A restaurant with purpose

Take 2 employs previously-incarcerated women

Take 2: A Resonance Café, the newest lunch spot downtown is an iteration of an old favorite—a hidden gem called Impressions. Savvy downtowners would often take ‘newbies’ there as if it were an initiation. The cafeteria-style restaurant featured delicious sandwiches made fresh along an assembly line. But about five years ago Impressions shut its doors, presumably forever, which makes this comeback story even more exciting.

Around the same time the restaurant faced moving or closing its doors, the owner Tom Butcher was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. Butcher had been in the restaurant biz since the ‘60s and his hand-crafted sandwiches, massive baked potatoes and homemade pies created a cult following in downtown Tulsa. When Impressions shut down, seemed like the end of an era for this downtown eatery. Luckily, it was only a short break and Butcher’s work was far from over.

Springing forth from Impressions’ ashes is Take 2, a restaurant with a purpose. The café is owned and operated by Resonance for Women, which helps women who have been incarcerated transition back into society. Take 2 is part of Resonance’s Choose to Change program that provides job training that help ensure a successful transition. 

Six women are employed by Take 2 Café, with Butcher managing day-to-day operations. During a lunch rush, their fine-tuned machine churns out orders to happy customers. 

The majority of Take 2’s customers were longtime fans of Impressions. Butcher donated his recipes, much of his equipment and his know-how to the Resonance project. So for fans of Butcher’s menu, Take 2 Café will not disappoint. The same sandwiches, soups, spuds, and sides will stoke the nostalgia of old fans and are sure to delight new ones. The secret? Butcher eschews “industrialized food” and makes everything in house.

“We make our meats fresh, each day,” says Butcher. “The meat you are eating today was slow cooked the night before. And we slice it fresh, right in front of you.” Butcher handles the prime rib at the front of the line, piling juicy slices of medium-rare perfection onto the fluffy bread of your choice, then adding a side of au jus. (For an extra kick, ask for the fresh horseradish.)

The Take 2 Club sandwich features slow-roasted roast beef, crisp thick-cut bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato and mayo, served with a side of au jus. The crusty French bread is the perfect vessel for this masterpiece.

If you want to “go big or go home,” then the Impressions sandwich has your number. This sandwich is a decadent mound of ham, turkey, pastrami, roast beef, salami, Swiss, cheddar, lettuce, tomato and mayo. You can have it hot or cold, but with a little heat it becomes melted magic.

Take 2’s cold sides are also made fresh daily. The vibrant tabouli, savory potato salad, and coleslaw are delicious, but the shrimp pasta salad is tops in my book. With a mayo-based sauce, the freshness of the shrimp with the crunch of celery is an excellent foil to al dente macaroni. Their huge, loaded baked potatoes, soups and on-the-go salad bar are also popular. For a little more indulgence, a slice of homemade pie will hit the spot.

Take 2 Café takes call-in orders, but may not answer during peak lunch hours. It’s best to arrive before 1:30 p.m. if you are craving prime rib, and if you are in a hurry, you can hit the salad bar without waiting in line. It’s not often you can change lives just by eating lunch. But at Take 2 Café, you’ll be making a real difference, one bite at a time. 

Take 2: A Resonance Café
309 S Main St. | 918.861.4555 | Mon-Fri 10:30 a.m. to 3 PM. | Dine in and carry out available. 
take2tulsa.com

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