You’ve gotta hand it to the folks at Jak’s Kitchen. They are making lemonade out of lemons. When a construction crew began tearing up Bronson Avenue several weeks ago, owners John Armstrong and Kim Hill (John And Kim = JAK) discovered their restaurant was going to be in a cloud of demolition, dust, and detours until September. The news got even worse: their beloved outdoor patio is out of commission.

In spite of being stuck in a construction zone, the 26-seat restaurant remains open for business inside as usual — serving breakfast, lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch. But rather than standing by helplessly and watching the number of customers dwindle due to the mess, Armstrong and Hill came up with a plan to launch a new take-out business called: Jak In A Box!

The idea is to give customers access to Jak’s regular menu, but to pack everything up in cute recyclable to-go containers — perfect for taking home (or to the office or off on a picnic).

One of the great little quirks about Jak’s Kitchen is that they serve breakfast until 3 p.m. They are perhaps best-known for their creative breakfast sandwiches, dubbed Kitchen Macs, which happen to be ideal take-out food. Think of it as a gourmet Egg McMuffin. Jak’s Macs feature fresh and mostly local ingredients like house-cured peameal bacon, Bekings Poultry Farm eggs, and Mariposa Farms’ selection of cheeses. The key is that they are served on hearty homemade breads — rye, sourdough, molasses-oat and, my favourite, buttermilk biscuits. These baked goods can also be ordered by the loaf or the batch for take-out as well.

Jak In A Box @ Jak’s Kitchen

Hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 8 a.m. to close.

Jak’s Kitchen, 479 Bronson Ave., 613-230-2088

Please note: You can still reach Jak’s Kitchen off of Gladstone Avenue, turning left on Percy Street and then left again on McLeod Street. The parking lot across the street from the restaurant remains accessible.