Kairos Kafe staff are working some long hours in order to meet their goal of opening their new Gardendale location by the end of July.

After looking at several closed restaurants across the city, Kairos Kafe owner and founder James Jones settled on the former Main Street Cafe location for his new eatery.

Part of Jones’ vision is to put a bakery in the restaurant, something not in the Birmingham restaurant, located at 515 University Boulevard. He said he’s not sure if the restaurant will have a full-service breakfast, but he does want to keep the bakery open during morning hours. When the restaurant has its grand opening, one of the things James wants to do is have a bake sale.

Although the menu will be largely the same as the Birmingham location, Jones is always experimenting with new recipes and often runs limited-time specials to try them out on his customers. One of his most recent creations was the “Gardendale Burger,” a hand-made ground chuck burger with a grilled green tomato and a vinegar based slaw topping it.

“That slaw is so good on burgers,” he said. “I come from a small town (Phenix City), so I know how a small town can have a country feel to it. It doesn’t get much more country than slaw and green tomatoes.”

The original Kairos Kafe is only open for lunch, and one of the reasons Jones wants to open a Gardendale location is because he said he felt like the north Jefferson area would increase interest in dinner hours as well. Jones has always had a personal involvement with his restaurant by cooking much of the food and even serving tables occasionally. He said he will be shifting his focus from the Birmingham restaurant to the Gardendale location.

“There’s a lot of chain restaurants around here, and we need a good place to eat with a good environment. We need something a little different,” said Jerod Moody, a friend of Jones and a Gardendale resident who is helping Jones get the restaurant ready. “I’ve been to [James’] restaurant, and the prices are affordable and the food is good.”

Jones’ Christian faith also inspires how he runs his business, and he hopes to incorporate it into the restaurant’s decoration, including a large display of Jeremiah 29:11, which Jones considers his mantra. He is also laquering tables and covering them with newspaper articles about the restaurant, and is decorating the walls with old photographs of Gardendale, donated by the Gardendale Historical Society.