The Kitchen Offers Carte Blanche Dining

When Matt Greco and Michael Prete decided to open a new restaurant in Portsmouth in May 2011, they didn't want to focus on any one specific dining experience.

So when they opened The Kitchen on Islington they decided to create a restaurant where patrons could dine their way whether it is casual or formal while enjoying superb organic cuisine, artisan baked breads and in-house cured meats.

The restaurant, which will celebrate its one-year anniversary in May, also offers outdoor dining with alcohol from its fully-stocked bar on its enclosed patio area. Regardless if their customers want breakfast, lunch or dinner, Greco and Prete say they will always have a different dining experience.

In this week's Port City Businesses, Portsmouth Patch talks with Greco and Prete about The Kitchen on Islington and their future plans.

Name: The Kitchen on Islington

Business on the Web: www.thekitchennh.com

Tel.: 603-319-8630

Business owners: Michael Prete and Matt Greco

Address: 171 Islington St.

Founded: May 2011

Number of employees: five full-time and four part-time

Business hours: Monday and Tuesday, 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Payments accepted: American Express, Cash, Debit Card, Diner's Club, Discover, MasterCard, and Visa.

What separates this business from others: As far as lunch goes, we make everything from scratch. Deli meats are roasted in house. Artisan breads, we cure our own pork belly, bacon, etc., daily. Produce orders come in twice a day everyday. A lot of other deli are getting pre-made, pre-packaged stuff and that’s not us really. You can have a guy in cut off jeans and flip flops sitting next to a guy in a business suit and they can both feel comfortable. We like to think there are no rules with how you serve food. You can also dine here three times a day and get a different feel each time you’re here.

What do you like about doing business in Portsmouth: Portsmouth has one of the great food scenes of New England so to be in Portsmouth is an honor. Our customer base varies from the soccer moms to the businessmen to every restaurateur or chef in Portsmouth.

How do you give back to the community: We do so many donations to different groups in the city. We do Taste of the Nation, we’re part of the Chefs Collaboration, which is at chefscollaborative.org. We have also donated money to St. Jude’s Children Cancer Research with one event we had here where people could throw their money up to the ceiling. We have also donated food items to almost all of the city’s elementary schools and our space to the local neighborhood association when they meet here.

Future goals: We’re definitely looking into another location right now that would concentrate on dinner and we definitely want to expand our catering to individual and corporate groups.