Victoria’s Kitchen Cafe
Closing in on a decade of serving delicious comfort food and fresh coffee in a welcoming, neighborhood environment, Victoria’s Kitchen Cafe (725 Lafayette Road, Hampton, 926-2076, victoriaskitchencafe.com) has become a favorite gathering spot for many locals and visitors alike. Owner Tracey Dewhurst originally launched the cafe as a catering outlet to support her nearby venue, the Victoria Inn. Dewhurst has since sold the inn, but over time the cafe has found its own momentum, expanding from a small menu focused on breakfast and lunch to a wide selection of scratch-made dishes. You’ll find everything here from breakfast sandwiches featuring homemade English muffins to hearty paninis, salads and wraps, along with assorted home baked goods and a robust coffee program using beans sourced from Portland, Maine’s Coffee by Design. Beyond meals and drinks, Dewhurst also offers catering, grab-and-go meals, and a small retail selection of products from local purveyors. For Dewhurst, the cafe’s inviting atmosphere is a key part of its charm. “I just like the idea of people having a place to hang out,” she said. “Bring your laptop and get a coffee and sit here for six hours. I love that. I love to see people enjoying the space.” The Scene recently caught up with Dewhurst to talk about the evolution of Victoria’s Kitchen Cafe, her passion for quality ingredients, and the unique community she’s built over the years.
How long has Victoria’s Kitchen Cafe been around?
It will be 10 years in August. We opened in August 2015.
What makes Victoria’s Kitchen Cafe unique?
We have a little bit of everything. … For such a small space, we do a lot, and I just kind of wanted it to appeal to everybody. … You can come and get two eggs with bacon, or you can have a breakfast wrap with pulled pork and avocado. … And then, we also always feature different things to-go that you can grab for dinner. I want anybody that walks through the door to find something they like.
What is your favorite thing on your own menu?
I have to say, I can’t talk enough about our coffee. … If I’m driving around, I’ll always tell myself that I will just get back to work for coffee, because I love ours so much. … For food, I swear I could probably open a restaurant just selling this one sandwich that we do, which is the California chicken wrap. It’s chicken, bacon, avocado, our chipotle aioli that we make in house, tomato, red onion, and shredded colby jack cheese in a wrap. … I also have to throw in a plug for our homemade English muffins. We fly through them — they really make our breakfast sandwiches.
What is something that everyone should try?
That’s a tough one, because it really depends on everybody’s individual tastes. … Everybody loves our bacon, egg and cheese, and then we also have a bunch of different eggs Benedicts that are great. The Irish eggs Benedict is a huge favorite, because it’s got our homemade hash on it. … If you want something more substantial, then I would say try our toasted meatball melt. We make all of our own meatballs. Our chef is a master of meatballs — I don’t even know if he’s given me the recipe he uses!
Name a celebrity you would like to see eating at Victoria’s Kitchen Cafe.
I would say Jose Andres, [who is] the chef who started World Central Kitchen. He’s an amazing chef … [and] I just have the utmost respect for what he’s doing. If he ever walked through the door here, I’d probably just melt.
What’s one essential skill needed to successfully run a cafe?
Two things come to mind. This is a business you cannot do alone — I don’t care who you are. … You need to be able to play well with others, and it’s got to be a symbiotic relationship that works for everybody, or it won’t work at all. … That’s No. 1. No. 2, you have to be humble, because you’ll never be as good as you want to be. There’s always going to be something that gets in the way, but you just have to keep going and take it on the chin. You have to love it, and being humble really helps.
What is your favorite thing about being on the Seacoast?
I’m a Massachusetts girl at heart, but I’ve always really appreciated how New Hampshire and the Seacoast kind of adopted me and took me in. … I also love the ocean, and just knowing that it’s right there.
— Matt Ingersoll
Featured Photo: Courtesy Photo.
