The long-awaited opening of Kozy Kitchen in Lakewood is just four days away — if chef Nicholas Pavageaux can survive that long.
“All I want to do is survive and cook some food,” he said. “It’s been a struggle trying to get stuff here on time, but we’re opening. It just won’t be the big grand opening that says, ‘Hooray, we’re here.'”
Shipping problems and construction work delayed the opening, originally slated for Oct. 3. But owner Jason Gordon announced Tuesday in a Facebook post that the eatery specializing in healthy breakfast cuisine will open Jan. 1.
“We would love to thank everyone who has supported us through the years and hope to see you soon,” he said.
Kozy Kitchen is moving from its location at 4433 Mckinney Ave. after 15 years of business. Menu items like gluten-free pancakes, omelettes stuffed with grass-fed buffalo and fresh juices made the restaurant successful — so much so that parking became a problem.
“We remodeled that place a crazy amount, but we couldn’t expand anymore,” Pavageaux said. “There was no parking. We were still doing very well, but our building sold, and we wouldn’t have been able to stay open. So the landlord approached us, and we looked at a new space and decided that it was a good move for us.”
Pavageaux and Gordon have worked to get the new location at 6400 Gaston Ave. up and running since April. The space was most recently occupied by Sugarbacon, a McKinney-based restaurant that lasted less than a year.
Although Kozy Kitchen will serve the same favorites that made it prosper on McKinney, Pavageaux plans to add new menu items — including a kid’s menu — and run some “killer” specials for the first three months. The eatery will also add a bar and extend its hours of operation.
“It’s going to be the same Kozy, just all grown up,” he said.
