The Pantry

I had a late morning flight and time for a good breakfast… and that is exactly what I got! My first impression was just so inviting and the service was grade A. I ordered the avocado toast, which was seasoned perfectly… always a concern when I’m served fresh avocado. I also ordered a marinated tomato sandwich and a tomato pie for my trip home because I was so eager to share my experience with my wife… but sadly neither one made it home… it was a long flight and I got hungry (sorry honey)
I did happen to also buy some chive blossom goat cheese from there as well and recreated my version of the marinated tomato sandwich at home and it was a huge success!

I’ve been to The Pantry a few times now and am always impressed by both the food and the service. I think it’s pretty awesome that they use and also sell so many fresh and local ingredients, especially since a good bit of those ingredients are grown at their own farm. The menu changes frequently, so it’s hard to make a recommendation of a specific dish… but if you get a chance to try the tomato pie you most definitely should!

Let me say that this place is great for a healthy meal, but it isn’t enjoyable. If you enjoy a typical southern breakfast, this isn’t the place for you. However, if you have food allergies there’s something on the menu for you. I’ve never not eaten a waffle anywhere until this visit.

I’ve heard great things about this place so on a rare Friday off, the beau and I decided to give it a go for lunch. We ordered a brisket panini with a side of soup and the farmhouse salad. Our lovely waitress brought a plate of homemade chips and cheese for us to nibble on while we waited at our table in the front yard. The salad was the stand-​out item with deliciously fresh ingredients and a perfect vinaigrette that was served on the side. The brisket was well cooked and melt-​in-​your mouth. The soup was a bit bland and could have stood for a bit of additional seasoning. I really loved the atmosphere of this place and appreciated that the food was wholesome, locally-​sourced and delicious. I’ll be back with their pantry items in mind and to nosh on one of their salads again. The only tangible downside aside from the poorly seasoned soup was the parking which was extremely hard to find at 1:30pm on a Friday. If you live near Crestline, bike here. If you don’t, factor in an additional 10+ mins of time finding a parking spot in the residential neighborhood that The Pantry is situated in.

$ 9.00 for a tiny smoothie? I can’t even process that, but what I really want to talk about is the bland flavor of the food. I ordered avocado toast and beef vegetable soup and it all just tasted like water. The vegetables in the soup were undercooked. They didn’t provide napkins or salt and pepper for outdoor seating.
Verdict? Just stick with their goat cheese and avoid the food. And if you do try any of their savory items, bring your own salt.

Delicious yoga-​mom fancy-​pants local fare. Good coffee. You can buy most of the ingredients in your meal.

I’ve been twice & enjoyed the experience! Great good and pretty interior, service is just lacking – friendly service, just lacking.
Had I gone the first time on my own I think I would have been totally confused, so if this is your first time going, let me give you a heads up! They don’t have a host, so when you walk in, you might feel a little lost. It’s half store-​half restaurant, so the tables are sort of all over the house.
First visit, I got the kale salad and enjoyed it. But I really loved the cheese and crackers that come out before the dish! And the cucumber water. Real treats and made the experience memorable as those were surprises. Service-​wise, wonderfully friendly server, but we did have to wave him down for the check and when we were ready to order. My friend who has been here a few times says this is usual as well.
Second visit, I talked up the cheese and talked down the service to my husband, upon returning. We came on a Saturday for lunch, just after brunch had finished so they were in transition and still busy with wrapping that up. This was the reason for our less than stellar service again. I had loved the cheese and crackers so much the first visit, but unfortunately, they forgot to give us any on my second visit… :(I ordered the tomato sandwich and my husband got the chicken salad sandwich. My sandwich was delicious! I wish there was more… It was teeny. Even came on what seemed like a tea cup saucer/​appetizer plate. The sandwich was halved and maybe only 4−5inches. I was ok with that, but my husband was still so hungry afterwards. After receiving the check, I curiously asked if they no longer served the cheese plate or only did that at certain times/​days, and they said they were sorry, they realized they forgot and they brought us to-​go cheese. Very sweet of them! Since they knew they forgot, I wish they had brought it even if it were after our food was served… I loved the wooden plate and knife presentation of it.
My thoughts:
–This is a ladies place. Probably not the best place for hungry men.
–Their marinated tomatoes are amazing! Get them in any form you can.
–They just need more servers (or even just need a host!) and more experienced servers. The first experience might throw you off. After a while, you realize this is a casual family owned place and you learn how they do things. Just go into it knowing this!
–You’ll probably have to wait until someone finds you and seats you and you’ll probably have to flag the server down for your check.
–Look around at the products they sell. Everything Ive tasted from their CSA box has been yummy!
I’ll certainly be back to take friends and family who are in town looking for somewhere cute.

Went back for the breakfast waffle bar! Two words «Plum butter»! Everything was so tasty and fresh. I got one of each kind of waffle, gluten fee and Belgian. Both were good, but I have to give it up to the gluten free waffle, it’s bigger and very good but not as sweet as the Belgian. But no worries it’s an all you can eat so try everything!

Had been hearing wonderful things about The Pantry for a while but having a guest in town finally got me there.
It. was. incredible.
We sat at the outdoor picnic tables on a beautiful, sunny day and were immediately served a cheese tray with their farm fresh goat cheese, cheddar crackers, and candied lemon peel (!!) and the sweet server asked if she could bring us cucumber lemon water (who would ever say no?). Every bite was divine.
We ordered a few things to share and our server was extremely knowledgeable about the source of all their ingredients and was able to recommend some excellent choices. We enjoyed a kale and garlic toast and caprese salad, both specials for the day, and a farro salad.
The food was very reasonably priced and tasted very fresh — which makes sense because as we chatted with the staff, we found out it had all come from the farm or from other local greenhouses. We browsed the shop inside for a good 20 minutes afterwards but we were never rushed — everyone inside was excited to talk about the products and give us the backstory on each.
On a beautiful spring day, The Pantry was heaven on earth.

Fun and yummy diversion on our drive back from NOLA. They also retail jarred products from their family farm. Amazing candied orange slices!

I can only speak for the waffle bar on Saturday morning. My wife and I got a super deal online for maybe half priced breakfast bar. It was totally worth it with that deal.
You get unlimited access to their food and drinks, which are top notch quality made with TLC. All the fresh, farm friendly, real, that kind of stuff food. I’m talking bacon, hard boiled eggs, yogurt, granola, peaches, tasty breakfast biscuit thing, coffee, cold apple cider and the waffles with all their toppings (syrups, jams, butter, cheese, etc).
It was all delicious. The regular waffle is an interesting, dense doughy thing. Their gluten free option might actually be more desirable, so I want to try more of those next time.
The servers here are super friendly and helpful.
I highly recommend this experience and food; you don’t see much of this type of thing in Birmingham. Get there when the waffle bar starts at 8:30 to get good seats and first dibs at the deliciousness. It won’t stop till you’re full… they might even let you take a little to go. Shhh…

My husband, 20-​month old son, and I ate breakfast at The Pantry today. We had been wanting to try the all-​you-​can eat waffle bar for a while and since the weather was nice we went for it. There were no seats available inside so we sat outside which was wonderful (with the exception of having to listen to the incredibly loud music next door at Irontribe.) The food was everything we had hoped for but the setup is really awkward. It’s just not like a typical restaurant. We had to hunt for someone (a server) to explain how everything works. The store is tiny and you are constantly trying not to bump into others. We ordered regular waffles but got gluten-​free the first time. Both were delicious so that really wasn’t an issue. The toppings, bacon, and yogurt were amazing but I had to walk back inside five times just to get everything we wanted. Our server was responsive and polite. I had the fresh apple cider to drink and that was awesome. The coffee ran out often as they only have one carafe and no decaf that I noticed. If you come with the expectation that it’s not a typical restaurant then you will not regret your decision. I wish I could have eaten more! We will be back but maybe without our toddler :-)

We discovered this restaurant in the Birmingham Fit Well magazine and it was well worth our first try! We had some of there cold pressed fresh raw juice and I also got a chicken salad type meal. I had a very healthy selection of sides and it was truly delicious! They offer a variety of organic items such as cheese, etc and we can’t wait to try more of their products. A great spot for lunch and the restaurant has a beautiful design. We’ll be back again!

In short — a hugh disappointment after hearing good things.
Service — non-​existent. No tables– benches.
Food — fresh BUT small portions, expensive and only passable at best.
In short — a lesson must be taught to this pretentious imitation of the Avant-​garde,
good people must stay away/​avoid.

Went to the «waffle bar» on Saturday with my girlfriend. First, I appreciate the attempt to bring farm-​fresh food to the middle of Birmingham. However, despite their best efforts, I had a terrible experience, and here’s why:
(1) I was confused the entire time. Walked in, there was no one to greet me. I wandered around, until some hipster found me. I told him I was looking for waffles, and he told me they were outside. No menu, no prices, no guidance, nothing.
(2) There was a small, waffle bar outside. Of course, the waffles are outside. Not only did I have to make my own waffles, I had to do it in the cold, and with bees flying around my head.
(3) The waffle bar made no sense. They only had one choice of butter, and it was hard as a rock. Completely un-​spreadable. My waffles were not deliciously buttered. And somehow, the butter refused to melt. Most stubborn butter I’ve ever seen. Actually, that’s not true, the waffles were cold. That’s why the butter didn’t melt. My bad.
(4) The waffles tasted like cake. Except not delicious at all. They were also small. They’re allegedly «unlimited,» but that’s misleading because they only put out 4 waffles at a time.
(5) Cucumber water. That’s the default drink. The default. What’s wrong with regular water?
(6) There is no drink menu. Hope you like cucumber water.
(7) There is no menu, at all. So you don’t know prices.
(8) The prices. My meal before tip? $ 28-​ish. But you HAVE to pay tip. They make you pay with an i-​Pad, and you have to choose a tip to give before paying. The lowest option is 15% (which I chose). Total cost for a couple of cold, not-​delicious waffles and cucumber waters? $ 33. Keep in mind I tipped some hipster dude for doing nothing other than pointing me to the waffle bar outside.
(9) How do you ruin waffles?

We have eaten here several times. The breakfasts on the weekend are delightful, especially with small children. Recently we ordered the chicken farro soup. Excellent! I highly recommend it! Look on their website for their soups, a different one each day. It is soup weather!

Another Birmingham miracle, stopped in for a late lunch on Saturday and 2 bottles of wine later and some jars of pickles to go, we are happy travelers. Place is top notch craft food done with care and precision. Great find in the heart of Dixie!

Wow. Great breakfast on Saturday morning — loved everything about this place. I had a waffle with fruit salad and cajeta (goat’s milk caramel). It was the perfect portion size and sweetness. Definitely want to check out their waffle bar next time. Love the environment, the service, and even the water (seriously, it is steeped a few hours with cucumber and lemon and is delicious). Try this place out ASAP — you won’t be disappointed! Can’t wait to go back.

A new addition to the Crestline repertoire is the Pantry by Stone Hollow Farmstead. Around the corner from Church Street Coffee, the Pantry is nestled in a little house with a shaded patio area. The menu is simple, but it offers a good helping of flavors and creativity served by friendly, laid-​back staff.
The food is fresh, tasty, and well-​presented. On each visit I’ve had my table has been presented with a free sampling of a dip/​spread with crackers/​bread. It was a nice note to the meal, and provided a sort of appetizer while we waited on the food.
The salad sampler (apple-​walnut, chicken, and fruit salads) and the chicken salad panini are delicious. The portions are a little on the light side, but not unduly so. Also of note is the strawberry and goat cheese panini with a balsamic vinegarette reduction — it was nearly a dessert!
The Pantry has wine & cheese tastings on Thursday and Friday evenings, a waffle bar on Saturday mornings, and is closed on Sundays.

Serene, fresh atmosphere, tasty and delicious food, friendly and competent service. We’ll be coming here again and again!