Shorty’s Kitchen has opened a new year-round, dine-in location at 3962 Vineyard Drive, Dunkirk, in the TJ Maxx Plaza, next to Hibbett’s sporting goods store. The location had a soft opening earlier this month and is now available for dine-in, pick-up or delivery through DoorDash.
Fans of Shorty’s Kitchen’s traditional Puerto Rican cuisine have become accustomed to the restaurant coming and going. After bouncing around from various locations over the years, a location on the Dunkirk Pier boardwalk opened as a seasonal business in March of 2022. But now, while the Boardwalk’s restaurant is closed for the winter, Shorty’s Kitchen will be available throughout the year at the new location. The Boardwalk site will open again this spring, in addition to the new location.
Owners Eddie “Shorty” Diaz and Mirna Zanetti saw an opportunity to expand their business when the former Pizza Hut site in the TJ Maxx Plaza became available. With seven booths of six seats and seven tables of four seats available for dining in, the restaurant has the capability to serve up to 70 guests at a time in-house. The restaurant and kitchen space total approximately 2,700 square feet.
In renovating the space, there were some benefits to the site previously being used as a restaurant, including a walk-in cooler and freezer, a stove hood, and the seating booths left over. However, other challenges were also left behind, including a sizable pizza oven that could not easily fit out the door, which was later disassembled and discarded.
OBSERVER Photos by Braden Carmen
This caricature of Eddie “Shorty” Diaz, created by artist Edwin Bautista, welcomes guests to the new location of Shorty’s Kitchen at 3962 Vineyard Drive, Dunkirk, in the TJ Maxx Plaza.
“We had to do the best we could. It cost a pretty penny to get this thing going, but hopefully now it will pay off,” Diaz said.
In securing a year-round location, Shorty’s Kitchen is offering a larger menu, featuring Puerto Rican foods and many other items, including new daily specials, for year-round dining.
“There were things we couldn’t do over there (at the Boardwalk),” Diaz said, noting that the sit-down restaurant can now serve each guest with food made to order.
The walls of the new location are decorated with a mural depicting a Puerto Rican shoreline, created by artist Edwin Batista. He also created a caricature of Diaz to serve as the restaurant’s logo, depicted on the entryway wall.
Additionally, multiple televisions were secured to hang throughout the restaurant, with hopes to show sporting events to attract more customers.
As a longtime member of the restaurant industry, Diaz stated that the most challenging part of the industry is finding and keeping employees, but rising food costs have also presented a challenge. Diaz often travels to Restaurant Depot in Buffalo for product, which is “a lot cheaper” than in Chautauqua County.
After closing a previous location in Dunkirk shortly after the pandemic struck Chautauqua County, Diaz and Zanetti received a great deal of support from their loyal customers in the community when their location on the Boardwalk opened.
“When we came back, a lot of people that knew us already were so happy,” Zanetti said. “… Sometimes I think they’d forget, but they don’t.”
Zanetti also works full-time at Person Centered Services as a Care Coordinator for people with developmental disabilities. She assists the restaurant as much as she can, and stresses the importance of always treating customers with care.
“We take it seriously to treat our customers with respect and give them what they want to make them happy,” Zanetti said. “We cater to them to make sure they get what they expect.”
Hours of operation fluctuate, usually from around 11 a.m. until around 9 p.m., with a more permanent schedule to come once the business becomes more established in its new location. To place an order, Shorty’s Kitchen has two phone lines available to call, 716-413-4520 and 716-785-4520. Online orders are also available through the DoorDash app.
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