By Carol P. Bartold

Feb 22, 2017:  Stop by the new Ladle of Love take-out restaurant, which opened on Valentine’s Day at 18 Palmer Road in Bronxville, and discover more culinary delights than one can believe could come from a 170-square-foot space.

Proprietor Leslie Lampert describes her menu as “contemplative food prepared with a conscience,” and all from recipes that she has developed.

From 10:00 am to 7:00 pm Monday through Friday and 10:00 am to 6:00 pm on Saturdays, Ladle of Love offers soups, stews, empanadas, sandwiches, and other daily specials crafted from locally sourced and seasonally driven ingredients and prepared in small batches.

Soups and stews are prepared daily in Mt. Kisco in Lampert’s company commissary kitchen to ensure consistent quality and continuity in the product, while proteins are prepared onsite in Bronxville. No refined sugars are used in food preparation, Lampert noted. “We offer nourishing, creative, and honest food,” she said.

A recent menu board listed soups such as Tuscan tomato, short rib stew, shrimp bisque, and truffle parsnip. Seafood risotto, 3-herb couscous, tandoori chicken, and cheddar mac & cheese were on the suppers and snacks menu.

Lampert began to scout Bronxville for a location approximately five years ago. “But as soon as I saw this location, I had the vision, and I contemplated how I could make every square inch work.” She appeared before the Bronxville Planning Board in January of 2016 with her site plan and received approval for the restaurant. “This has been a year-and-a-half in the making,” she said.

Leslie Lampert comes to Bronxville with more than 30 years of experience in the food industry. With a master's degree in journalism from Boston University, she worked as a senior editor at Ladies Home Journal magazine. Over 17 million readers read the food articles she wrote and recipes she developed in the magazine’s test kitchen. In addition to writing food and lifestyle articles for other publications, Lampert brought that expertise to national and cable television shows on which she appeared.

Lampert’s culinary business, Love Hospitality, grew out of loving and caring for family, friends, and others in times of need. “My handcrafted soups and stews mushroomed--pun intended!” she said, “--into full artisan comfort foods.”

In Mt. Kisco she opened Ladle of Love in 2003 and Café of Love in 2008. Love on the Run Catering, twelve years in business, is the only locally sourced caterer in Westchester, Lampert noted.

“Do good and do well and support the community,” Lampert said in explaining her company’s philosophy. Ladle of Love, the exclusive culinary team at the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester, provides hot meals for over 1,000 youth each week. She has hired several Bronxville High School students to work at the Palmer Avenue restaurant.

“Our welcome to Bronxville has been spectacular,” Lampert said. She added that she is thrilled with the positive response to Ladle of Love she has experienced. “Business has been brisk. People understand and embrace my brand.”

Pictured here:  Leslie Lampert at her carry-out restaurant Ladle of Love.

Photos by A. Warner