New Mt. Kisco Eatery Brings Varied Menu to the Masses
If you’re in Mount Kisco and hungry for lunch or an early dinner and can’t make up your mind what to eat, Mt. Kisco Local should satisfy your appetite.
Owner Rick Yazzo opened the buffet-style eatery at 222 E. Main St. about a month ago, with food stations filled with a wide variety of American and ethnic fare, mainly Italian and Chinese favorites. If you can’t find something to eat at Mt. Kisco Local, maybe you’re not hungry or just not a decisive person.
Yazzo, a lifelong Mount Kisco resident who has been in the food and restaurant industry his entire life, opened the storefront eatery after working for about five years as the head chef for DeCicco Family Markets, mainly out of the supermarket’s Jefferson Valley location. It was there that he noticed how his selections at the food stations were popular with shoppers.
He took over the storefront that had been previously occupied by Sinapi’s Bagels about seven months ago and decided to try his hand with his own place.
“I figured if I could do what I do over there, they’d love it,” Yazzo said. “(It’s) natural, local, antibiotic-free foods.”
His American staples have included the sirloin meat loaf and mashed potatoes and Cornish game hens, which have proven popular. A couple of days a week Yazzo will include Chinese and even some Japanese favorites at the food station, cooking up General Tso’s chicken, baby back Teriyaki ribs, beef and broccoli with mushrooms, chicken fried rice and chicken lo mein.
Then there is a full array of Italian specialties including calamari with shrimp or chicken, sausage and peppers, chicken cacciatore, chicken marsala and various pastas. There are also fish selections available on Fridays at each one of the stations.
In all, there are about 20 mouth-watering items for a hungry diner to choose from.
“I just try to mix it up – a lot of things,” Yazzo said. “They like the hens, they like the meat loaf.”
Customers are charged $7.99 per pound of food and can take as much or as little as they want. There are about a dozen seats for those who want to sit or patrons can put a cover on the carryout plastic food containers and take it with them back to the office or wherever they prefer to eat.
Mt. Kisco has a delivery service charging $8 within Mount Kisco and $15 in neighboring communities, Yazzo said.
Yazzo’s introduction to the food business came as a young child. His grandfather arrived from Sicily in 1920 and worked in the city’s meat market district. By 1940, he opened up a small butcher shop and grocery on Lexington Avenue and West Hyatt, Yazzo said.
Five years later, his grandparents then established a lodge on Crow Hill Road, which catered and hosted wedding receptions and parties and also served as a weekend getaway for people from the city during the summer.
Yazzo’s mother opened longtime Mount Kisco fixture The Brass Horn, on the site of the current Mrs. Green’s, in 1960. The restaurant moved to East Main Street, today the site of Winston’s, in 1988 until it closed in 2005.
Yazzo learned how to cook simply by watching his parents’ chefs over the years and putting his own spin on the dishes.
Although Mt. Kisco Local doesn’t open to customers until 11 a.m., each morning Yazzo gets into the store by 5:30 to 6 a.m. to start cooking the food fresh every day.
His philosophy is quite simple – consistently good food at a reasonable price.
“Give them quality and the people will come back,” Yazzo said.
Mt. Kisco Local is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, give them a call at 914-218-8033, e-mail mtkiscolocal@gmail.com or visit its Facebook page.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/