At Kyle’s Kitchen, they know the challenges faced by families confined to their homes amid the coronavirus pandemic. With four kids of their own, owners Jay and Deena Ferro understand that families have a lot on their plates, and dealing with food along with all the other added responsibilities can be stressful.
That’s why Kyle’s Kitchen created the Family Meal Deal.
Right now, you can get four delicious burgers, a large salad, two orders of fries, and four garlic herb rolls all for the low price of $37.
“We’re trying to figure out a way to help them get food. Everyone’s cost conscious right now, understandably,” said Mr. Ferro.
“We’re all trying to figure out ways to save money. A lot of people are trying to figure out how to pay rent or pay our mortgage. We’re just trying to help out.”
The deal offers customers over $10 in savings, and even comes with a complimentary roll of toilet paper while supplies last.
Orders can be made through https://www.kyleskitchen.com, where customers can also add a bottle of wine or beer, as well as dessert.
“Now with alcohol being able to be sold like this it’s a nice thing for families to kind of get a one-stop shop,” said Mr. Ferro.
The Kyle’s Kitchen website is the best way to place orders, as the Family Meal Deal is not offered through GrubHub or DoorDash. Customers can also schedule their orders.
“They can go online and order it and say they want to pick it up at 5 p.m. from this store. Then they come at 5 and they call us and we’ll just deliver it curb-side delivery, so they don’t even have to get out of their car,” said Mr. Ferro.
The offer is for a limited time, but Mr. Ferro said they will keep the deal going and focus on helping as many people as possible during the pandemic.
In the five days that they’ve offered the Family Meal Deal it has become Kyle’s Kitchen’s most popular order, and while the toilet paper is optional, about two-thirds of customers welcome the chance to snag the hard-to-find supplies.
While sales have dropped with no dine-in option, Kyle’s Kitchen has done the best it can to weather the storm. They’ve cut down hours to lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
“Overall the restaurants are doing well. We have good morale, which is hard right now,” said Mr. Ferro. “We’ve already been able to hire back a few different people we had to let go initially.”
While the Ferros adapt to the pandemic, they face their own challenges at home. The two parents divide and conquer, with Mr. Ferro venturing out to tend the restaurants while Deenna takes on the role of teacher now that school has started up again, albeit online.
With three daughters ages 10, eight and five, as well as Kyle who has special needs, they have their hands full. Kyle, the inspiration for the restaurant, has found the social distancing difficult, said Mr. Ferro.
“Kyle is the most social person I know. He just loves people and being around people,” said Mr. Ferro. “This has been very hard for him because he can’t be in his restaurant. He’s at home and wants to go all the time.”
The Ferro’s keep in touch with many of Kyle’s classmates, and the pandemic has proved to be an especially hard time for the special needs community.
“They like systems and structure. That’s where they excel. If you have a great teacher she can provide that when he’s at school, and when you’re at home it’s difficult when you’re balancing all the other things to create the similar structures and systems,” said Mr. Ferro. “It can be a challenge.”
Zoom conferencing and schooling at home doesn’t cut it for special needs children, and Mr. Ferro is unsure what the answer is. Nevertheless, Kyle’s Kitchen remains committed to its mission of supporting special needs organizations in the Santa Barbara community and will continue their giving-back programs despite the pandemic.
“We’re all in this together so if we can help out in our way we’re going to do that,” said Mr. Ferro.
email: cwhittle@newspress.com
