Prairie Thunder

[OKCCrime]

I ran across this fact when reading aboatman's blog.

Prairie Thunder Baking Co.

is apparently now open. Anyone want to give a review?

[jenni_duncan]

We went there yesterday for lunch, although it was close to 2:00. They were empty but said that they had been busy all morning. Limited lunch menu (what is posted above really is all they serve for lunch), but very good quality. They have an oven that came from Austria and took a husband/wife team two weeks to assemble. The owner makes all of their breads and pastries every morning. Overall I would say to give the place a try, good food and a very friendly staff. However I would go early as they had run out of many pastry items; they only had oatmeal cranberry cookies left, although they were very good!

[OKCCrime]

I would go early as they had run out of many pastry items; they only had oatmeal cranberry cookies left, although they were very good!

I kind of figured this, but was so anxious to try it out, I went after work around 5:30 (They close at 6pm). It was hard to judge their stock because it was almost all gone. I guess after a few weeks they will be able to better judge how much to make on a daily basis. Anyway they had a loaf of sunflower bread that we purchased - $6 I recall. We got it home and had it with goat cheese as an appetizer and with dinner. With a little help from one of our dogs who like to go counter surfing, it was entirely gone. Very good bread! I'm dying to try a baguette. Can't get a baguette worth a darn in this city.

[EvokeCoffee]

They also have their own coffee blend created by OKC's own Prima Cafe - the same that does Red Cup and others.

I think the bakery is going to do great in the city. The employees are great and I think the Plaza Court is a great place for them.

[OKCCrime]

They also have their own coffee blend created by OKC's own Prima Cafe - the same that does Red Cup and others.

Well, saying it is the same as Red Cup coffee isn't saying anything good. I can't remember the number of times I heard people say, Red Cup is the cool place to be, but skip the coffee.

Anyway, on first glance it didn't look like the Bakery was all that into coffee (at least at 5pm). I did notice an espresso machine however.

I'm dying to try their scones.

[GWB]

Does anyone know what time they open? It's not on their website, which is not very informative by the way.

[mecarr]

I'm pretty sure it's 7am. And they close at 6pm.

[GWB]

I'm pretty sure it's 7am. And they close at 6pm.

Thanks for the info, mecarr. I might check them out tomorrow morning.

[EvokeCoffee]

I can't remember the number of times I heard people say, Red Cup is the cool place to be, but skip the coffee.

Anyway, on first glance it didn't look like the Bakery was all that into coffee (at least at 5pm). I did notice an espresso machine however.

I'm dying to try their scones.

I agree - actually. They went a long way, however, in getting private labeling and blends which is a good start I guess. They do have a Franke super automatic espresso machine but their employees don't know much about coffee it does not seem. I think it is more of a formality at this point for them.

I can say, however, that what they lack in great coffee it seems they more than make up for in baked goods.

[metro]

Thus the old saying "stick with what you know"

[OKCCrime]

Thus the old saying "stick with what you know"

But... "Philosophy bakes no bread".

In business you have to be willing to try new things, be on the edge, be willing to fail, be willing to try again. In the words of Guy Kawasaki, "Don't worry, be crappy".or Hubert Humphrey, "More progress results from the violent execution of an imperfect plan than the perfection of a plan to violently execute."

[EvokeCoffee]

Where those on a Starbucks cup?

[OKCCrime]

Where those on a Starbucks cup?

Not on their coffee cups, but almost certainly in their business plan. Over thirty years Starbucks has evolved significantly and succeeded in part because of their ability to fine tune their model along the way. If they hadn't evolved along the way, I don't think we would have ever gone from a two-shot espresso to a venti java chip frappuccino. It would have been hard to design such a (wildly successful) drink back in the early 80's when Starbucks launched.

[yadillah nai]

yes but it is not coffee, is it,me peoples?

[yadillah nai]

I work ten hour days lately and all i can think about is a quad shot americano short water at Coffee Slingers afterwards...I can't wait till they start roasting.

[mecarr]

I had a chance to go there for lunch today around 1:00 or so. Although it wasn't "packed" by any means, there were quite a few people in there. The place has a very good atmosphere to it, nice color arrangements. The staff was very courteous.

As far as the food selection goes, it is minimal. There were two salads with a choice of two different dressings, a quiche and three different basic deli sandwiches to choose from (turkey, roastbeef, or italian). I opted for the quiche and side-salad. That, with an ice tea, came to around $10.50. The food was good. Not tremendous, not bad, but it was pretty good. The portions were not that big, but big enough so you aren't hungry after you are done eating.

They did seem to have a good selection of pastries, although I did not try them.

Overall, I'd give it 3/4 stars. There was nothing bad about it, but nothing really spectacular either. If I tried their pastries maybe I'd have been more blown away. The one thing I'd advise is for them to have more of a selection, and to keep the place open beyond 6pm. Besides that, they are a great addition to the plaza court.

[OKCCrime]

The place has a very good atmosphere to it, nice color arrangements. The staff was very courteous.

I'll second those comments.

The one thing I'd advise is for them ... to keep the place open beyond 6pm.

Curious, why? It seems they have two or three opportunities. One is to serve lunch to the crowd from the hospital. Irmas does a slam dunk lunch business so it seems PT can ride off of some of that success. The second is serve breakfast - pastries and coffee - to those on their way to work in the morning. The last is to get people to pick up bread to eat at home. Certainly, people who come for lunch and breakfast might take some home. Maybe some people will stop by on the way home for work, but daily bread purchasing is far from the norm in the US as compared to say, France. I think they would really have to work hard to build an after work customer base - it might not even be worth it to stay open and serve the few who would stop by. It would also seem to depend on if they insist on baking bread daily and serving only freshly baked bread. If so, judging the right amount of stock to last into the evening hours in combination with maintaining enough selection among the remaining breads, might prove difficult.

[mecarr]

I'll second those comments.



Curious, why? It seems they have two or three opportunities. One is to serve lunch to the crowd from the hospital. Irmas does a slam dunk lunch business so it seems PT can ride off of some of that success. The second is serve breakfast - pastries and coffee - to those on their way to work in the morning. The last is to get people to pick up bread to eat at home. Certainly, people who come for lunch and breakfast might take some home. Maybe some people will stop by on the way home for work, but daily bread purchasing is far from the norm in the US as compared to say, France. I think they would really have to work hard to build an after work customer base - it might not even be worth it to stay open and serve the few who would stop by. It would also seem to depend on if they insist on baking bread daily and serving only freshly baked bread. If so, judging the right amount of stock to last into the evening hours in combination with maintaining enough selection among the remaining breads, might prove difficult.

You raised some great points. But basically I was saying that they should stay open past 6 so people can eat dinner there. I'm always frustrated by places that close right when the dinner hour begins. I think you should either stay open till 8 in the evening, or close at 2 in the afternoon. If they just stayed open a bit later it would enable people to go there for dinner.

[metro]

mecarr, I was in there yesterday also around 1pm or slightly after. I suppose my experience was similar, yet different.

The atmosphere is nice, it was kind of quiet since few were in there. The owner was standing up front but didn't greet myself nor a few other patrons that came in around the same time. I personally found the staff rather rude (and I was in a suit, not sure if that means anything). No one greeted upon arrival, (including the owner doing nothing), he was standing behind the counter just staring at customers in line, while the other girl was taking orders very slowly.

As you mentioned, the selection/menu is very minimal and rather disappointing actually. As others have stated, they're usually picked over pretty good by this time. They had the two salads (one bread), quiche and sandwiches as you mentioned (although you forgot they have ham sandwich also). Almost all the desserts/pastries were gone, except for a few truffles, cherry danish, and one or two other things. Theyhad a few loafs of bread and baguettes left as well.

I ordered the ham sandwich with everything. It was $6 bucks on it's own. It's the equivalent of about a half a sandwich. It was pretty small. The bread was good (couldn't tell much difference than Big Sky or Panera), the ham was an excellent smoked ham, the leafy greens were very good and earthy (although I ended taking off because there was way too much), the "roma tomatoes" were disgusting and shouldn't have been put on there, they were wayyyy out of season. Overall, once I removed the veggies and put a little bit of light mayo on it, it was pretty good. I was very disappointed with the portion size. I asked if they had a lunch special or combo and she said that was it. You don't get chips or a small roll or apple. She offered to buy a bag of chips for $.99cents or drink and pastry. Personally, I think a combo should not cost $10 bucks for a sandwich and chips that are average and very small.

I suppose for my fresh sandwich lunch fix, I'll be sticking with Panera where you can get the 1/2 sandwich 1/2 salad or soup plus apple or chips and bread roll for $6. Panera's sandwiches are much bigger and tastier IMO.

I was highly looking forward to eating here and I suppose it didn't live up to the expectation. I will return just to try again, but more than likely, I'll ownly patronize for the occasional loaf of bread with a nice slow cooked dinner at home.

DECOR: 5 out of 5
STAFF: 2 out of 5
FOOD: 3 out of 5
VALUE: 2 out of 5
OVERALL: 3

[mecarr]

mecarr, I was in there yesterday also around 1pm or slightly after. I suppose my experience was similar, yet different.

DECOR: 5 out of 5
STAFF: 2 out of 5
FOOD: 3 out of 5
VALUE: 2 out of 5
OVERALL: 3

Metro, when I was writing my review, I was trying to be as forgiving as possible. In reality, your review pretty much sums up my feelings. The portions were too small, the food selection was too minimal, the prices too high and the food was just pretty good. I really, really wanted this place to be great. It did disappoint.

I would be interested to know your take on the Beatnix Cafe. It's by far the best place of its kind I've found.

[GWB]

mecarr, I was in there yesterday also around 1pm or slightly after. I suppose my experience was similar, yet different.

The atmosphere is nice, it was kind of quiet since few were in there. The owner was standing up front but didn't greet myself nor a few other patrons that came in around the same time. I personally found the staff rather rude (and I was in a suit, not sure if that means anything). No one greeted upon arrival, (including the owner doing nothing), he was standing behind the counter just staring at customers in line, while the other girl was taking orders very slowly.

As you mentioned, the selection/menu is very minimal and rather disappointing actually. As others have stated, they're usually picked over pretty good by this time. They had the two salads (one bread), quiche and sandwiches as you mentioned (although you forgot they have ham sandwich also). Almost all the desserts/pastries were gone, except for a few truffles, cherry danish, and one or two other things. Theyhad a few loafs of bread and baguettes left as well.

I ordered the ham sandwich with everything. It was $6 bucks on it's own. It's the equivalent of about a half a sandwich. It was pretty small. The bread was good (couldn't tell much difference than Big Sky or Panera), the ham was an excellent smoked ham, the leafy greens were very good and earthy (although I ended taking off because there was way too much), the "roma tomatoes" were disgusting and shouldn't have been put on there, they were wayyyy out of season. Overall, once I removed the veggies and put a little bit of light mayo on it, it was pretty good. I was very disappointed with the portion size. I asked if they had a lunch special or combo and she said that was it. You don't get chips or a small roll or apple. She offered to buy a bag of chips for $.99cents or drink and pastry. Personally, I think a combo should not cost $10 bucks for a sandwich and chips that are average and very small.

I suppose for my fresh sandwich lunch fix, I'll be sticking with Panera where you can get the 1/2 sandwich 1/2 salad or soup plus apple or chips and bread roll for $6. Panera's sandwiches are much bigger and tastier IMO.

I was highly looking forward to eating here and I suppose it didn't live up to the expectation. I will return just to try again, but more than likely, I'll ownly patronize for the occasional loaf of bread with a nice slow cooked dinner at home.

DECOR: 5 out of 5
STAFF: 2 out of 5
FOOD: 3 out of 5
VALUE: 2 out of 5
OVERALL: 3

Metro, your evaluation of PTBC is right on. I totally agree with you. I was there at 10:30 this morning and was surprised to see how picked over they were already. I asked the cashier why there was so little to offer in the display case. She said that they were busier than they expected and sold out most of their pastries this morning. Either they were swamped with tons of customers or they didn't plan very well. Not counting me, there were only two other customers when I was there. After four days in business, you would think that they would have had a better handle on the amount of pastries to prepare--in my opinion.

For breakfast, they only had two blueberry scones left (I bought both of them). I asked if they made other flavored scones, and she said they also made cranberry orange scones as well (sold out). The blueberry scones are some of the best I've eaten. I highly recommend them if you are into scones. (Off topic, but I hope Coffee Slingers buys them and sells them in their cafe. The scones they sell now taste like they're made with bisquick)

They also had cinnamon buns (as they call them) in their display case. There was only two left and I bought the last two they had. They are rather small and lacking in uniformity. They were very dry tasting and the dough was not very sweet or flavorful and I could hardly taste the cinnamon. There was some kind of glaze on it that was used sparingly. It helped improve the flavor of the rolls, but not much. Unless they come up with a better recipe, I think they are not doing themselves a favor by selling them. You expect more from a place like this.

They had quite a few cookies left on the counter, but only offered two kinds--chocolate chip and oatmeal with raisins (and cranberries I think). The cookies are very good--firm, yet chewy. I doubt there will be any left for people who get there at 1:00 and on.

I also purchased (forgot the name of it) a cone shaped cookie that is made of sliced almonds. I took only one bite of it just so I could share here how they tasted. Ma Ma Mia! These things (whatever they're called) are absolutely delish! Sorry I don't remember the name of it, but it looks like a little ice cream cone thats been dipped in chocolate (the top), and then filled with some kind of a creamy chocolate. Out of this world!

The only other breakfast "pastry" they offered at 10:30 this morning was croissants. They looked pretty good, but I didn't buy any, so I can't comment on the taste. They had some quiches in the case that looked alright. They offered one with cheese and vegetables and one with bacon, cheese and vegetables. I might order one next time and bring it home and have it for lunch or something.

I too saw the owner of the place and he did not greet me either. He looked at me, and I nodded to him, but he just moved on and went back into the kitchen. The staff seemed to be a little uptight and not very friendly. I would suggest they loosen up a little bit and not be so uptight. Also, I think they'd be better off preparing too much, than not making enough. There'd be a lot less disgruntled customers this way. If they have a lot left over at the end of the day, they could either donate the left overs to a food bank, or sell it for half price, the next day, as some bakeries do. Being sold out of almost all of their pastries, and not offering friendly service, doesn't leave a very good first impression. I know it's all new for them, and they're still learning the ropes, but first impressions are important.

I'll go back and try it again, but, if these folks don't get a handle on things within the next few weeks, I'm afraid they aren't going to be around long. That would be ashamed because they have a lot of potential. I hope the owner, or someone in the cafe, is reading this thread. I think it would help them see things from a customer's perspective so that they could make improvements where they're needed.

By the way, for two cookies, one almond cone cookie, two blueberry scones and two cinnamon buns, the total cost for these seven items was $15.88. That comes to about $2.25 per item. I don't know what each individual item cost me because the receipt does not itemize what I purchased. It simply gives the grand total with tax. I should have payed more attention to that. I don't think the prices were too bad actually, but the cinnamon buns weren't worth 2 cents in my opinion.

I look forward to hearing from others who have gone there and hear what your experience was like.

[Steve]

Metro, if I were a restaurant owner just open for the first week, I'd lock the door on ya!

Really, it's not too surprising when restaurants have quirks the first few weeks. It just seems to be the nature of the business. I'll be very interested in a follow-up review by you in a few weeks.
Now, all that having been said, what has been your best experience at a brand new restaurant?
-Steve

[OKCCrime]

Metro, if I were a restaurant owner just open for the first week, I'd lock the door on ya!

Really, it's not too surprising when restaurants have quirks the first few weeks. It just seems to be the nature of the business. I'll be very interested in a follow-up review by you in a few weeks.
Now, all that having been said, what has been your best experience at a brand new restaurant?
-Steve

Although I agree in principle, I think that first impressions really matter for a business. It is hard to win back the hearts of customers - especially in the upscale / gourmet market. When a customer pays a lot for something, it better be good the first time or else it becomes really easy for a customer to go back to their standby solution. This place had a long time to prepare for it's opening. It seems like I (and others) have been waiting 6 months for it to open. Many people have talked it up. Metro's review might be a bit due to the let down based on prior expectations.

[metro]

Steve, that's why they call food critics, critics. I'm not afraid to state my opinion either way as you already know. I give tons of restaurants on here praise, but I'll tell when their bad just as easily.

I understand the "opening quirks". I'm not so upset about the service and quality of food as much as the price/portion/offering.

I understand service will get better. I do not see them increasing portions or lowering prices. Hopefully they'll learn soon that there is a respectable lunch crowd in the area with more than enough to keep them busy and expand their lunch menu and have some sort of meal instead of a la carte. For food on par with panera, and portions smaller, I don't expect to pay $10+ for a sandwich lunch. As mecarr stated, he paid $10.50. I can understand it for a sit down restaurant type of lunch, but a half sandwich and chips? Sorry, but it's no Tavern on the Green.

First week experience? Irma's was good, Red Prime, Chipotle was good (chain I know), Trattoria Il Centro. Those are just a few that come to mind.

mecarr, I have yet to eat at Beatnix, if not today, sometime soon. Stay tuned!!

[Steve]

I hear you, Metro. I'd also lock out the food critics as well. It's pretty interesting to see all the things that can go wrong, and are out of a restaurant owner's control (or maybe not), during the first weeks they are open.
On the other hand, I too have seen restaurants, one in particular, that I visited when it first opened and I knew it was a disaster in the making.
Actually, all of this discussion has inspired yet another story to be added to my list....