Apparently, the secret to a happy marriage is spending more than 20 years together and then deciding to run a restaurant so you can spend even MORE time together.
At least that's what seems to be working for Alan and Shenna, the husband-and-wife team behind Urban Kitchen, Groovin' in the Grove's November 2026 Business of the Month. 😂
With a small kitchen, a dedicated crew, and a menu featuring everything from Chicken Bacon Ranch wraps to scratch-made Alfredo and something appropriately named the Parmageddon, Urban Kitchen has become a familiar favorite in Cottage Grove.
But what caught my attention most wasn't the food.
During Cottage Grove's major ice storm, Alan and Shenna fired up their propane equipment to provide hot meals when much of town was without power. More recently, they helped turn community donations into free meals for neighbors affected by interrupted food assistance benefits.
And like many small business owners, they're doing it all while juggling rising costs, long hours, employees, and the occasional headache that comes with running your own business.
I reached out to Alan and Shenna to learn more about their story, what makes Urban Kitchen different, and what being voted Business of the Month means to them.
The following interview is shared in Alan and Shenna's own words.
1. Tell us a little about yourselves! Who are the people behind Urban Kitchen?
We're Alan and Shenna, a husband-and-wife team who have been married for over 20 years. We both bring different strengths to Urban Kitchen. Alan handles most of the meat cooking, food prep, and catering requests, while Shenna takes care of customer service, office work, menu design, and marketing. We both prepare meals, work together on catering orders, and love collaborating on new specials and menu ideas.
Of course, Urban Kitchen is much more than just the two of us! We're incredibly fortunate to have a great team of employees who are an integral part of our success. Hannah, Khya, Madie, Mia, Mira, and Shelby all play an important role in keeping Urban Kitchen running and taking care of our customers. We truly appreciate the hard work and dedication they bring to the business. Urban Kitchen is a team effort, and we're proud of the people who make it all happen.
2. How did Urban Kitchen get started, and what inspired you to open the business?
Alan has always had a passion for cooking and spent several years working as a kitchen manager. We'd talked about wanting to work for ourselves, so when we heard Urban Kitchen was for sale, we jumped at the opportunity. Being able to purchase an already established restaurant instead of starting from scratch was a huge opportunity for us.
We saw a lot of potential in Urban Kitchen and knew we could take what was already there and make it our own. It's been a lot of hard work, but seeing how much we've grown over the past few years has made it worth it.
3. What makes Urban Kitchen unique, and what do you think sets you apart?
We take pride in making real food from scratch and offering fresh, healthier alternatives to traditional fast food. We want people to be able to grab a quick, convenient meal without having to settle for the usual fast food options.
Despite operating out of a pretty small kitchen, we're able to offer a surprisingly wide variety of dishes, so there's a little something for everyone. We also love getting creative in the kitchen and try to introduce new and exciting specials every week. It keeps things fun for us and gives our customers something different to look forward to.
We believe good food doesn't have to be complicated, and convenience shouldn't mean sacrificing quality.
4. What are some of your most popular dishes or personal favorites that everyone should try?
Our Chicken Bacon Ranch Salad and Wrap are hands down our biggest sellers, followed closely by our Teriyaki Boxes featuring our house-made teriyaki sauce. Our scratch-made Alfredo is another customer favorite, and we offer it in several different ways. Our Bang Bang Chicken Bowl has also become one of our most popular dishes.
If we could encourage people to try a couple of things they might not have had yet, it would definitely be our Bang Bang Chicken Bowl or our Parmageddon Bowl. Both are packed with flavor and really showcase the kind of food we love creating at Urban Kitchen.
We're always experimenting with new recipes and flavors, so there's usually something new to discover!
5. What's been the most rewarding part of running your business?
Without a doubt, the most rewarding part has been getting to work together. We've always wanted to build something side by side because, quite honestly, we hate being apart! Urban Kitchen has given us the opportunity to spend our days together doing something we both love.
Another huge part of it is getting to serve our community. There's something really special about preparing a meal for someone and knowing you've made their day a little better.
We've always believed that food is love, and through Urban Kitchen, we get to share that love with the town we call home.
6. What have been some of your biggest challenges, and what have you learned along the way?
One of our biggest challenges has been learning how to balance being good bosses with running a successful business. We genuinely care about our employees and want them to feel like family, but we've also had to learn that sometimes what's best for the business requires making difficult decisions. Finding that balance hasn't always been easy, but it's taught us a lot about leadership, communication, and understanding.
Another major challenge has been navigating the financial realities of owning a small business. Between rising costs, taxes, and government regulations, it often feels like the system isn't designed to help small businesses succeed. We put in incredibly long hours, and people might be surprised by how little small business owners sometimes take home compared to the work they put in.
We've learned that owning a business takes a lot more than just being good at what you do. It takes patience, sacrifice, adaptability, and a whole lot of determination.
7. Do you have any funny, memorable, or heartwarming stories from your time in business?
Two experiences really stand out to us, and both remind us why we love being part of this community.
The first was when Cottage Grove was hit by a major ice storm that knocked out power throughout town. While most businesses were forced to close, we decided to fire up our propane equipment and open up so we could provide hot meals to the community. We were incredibly busy, and by the end of the day we were absolutely exhausted, but it was one of the most rewarding days we've had. Knowing we could provide a hot meal and a little bit of normalcy during a difficult time made every bit of that exhaustion worth it.
More recently, when food assistance benefits were interrupted, we organized a community meal donation program to help individuals and families who were struggling to put food on the table. The response from Cottage Grove was incredible! Community members donated several hundred dollars, and we used those donations to provide free meals to people who needed them. We didn't take a profit from the donations. Our goal was simply to turn the community's generosity into as many meals as possible.
Both experiences reminded us of something we already knew: Cottage Grove is full of people who genuinely care about one another. We're grateful that Urban Kitchen has given us a way to help our neighbors when they need it most.
8. What does being voted November's Business of the Month by the community mean to you?
We were genuinely surprised and incredibly honored to win! It means so much to be recognized by our community for the hard work, dedication, and sacrifices that go into running Urban Kitchen. We pour our hearts and souls into this little kitchen, and knowing that our community sees and appreciates that makes it all worthwhile.
Cottage Grove is our home. We've spent our entire lives in this community, and we truly love this town and the people who make it special. Our hope has always been that Urban Kitchen can contribute in its own little way to the charm and character that make Cottage Grove such a wonderful place to live.
This recognition isn't just for us, either. It belongs to our amazing employees who work hard alongside us every day, and to the customers who continue to support us. We're incredibly grateful to all of you!
9. What's next for Urban Kitchen? Any upcoming plans, specials, or exciting things you'd like people to know about?
Our goal is to keep growing, improving, and finding new ways to make Urban Kitchen even better. We love getting creative with our food and want to continue bringing new and exciting meals and weekly specials to our customers. We never want our menu to feel stale, and we're always looking for ways to give people something new to look forward to.
We also have some bigger dreams for the future. We'd love to eventually open a second Urban Kitchen location when the timing and opportunity are right.
For now, we're focused on continuing to build what we've started, taking care of our customers, and making Urban Kitchen a place people are excited to come back to.
10. The floor is yours! Is there anything else you'd like to share with Cottage Grove?
First and foremost, we want to send all our love and appreciation to our amazing customers. Without you, there is no Urban Kitchen. Every visit, every kind word, every recommendation to a friend, and every bit of support means more to us than you could ever know. You're the reason we get to keep doing what we love.
We also want to give a huge thank-you to our incredible employees. We wouldn't be where we are today without their hard work, dedication, and the care they put into serving our customers. We're so grateful to have them as part of the Urban Kitchen family.
And a very special thank-you to Angie May for trusting us to take over the business she worked so hard to build. She created something special, and we're honored to carry on her legacy of providing delicious, healthier alternatives to traditional fast food while continuing to put our own heart and creativity into it.
Cottage Grove, thank you for believing in us, supporting us, and allowing us to be a small part of what makes this community so special.
From our family to yours, thank you for all the love. We hope to keep feeding this town for many years to come!
— Alan & Shenna, Urban Kitchen
More Than Just a Place to Grab Lunch
There were a few things that stuck with me while putting this feature together.
For starters, Alan and Shenna have been married for over 20 years, spend their days working together, and still say they hate being apart. I'm not sure what their secret is, but I'm impressed. Most couples have a hard enough time agreeing on what to have for dinner, let alone running the place making it. 😂
What impressed me even more was their willingness to help during some pretty difficult times in our community.
Opening up during the ice storm to provide hot meals and helping turn donated money into food for struggling families aren't things they had to do. They chose to do them, even while dealing with the challenges of keeping their own business afloat.
I also appreciated how honest they were about the financial side of running a small business. I think people sometimes see a busy restaurant and assume the owners must be doing pretty well financially. As Alan and Shenna pointed out, that isn't always the case.
There are long hours, rising expenses, difficult decisions, and employees depending on you. The finished meal might look simple, but there's a whole lot happening behind the scenes.
Another thing worth mentioning is how much credit they gave to their employees and Angie May, who built Urban Kitchen before they took over. It's good to see people recognize the work that came before them and the team helping them move forward.
And now they've got even bigger dreams, including potentially opening a second location someday.
Although I do have one question. If Alan and Shenna hate being apart, who's going to run the second one? 😂
In all seriousness, I think their story is a pretty good example of why these monthly features matter. We all know the businesses around town, but we don't always know the people behind them or what it takes to keep those businesses running.
Sometimes you learn a lot just by asking a few questions.
Visit Urban Kitchen in Cottage Grove
Urban Kitchen | Fresh, Scratch-Made Meals & Catering
📍 1127 E. Main St., Cottage Grove, OR 97424
📞 (541) 650-2364
🌐 Urban Kitchen's Official Website
📖 Urban Kitchen's Groovin' in the Grove Business Directory Listing
Some of their customer favorites include the Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap and Salad, Teriyaki Boxes with house-made sauce, scratch-made Alfredo, and the Bang Bang Chicken Bowl. Alan and Shenna also recommend giving the Parmageddon Bowl a try.
Be sure to check their website or Facebook page for current hours, weekly specials, and catering information.
Congratulations to Alan, Shenna, Hannah, Khya, Madie, Mia, Mira, Shelby, and everyone at Urban Kitchen on being voted November 2026 Business of the Month!
Thank you for sharing your story and for everything you do for Cottage Grove.
Austin Hall
Founder, Groovin' in the Grove
Your local resident ginger.
Have a Local Business or Story Worth Sharing?
Groovin' in the Grove's Business of the Month program is driven by community voting, and getting listed in our local business directory is completely free.
We're also growing our Groovin' in the Grove Community E-Newspaper, featuring local news, businesses, events, and stories from around Cottage Grove and the surrounding communities.
If you own a business, have an upcoming event, or know someone with a story worth telling, I'd love to hear from you. We're also welcoming inquiries from businesses interested in advertising or being featured in a future edition.
Explore our Community Winners, browse the local business directory, or reach out to AustinHall@groovininthegrove.com to get involved.
Let's keep giving our local businesses and neighbors the recognition they deserve.
