Fill out our Daily Orange reader survey to make our paper better


From the Kitchen

Original Grain and Sweet Praxis are hosting the ultimate downtown dinner party

Heiu Nguyen | Staff Photographer

Sweet Praxis and Original Grain mix their recipes for dinner party. Some of the meals are a Mini Croissammich and Poke Tostada.

The dazzling food scene in downtown Syracuse is about to get a little sweeter.

Original Grain and The Sweet Praxis, two Syracuse cafes with modern vibes and trendy menus, are teaming up to host the ultimate “Kitchen Takeover” dinner party Wednesday. The downtown hot spots will bring together the best of their menus to share a fresh array of flavors with Syracuse foodies.

“We’re both younger businesses, but we both have a similar idea of transforming Syracuse on (its) approach to food,” said Jennifer Walls, a representative for The Sweet Praxis. “Right now, we have been meeting to talk about details and finalizing the menu for the big event.”

The menu mash-up will feature a sprouted greens salad with cold-pressed olive oil and citrus essence, poke tostada with sweet chili tamarind sauce and a deconstructed green tea lava cake with chocolate ganache and matcha-mint chia pudding quenelle for dessert, among other dishes.

The shops bring together a vibrant take on the dining experience in Syracuse.



“We’re taking inspiration from across the country and across the world, not just our little neck of the woods,” Walls said.

The partnership welcomes a fun level of flexibly to experiment between the two companies, but both agree the main mission is to make the community happy.

“We love how happy people are going there. It’s cool listening to people say they’re happy to have this in Syracuse,” said Eric Hilman, a representative for Original Grain. “Plus, the food is amazing; the experience is great plus our staff is really passionate about the product, which resonates in how friendly they are with the customers.”

Original Grain and The Sweet Praxis’s collaboration also goes beyond the dinner party.

“We sell some of their items, their chia pudding for example, and we came up with some unique cookies that they could sell,” Walls said. “Once or twice a week we’re delivering items to them for their shop.”

Moving ahead, the two restaurants hope to continue transforming the downtown food scene for the better.

“We want to do more of these events with Sweet Praxis. In the future we may carry more of their items in our shop and vice versa,” said Hilman.

“After all, we’re always stronger together,” Walls said.





Top Stories