Ken's American Bistrot opens on 30A

SANTA ROSA BEACH, FL - A bistrot, by its original French definition, is a small restaurant serving reasonably priced meals in a modest setting. It is the French equivalent to the English pub or the American diner, and in Paris, there is one at virtually every street corner.
   
County Road 30A’s newest diner, Ken’s American Bistrot at Blue Mountain Plaza, lives up to its name.
   
The diner has a retro look of the 1920s or 1930s, and jazz music from that era is played at night.
   
Different from the diners of today, every table is covered with a white linen table cloth, and utensils are rolled into cloth napkins.
   
Chef/owner Lee Warren serves the all-American burger, fries and coleslaw, as well as “the Elvis” peanut butter and ‘nanner sandwich served with a glass of milk, bacon dog and chili cheese dog. A bowl of chili also can be ordered separately, which is made using Warren’s father’s recipe.
   
For those with more discriminating taste, starters, such as cranberry spinach salad, fried eggplant or crab bisque can be found on the menu, along with the lemon caper catch, crawfish etouffee, a variety of pasta dishes, crab cakes, or pan-seared quail as entrees. Warren considers his signature dishes to be the crab bisque and cranberry
spinach salad.
   
For those craving a good oldfashioned Southern dish at the beach, there are ribs, countryfried steak, grilled rib eye or a fried catch platter.
   
There is also a kids’ section of grilled cheese sandwiches, corn dogs, chicken fingers or spaghetti. Kids younger then 3 eat free.
   
For dessert, consider apple cake with cream cheese frosting, chocolate sundae or an oldfashioned banana split.
   
Everything is made in house except the bread.
   
Drink choices are sodas, coffee or tea until the restaurant receives its liquor license.
   
All items are less than $23.
   
Warren is an area native, the son of a retired air force veteran, and was born at Eglin Air Force Base. He knew from an early age he wanted to be an airline pilot or open a restaurant, as by age 6, he cooked pancakes for the family.
   
Warren honed his cooking skills under Richard Grenamyer, original owner of The Lake Place restaurant, and learned the ways of a chef trained in the French style.
   
Warren then took a break and worked as a graphic designer for four years but kept his skills fluid by cooking for family and friends.
   
“I always liked to cook,” he said. “My dad used to ask my mom, ‘Hey, you want to open a restaurant?’ But they never did.”
   
Warren’s dad died last year. His bistrot is named for him. The rabbit logo on the restaurant’s sign is a salute to Warren’s childhood, where rabbit was a staple on the menu.

“This is a family run and operated diner,” said Warren. His sister is the manager, and his mother greets and welcomes patrons.

“After my dad died, I wanted to make my own way. I was tired of being dependent on other employers, and everyone said I should open a restaurant, so I did,” he said. “I am fulfilling a lifelong dream. I want this to be a place for locals, a place to come and relax, like at your grandmother’s house.”
   
Ken’s American Bistrot is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday. Call 850-622-kens (5367) for takeout..