktails his winter. Far from being her rival, she saw the establishment across the street as a compliment to hers.

“I really liked [Lacey’s owner] Steve a lot. We were friends. They offered alcohol. They offered a bar atmosphere. We offered a small town diner, family atmosphere. It was completely different,” said Anderson.

Anderson said she misses spending summer nights on the patio at Lacey’s.

“I was very sad because I liked to go there too,” she said.

While she has big plans for the future, she’d still like to see deliveries pick up.

Angie’s offers delivery 4-8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. She’d like to expand the hours, but that would require hiring a designated delivery employee — something she’d only consider if they started receiving more orders.

Anderson said deliveries have been relatively smooth thus far, but she has considered making a set of guidelines to make things easier on customers and employees. Her No. 1 recommendation is that customers turn their outdoor lights on when expecting a delivery, so the employee can safely find their house.