After nearly 20 years married and more than eight years in business together, Matthew and Aliza Byrne have developed their own recipe for a healthy, loving relationship. As the owners of Kitchen, the Byrnes split their time between locations in West Palm Beach and Palm Beach Gardens, with Aliza orchestrating front-of-house operations and Matthew overseeing the culinary program. Add private events and a Prep Kitchen lunch and to-go component to the southern outpost—plus two busy teenage boys—and Matthew and Aliza have their hands full. But they believe the key to success, in love and in life, is to always date your partner.
“We’ve grown together,” says Aliza. “Marriage is a business relationship, and you have to put in the time. We have dinner together every night, even if it’s at 9 o’clock.”
Matthew and Aliza met through Matthew’s older sister while living in Philadelphia, eventually relocating to West Palm Beach due to Matthew’s career as a private chef. Kitchen was born out of a desire to share what they love—and the food that brought them together—with those who are as passionate about dining as they are.
“Any party you ever go to, everyone ends up in the kitchen,” Matthew says of the inspiration behind the restaurant’s name. It was a celebration, in fact, that led to one of Kitchen’s best-selling items. When Matthew baked a coconut cake for Aliza’s birthday one year, it was an instant hit among the staff and clientele.
Matthew’s favorite dish—the chicken schnitzel—is a revamped version of something Aliza made for him while they were dating. The crowd-pleasing cheesesteak spring rolls are an homage to the city where they fell in love. Read on as Matthew and Aliza share other culinary musts and more.
PBI: If you didn’t have to work on Valentine’s Day, what would you do instead?
Aliza: My ideal Valentine’s Day would be to have a decadent dinner and have someone wait on us.
Matthew: I would never get out of bed. I’d put on my Eberjey pajamas and stay there all day.
What’s your go-to breakfast-in-bed food?
Matthew: She makes these weird toasts. We’ll have some leftover Israeli salad and then she’ll scramble eggs or egg whites or add a fried egg on top to make these great little toasts.
Aliza: I love Brooklyn Water Bagels and Sable’s from New York. We’ll usually have that on New Year’s Day. And then Matthew makes me coffee every morning.
How does the other take his/her coffee?
Matthew: Very little sugar and a little bit of collagen powder.
Aliza: Matthew only likes iced coffee with oat milk and a little bit of sugar.
Matthew: Sweeter than I should.
What’s your top tip for raising adventurous eaters?
Matthew: What we used to say to our kids was you can’t tell me you don’t like it until you try it. It might be strange at first, but you’ll probably like it.
Aliza: We’ve taken them out since they were 2. Exposure is major.
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