ZELLS Kitchen and Lounge — Restaurant in Lanham

When my son’s godfather sent me this spot in Lanham, MD to check out, I was intrigued. It’s in the same location where KitchenCray used to be, and the fact that it’s Black-owned? Say less—I was sold.

I made a reservation for 1:15 PM the night before, but honestly, I didn’t need to. The place was quiet when I arrived, with only two other parties dining. Parking was easy since they have a dedicated lot—a rare treat for the DMV.

The decor is a mix of vibrant warmth and rustic charm. Bold red walls immediately catch your eye and add energy to the space. Paired with dark wooden tables, rustic sliding panels, and sturdy metal chairs, it gives off a cozy, farmhouse-meets-industrial vibe. The open kitchen concept is a nice touch, letting you see your food being prepared, which adds a layer of transparency (and a little entertainment if you’re nosy like me).

Chalkboards with friendly messages like “Have a great day!” give the space a personal and welcoming feel. Overall, it’s casual, inviting, and perfect for a laid-back meal.

When I walked in, the hostess had stepped away, so there was no one at the front to direct me. For a second, I thought about seating myself, but I decided to wait. When she returned, she greeted me warmly and asked where I’d like to sit. Naturally, I opted for a table by the window because, hello, natural lighting for food pics!

After bringing me water, she came back to take my order. I couldn’t decide between the catfish bites and the salmon bites ($15), so I asked for her opinion. She recommended the salmon, so salmon bites it was—along with the mumbo shrimp deviled eggs ($16).

From my seat, I had a view of the kitchen, where the owner and what looked like a trainee were cooking. My “not-that-hungry” order came out pretty quickly.

• Salmon Bites: Crispy, fried in fresh grease, but they definitely could’ve used a sprinkle of salt and more seasoning. They weren’t bad, just not memorable.

• Mumbo Shrimp Deviled Eggs: These were the star. The filling was flavorful but a bit loose, so eating them was a messy affair. Luckily, I was dining solo, so no judgment, but if you’re on a date—proceed with caution.

Midway through, I decided to upgrade to the “starving” section of the menu and ordered the lamb chops with mashed potatoes ($36). For the lamb, you can choose from flavors like sweet chili, honey lemon pepper, BBQ, jerk, or buffalo. I went with honey lemon pepper, thinking it’d have a nice balance of sweet and tangy.

• Lamb Chops: Tender, flavorful, and seasoned well with the lemon pepper, but where was the honey? It was all tang and no sweet. Still, the meat was cooked to perfection, so no real complaints there.

• Mashed Potatoes & Spinach: The mashed potatoes were lumpy in the best way—real potato texture with the skins left on (I love that). They paired beautifully with the little bit of sautéed spinach on the side, which was seasoned just right. Honestly, the spinach might’ve been my favorite part of the dish.

While the food was decent and fulfilling, nothing truly blew me away. For a $63 tab (plus an automatic 18% gratuity) bringing it to $78, I was expecting more. I was expecting a little more pizzazz. I also wasn’t thrilled that the printed receipt didn’t include a breakdown of the items I ordered—just the total cost. Transparency is key, especially when dining out.

Would I return? Maybe. The vibe was chill, and the food had potential, but I’ll likely come back to see what their brunch is hitting for. Stay tuned—I might spin the block and give them...

• Just updating my review based on the reply below. Nothing was corrected on my bill. What you see on that receipt is what I paid. If anything had been adjusted, I would have mentioned that or had an updated receipt to prove it. Also I may not be a math expert, but 9% of 30$ (which is what I paid for the carafe) would be less than 3.00. Basically you're saying the taxes on my carafe equaled half the price. Your menu mentions gratuity not a 2% gratuity and a 40$ service charge. I stand on my review and I hope it helps someone make a well informed decision to or not to visit your establishment.*

I would like to start by saying that my review has very little to do with service. In fact, it was not busy, no wait time, and food came out rather quickly. Hostess and server were great. My issue is solely in relation to the hidden fees added to my bill. I was informed that this used to be Kitchen Cray and that the menu is still the same, but it definitely doesn't taste the same. I do think the food is over priced, but hey inflation has effected everyone. I ordered the mimosa carafe, which was 25.00 plus 5.00 for flavor (ie. Strawberry, mango,watermelon etc) what is a non flavored mimosa? Just champagne right? Anywho, in the end I ended up paying a 9%alcohol tax totaling 12.24. That's more like 40% for 30.00 worth of alcohol. So I paid 42.24 for 3.5 mimosas that was supposed to be 25.00. Then, there was a service charge of 39.11. Because it says 18%, I thought that was the gratuity, but I was told the waiter would only get the 4.26 listed by the 2% gratuity. No one was able to explain these fees. I ended up giving the waiter additional money because who is paying 4.00 tip on a 200+ bill? I will never go back to this restaurant. Unfortunately these things should be listed up front. There is nothing reasonable about a 40.00 unexplainable service charge. I try to support all things black owned, but this ridiculous 🙄. If you decide to give them a try, please review your receipt before paying. I am not cheap and I don't have a problem paying what I owe, but all those extra charges are insane. Added pictures of my receipt just incase you all need a visual of...

Would not recommend this place, I’m glad to see the last person had a similar experience we probably were in there the same time. She covered everything I was gonna say. I waited at least an hour for my food, by the time I received it it was very cold, most likely because I saw it and a few other customers food just sitting there on the counter for a long time. Looked to see if anyone else was eating and there was just one couple with food, out of the many people in the restaurant, while employees/manager were just walking around not greeting the customers. The drinks sucked, the menu mentioned there being berries with your drink, none of mine came with any. The food was good but definitely a rip off with 18% gratuity, the $20 lamb chops were just three with barely any meat on it, fries were over seasoned, but French toast was good. My waiter did not seem to know what she was doing, every question I asked she seemed very confused on, after finally receiving my food she asked if I wanted syrup, never received it. I also asked for mayonnaise which I never received as well but saw sitting on the counter. As I was checking out my waiter joked about not giving me the syrup because I ate my food quickly, which number one wasn’t true and I’m not sure what she wanted me to say to that because I did wait for her, not to mention an hour for my food, my food was getting colder by the minute, after five minutes I already had a feeling she wasn’t coming back. I also would suggest getting an itemized bill because they’re very disorganized and will sneak something on your bill that they said they’ll take off. All in all, might’ve been the worst experience I’ve had in a restaurant, TikTok’s on this place are very misleading, kitchen cray might’ve just been...