A new restaurant is bringing the smell of slow-cooked pork, fresh rice, fried fish, and homemade desserts to Peekskill.

K&P Lounge, now open at 911 South Street, is serving up a distinctive fusion of Southern comfort food and Puerto Rican cuisine while building itself as something more than a traditional restaurant.

The newly opened business offers dinner service, seafood boils on select weekends, private event space, and a growing neighboring retail concept that will soon feature seasonal ice cream, Latin-style iceys, milkshakes and a speakeasy-style lounge.

For co-owners Pamela Tiru and Katrina Harris, the restaurant represents both a new beginning and a return home.

“This wasn’t planned,” Tiru said. After closing their previous Cortlandt Manor location, the business partners found themselves reopening in the city where their entrepreneurial journey first began nearly a decade ago.

 “We thought we were done but we’re glad to be in the heart of Peekskill,” said Harris.

What Customers Can Expect

K&P Lounge officially opened its doors in Peekskill in Feb. 2026, in the space formerly occupied by 140 Kitchen and previously Gleason’s.

The restaurant is currently open Wednesday and Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m., Friday from 5 to 10 p.m., Saturday from 4 to 10 p.m., and Sunday from 3 to 7 p.m., with hours expected to expand as warmer weather arrives.

The menu blends two culinary traditions rarely combined in the Hudson Valley.

Customers can order Southern staples like fried whiting, collard greens, mac and cheese, cornbread and yams alongside Puerto Rican favorites including arroz con pollo, empanadas, rellenos de papa, arroz con gandules and maduros.

One of the restaurant’s signature offerings is the Boriqua Soul Bowl, which combines collard greens, rice, plantains (tostones and maduros), mac and cheese, yams and a choice of meats into one dish.

Other customer favorites include Spanish-seasoned Southern fried pork chops, salmon bites, chicken wings and Pamela Tiru’s homemade red velvet and chocolate cakes.

The owners emphasize one important expectation for first-time diners: this is made-to-order comfort food, not fast food. “You’re not coming through a drive-thru,” Tiru said. “You’re coming into a restaurant where we’re putting our heart and soul into it.”

That means some dishes require hours of preparation, with meats often seasoned and slow-cooked well before service begins. “When people walk in and ask what smells so good — that’s us cooking,” Tiru said.

The restaurant is also still in the process of securing its liquor license.

More Than Just a Restaurant

The South Street location includes more than the main dining room.

Next door, the owners are preparing to launch “Side 2”, a seasonal creamery and salad bar expected to open later this spring.

The retail-style front area will offer regular and homemade ice cream, milkshakes and Latin iceys sourced from Delicioso Coco Helado in New York City.

Behind that space, customers will find a more intimate speakeasy-style lounge designed for private events, gatherings, and a special night out. The adjoining layout allows food to move directly between the K&P Lounge kitchen and the speakeasy, giving the restaurant flexibility to host celebrations, parties and community programming.

That community focus is central to the owners’ vision.

K&P Lounge has partnered with 2 Sisters 2 Different Kinds of Lupus, a nonprofit founded by Tiru’s nieces Marquette and Marzette Hairston, who both live with different forms of lupus.

The organization plans to use the adjacent space for wellness-based programming and outreach initiatives.

The restaurant is also seeking approval to accept SNAP benefits for hot meals. “It would be great for the older people. They always come here and support us,” said Harris.

A Friendship That Became a Business

The story behind K&P Lounge began almost 10 years ago in that same South Street building.

At the time, Tiru was running a party and treats business from what is now the neighboring “Side 2” space. Katrina Harris became one of her first clients after stopping in to book a birthday party for her children.

What was supposed to be a short consultation turned into hours of conversation.

The two quickly discovered common ground, including shared Alabama family ties and entrepreneurial ambitions. Soon after, Harris showed up to help with a Candy Land-themed party setup — bringing supplies free of charge.

“I thought there was going to be an invoice but she said she just wanted to support me,” recalled Tiru.

That moment launched a partnership that eventually grew into K&P Celebrations, an event venue business in Mohegan Lake.

As the business expanded, so did customer demand for catering. That growing interest in their food led the duo to open their first restaurant location in Cortlandt Manor.

Learning Through Setbacks

K&P Lounge operated at 276 Watch Hill Road (now The Goodmark) in Cortlandt Manor for three years.

The restaurant built a loyal following, but recurring infrastructure and maintenance problems made consistent operation difficult.

The owners say constant repairs forced repeated closures and made it hard to build momentum. “You’d think you were getting ahead and then something else would break,” Harris said.

The challenges were compounded by the fact that both women were still balancing full-time careers.

Before retiring in 2025, Tiru worked as switchboard supervisor for Westchester County Public Works. Harris continues to run two daycares in Peekskill.

The pair often worked all day before heading straight to the restaurant for evening service. Despite the challenges, they say the Cortlandt experience taught them they could build something real.

“We learned that we can do anything we want to do,” Harris said.

The Peekskill Relaunch

After leaving Cortlandt, the owners initially believed their restaurant chapter was over. But when the South Street opportunity became available, it felt right.

“We were done. We quit. We were going to enjoy things and then this happened. It wasn’t planned,” said Tiru.

For Harris, who has deep family roots in Peekskill, the city offered a built-in sense of connection. Her family is well known in the city, including her brother, Pete Peterson, who is a longtime presence in the local sports community, often DJing and announcing games at Torpy Field and school events.

For Tiru, reopening on South Street carried personal significance. The neighboring Side 2 storefront once housed her original business.

The owners say they also believed Peekskill’s walkable downtown energy and community-oriented atmosphere aligned with their vision for what K&P could become.

“I knew once we got to Peekskill, we’d be okay,” Harris said.

Built on Trust and Family

The restaurant is operated by Tiru, Harris and Pamela’s husband, David Tiru, who works in the kitchen. Together, they are the primary cooks and operators, supported by a staff of about six employees.

The women describe their partnership as more like sisterhood than business. They credit trust as the foundation of everything they’ve built.

“We’re family now,” Tiru said.

That trust, Harris says, is essential for any business partnership. “You have to know that person,” she said. “You have to trust them.”

Her advice to young entrepreneurs? “Believe in yourself and believe that your dream can come true. It’s okay if you fall because there may be something bigger, better for you out there.”

Looking Ahead

In the short term, the owners hope to fully activate both sides of the South Street property and continue growing their customer base. Long term, they envision eventually stepping back and allowing others to carry the business forward.

For now, they remain focused on serving good food and building a welcoming gathering place.

The response so far, they say, has been overwhelming. “The community has showed up and showed out,” Harris said.

And when customers leave after their first visit, Tiru hopes they walk away with more than just a full stomach.

“The vibe,” she said. “The feeling. The love.”