Five Flags Deli & Bakery

In regards to the previous Unilocaler of the Five Flags Deli, «the ship has sunk». I drove by last week and it’s closed. Too many restaurants and too many people locked into their chains.

I had never heard of this place and was asked to meet a few lovely ladies for a business meeting. I had to bring my little one along and greatly appreciated the back patio that was fenced in so she could run around since nobody else was out there. I was a little skeptical what the food would taste like and was being safe with sweet potatoe fries, greek salad and lentil soup. The portions were huge and the food was delicious. The gals I was with had a turkey burger and a sandwhich and were loving it. The waitress came out and checked on us multiple times and were very accomodating. I can’t wait to bring my husband there to try it out.

We tried a first pass at the new business in the former Crema location this morning. The restaurant is a hybrid of order at the counter and sit-​down service once the order is placed. The staff was gregarious and full of new-​owner-​optimism and they should be. Those brave souls opening a restaurant are some of the most fantastic bright and fearless of us civilians. Five Flags menu for breakfast has both specials and a slew of a la carte items; both sections include regional favorites such as fried green tomatoes and beignets. Prices are very reasonable. Although, all of this is really encouraging, Five Flags misses on the food service.
I felt a shiver when the coffee was served in disposable foam cups which foreshadowed a death by a thousand paper-​cuts. A minor disappointment was that each item of our a la carte meals came plated separately on disposable paper plates (albeit with a sprig of kale and orange twist), but they missed the boat to build a custom meal for each diner, especially considering the small number of seated customers. The dining room had perhaps a total people of six including our twosome, yet the staff was confused as to which tables the orders were for. A loud conversation ensued from the owner about the failure of the POS system and how this was confusing the staff. Although not all that embarrassing it was not very pleasing to be witness to it while trying to enjoy breakfast. My order of bacon seemed that it had be precooked and rewarmed for service and the eggs were not seasoned at all. The fried green tomatoes had good flavor although a strange texture at the inside of the breading; I suspect they had been over floured in the breading process.
The skinny for this joint: Five Flags is full of potential and promise. I am not looking for linen table cloths, harps, and tightly wound waiters nor should the owners try to be something they are not. They need to shake out the hurdles. They have a great potential to fill a really needed gap in the local cadre of restaurants – good solid and reasonably priced faire with a nod occasionally to regionally important specialties. They will need to focus on the customer experience which takes a special attention to orders, combinations built by the customer, and plating. More importantly they need to consider the conversations they have in the front of the house. I truly want to see these guys succeed. I will make a trip to re-​evaluate after I let them shake out a bit, I only hope the ship doesn’t sink before I get back.