ARTS & CULTURE
12
KANSAN.COM
Owner draws on memories to start restaurant, Leeway Franks
KELLY CORDINGLEY
@KellyCordingley
VICKY D[AZ-CAMACHO/KANSAN
Leeway Franks' chili dog is made with a beef frankfurter spritzed with yellow mustard, topped with Texas red chili and another spritz of yellow mustard on a poppy seed bun. The order includes a side of fries or tots.
VICKY DlAZ-CAMACHO/KANSAN
Leeway Franks' breakfast sandwich is made of a pork sausage patty topped with a fried egg, American cheese and spicy mayonnaise on Texas Toast. A side of fries or tots costs $1.
The small handcrafted sausage and hotdog restaurant, Leeway Franks, at 935 Iowa St., is more than another storefront in a strip mall to owner Lee Meisel. It's built on a foundation of memories combined with a desire to bring food back to a more natural state.
"My wife and I have a cabin up in Michigan; our annual trips are very, very special to me," Meisel said. "You get up there and there's funny little snack stands all around. That's kind of the inspiration, and this is really all wrapped up in memories."
Meisel said since he opened the doors to Leeway Franks on July 17, people have flooded in.
"It's been a little overwhelming. We've been really busy; we're pretty much running out of product," he said. "This has exceeded my expectations by quite a bit. I expected it'd be pretty steady, maybe serve 60 to 70 people at the beginning then ramp up to 100 to 120 — we're already there."
The 2008 Haskell University graduate said he's always loved working with food. He worked as a butcher at 715 Restaurant on Massachusetts Street for three years and at The Merc.
"After being in fine dining for years and it being all intricate, I wanted to strip everything down and make it really approachable," Meisel said.
With so much traffic in only the first week, Meisel said he attributes the success to social media and word of mouth.
"Social media is really the main way [we got the word out] and just being connected in the food scene in
town," Meisel said. "This little neighborhood is really cool, lots of people coming and going; they tell their friends about it and our neighbors and the barber shop down the road."
Martin Watson of Watson's Barber Shop, located just a few store fronts down from Leeway Franks, said Lee delivered menus and food samples to attract more customers.
It worked.
"Everyone had some, and we really liked it, and we've been here every day since," Watson said. "It's only been open about a week now, but we're spreading the word."
Watson attributes part of the large crowd to the high quality of food
SEE FRANKS PAGE 13
A SAMPLE OF LEEWAY FRANKS
Chili dog, $7: This beef frankfurter was delicious but the natural casing did catch me off guard. It does have more of a bite to it, but it is a good bite if you don't mind the casing. I'm not a fan of mustard on my hotdog, but it was minimal and bearable. The chili and the onions weren't overpowering, but the bun got soggy beneath the chili and was a bit difficult to eat. The fries were a perfect combination of crunchiness and softness and not too greasy whatsoever.
Breakfast sandwich, $5: The fried egg, cheese and pork sausage between some Texas Toast was like your average breakfast sandwich, but better. The sausage was unlike anything you can get from your run-of-the-mill breakfast joint. The only issue is that Leeway Franks doesn't open until 11 a.m., so it makes for a late breakfast, brunch or a fun briner (breakfast plus dinner). The tots were just as perfect as the fries — crispy but not overly greasy.
Pork chop sandwich, $7: This pork loin was beyond perfect. Instead of tasting like an overcooked piece of rubber or being difficult to eat, this was wonderfully tender on the inside with a nice crispy coating. These fries were ordered with cheese, which is made with all-natural cheddar and milk, and they were pretty darn good. They weren't slathered in some cheese from a bag or nacho-like cheese. I didn't feel bogged down after eating them.
HOURS OF OPERATION
Leeway Franks is currently open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.Tuesday through Saturday at 935 Iowa St.
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