Andrew Mark Veety

Family Style Sunday Dinner At Gallagher's

My favorite way to dine out is family style. From soul food at Mrs. Wilke's Dining Room in Savannah to a massive plate of porterhouse steak for eight at Peter Luger Steakhouse in Brooklyn, it is hard to beat the act of communal dining with friends and family.

I enjoy family style because its a reflection of how our family eats at home. Not only do we enjoy making a menu at the beginning of the week and preparing our meals all week long instead of heading out to restaurants - we also love to fill our home with friends for a meal as often as we can. Give me great friends new and old, a comfortable table to accommodate them and enough inspired food to cover it from end to end and I am a happy man. 

A group of people, giving their time, sharing stories, raising glasses and experiencing the same flavors at the same time. How could it get better than that?

However it is not just the sense of community that attracts me to family style dining, it is also the sense of ritual and history associated with it. Family style cooking is not cutting edge or grand cuisine, although it can often make what was old new again. Family style cooking takes the food of our family, culture and youth and passes it along for all to share. Simply put, it returns us to our roots, or in the case of a family style restaurant, the roots of the folks preparing the meal.

Unfortunately for the dining public, this style is more of a novelty than an every day reality. In its place we find small print at the bottom of a menu indicating an additional charge to share plates, which seems to perplexing to me in so many ways. Is family style not considered a viable business model or have we as diners given up on the idea of communal eating outside of the home?

Well St. Louis, a drive of less than an hour will find you in the sleepy town of Waterloo, Illinois, the home of Gallagher's, a small gem that serves up a superb pan fried chicken dinner on Sunday afternoons. During the week Gallagher's offers up high end pub food like candied bacon burgers and chops, but on Sunday it forgoes its menu in favor of a family style meal that includes biscuits, pan fried chicken, mashed potatoes with a cream gravy, slow cooked green beans with ham, corn custard and a desert for about thirteen bucks a person.

Now that is a family style / family value I can get behind.

The entrance to Gallagher's is one part gastropub and one part Victorian bed and breakfast, however once you move past the doorway and stairs you find yourself in a handsome bar complete with a server who would look more at home at the Royale than this small community surrounded by farmland on all sides. In fact, the hipster feel of our waiter, covered shoulder to knuckle with amazing sleeves of tattoos on each arm, was an awesome juxtaposition to the overall environment. Old and new. Stuffy and punk rock. I enjoyed the feeling of Gallagher's very much.

We were quickly shown to a table and told that our order was already in, which was perfect because now it was clear that Sunday dinner is done right at Gallagher's - count the heads, fill the glasses with tea and start bringing out the food. In this case this was a basket of pulled from the oven buttermilk biscuits that would get the nodding approval of your dear old grandmother. The only improvement would have been some fresh preserves or better yet honey to drizzle.

A biscuit and tall glass of tea later our waiter appeared again with a tray filled with a whole fried chicken, potatoes, gravy, green beans and corn which we took turns dishing out and passing along for the next person to sample.

Standing out were the green beans, perfectly cooked and mixed with large pieces of smokey ham and the corn custard, which walked the thin line between corn casserole and creamed corn.

Lacking were the mashed potatoes which had a pleasant appearance and texture but went from gummy to gummier throughout the meal. While I enjoyed the cream gravy I thought it could have done with some chicken flavor, ideally from some fat reserved from the pan fried chicken. However, as advertised, it is a cream gravy so I can't complain to much.

However, the highlight of this meal was the pan fried chicken, which happens to be my favorite preparation. Unlike a deep fried chicken, the parts are broken down, seasoned, coated and then placed into a cast iron skillet to cook - first on one side and then the other. The chicken was seasoned correctly with salt playing well with a collection of secret spices - I detected onion, garlic and chili for heat but there is enough hidden in there to keep you guessing thought the meal. The crispness of the crust was everything that a Shake 'n Bake coated chicken should be but always isn't.

I opted for dark meat the first go around, which always stands up better to frying than white meat. Both the wing and thigh I had were crisp on the outside and a heady mix of grease and juice on the inside. Normally I am discouraged by an overly greasy piece of fried chicken because it indicates it was was poorly fried, however I was more than OK with it given this pan fry method. My second helping was part of a large breast, and while it was cooked as well as the thigh and wing, it was dryer than I would have expected. Still tasty, but not nearly as much as with the dark meat.

With plates removed and hands and faces washed our waiter appeared again with was was described as a "light cake" comprised of chocolate and a caramel crunch topping. Truth be told it was as billed - the cake was light and airy allowing the sparse topping to provide the heft to this tasty treat. Excellent ending to a solid meal.

Did I mention that this family style meal was thirteen dollars and under an hour from St. Louis? I for one can't wait to return with friends for another round of family style dining at Gallagher's.

Training Our Burger Future

I'm sure at some point my son will look at his old man in horror and embarassment, but right now he does not know any better. I love this picture from this past weekend because it seems to support the idea that the apple does not fall far from the tree.

I also love his tee shirt because its full of all kinds of win.

Photo by J. Pollack Photography.

January Burger Of The Month - Dressel's Public House - Recap

This past Sunday I met up with a great group of friends, foodies and food bloggers to take down a burger. This was the first stop in a year long search for the best burger that St. Louis has to offer, based on the input of my readers. You nominated them and I'm eating them, one by one until I crown the best burger in St. Louis in December.

Before we dive into the actual burger, I wanted to take a moment to thank some people who have not only helped me refine this idea, but really improve it. And for that I am very thankful.

Kelli Best-Oliver (South City Confidential / Food Blog Mafia) - By far my biggest supporter since I thought up this project. She's spread the word, encouraged me as I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do and coined the term "The Church of Burger" - suggesting that we make each months meeting a Sunday lunch. Inspired.

Bill Burge (STLBites) - For keeping me honest and refining how I compare all these burgers. Originally I was going to eat the biggest and most jacked up burgers I could get my hands on, it was Bill who pointed out to me that's not really a good comparison and got me to change my plan.

Stefani Pollack (Cupcake Project) - For recommending that we start with the pretzel with a side of rarebit at Dressel's. While it had nothing to do with eating burgers, it was a damn good call.

Jonathan Pollack (J. Pollack Photography) - For the photos, which I think bring this project to another level. Please check out his site and think of him the next time you are looking for a photographer. 

Finally, thanks to everyone for the votes and feedback that let me put this project together. If you are interested in this project, please leave me a comment or contact me on Twitter or Facebook for more details.

Now, without further ado, welcome to The Church of Burger. In the name of the bun, the toppings and the holy burger, I present unto you the January Burger of The Month from Dressel's Public House.

The Setup:

I arrived early, grabbed a seat at a large table, a pint of cask O'Fallon IPA and contemplated the task at hand as I waited for folks to file in. I was happy to find that Dressel's has an authentic pub feel and is blissfully free of smoke or the remnants of smoking. 

Dressel's has two burgers on the menu; "The Dressel's Hamburger" (a 1/2 beef burger with lettuce and raw onion on a brioche bun) and the "5" (lamb burger, chive butter, bread and butter pickle, tomato and lettuce on a brioche bun). Diners can also top their burgers with cheese, rarebit, sauteed mushrooms, onions, red peppers, kraut and a house made bacon.

Around the table folks opted for the beef burger and then added cheese, rarebit, onions and mushrooms to their orders. I kept to the rules and ordered the Dressel's Hamburger as it came, with lettuce and onions. Nobody in our party requested a burger cooked past medium, with the majority opting for medium rare.

A pretzel was delivered to our table shortly after our burger orders were taken and we all dug into this salty and chewy pub treat served with a side of rarebit for dipping. We took turns passing the dish around the table, ripping a piece off and plunging it into the rarebit. The pretzel was crisp on the outside and crowned with salt, a perfect foil for the fresh bitterness of the cask ale IPA.  

With the pretzel gone and its rarebit artfully reserved for a forthcoming burger, the conversation turned to all things burger. Where to get them. Where you can't get them anymore. How they should be cooked. Why a burger cooked at home is almost always the best burger you can get. Time passed and I didn't see our waitress approach, arms loaded down with burgers on plates and baskets depending on the side ordered.

So here we were at the moment of truth, the reason we ventured out on a Sunday. Behold the burger from Dressel's:

The Patty: 

Listed as 1/2 pound on the menu, the burger looked like a hand made patty that was oozing juice from the top, indicating a good protein to fat ratio, probably 80/20. The first bite was juicy and salty, making an amazing topping unto itself - making condiments an unnecessary addition.

As I mentioned before, everyone ordered burgers medium and medium rare and for a table of seven I only saw one burger that approached that level of doneness. Instead of red to pink interiors, most of the burgers ranged from a light pink to a medium well gray.

Tasters commented:

"Mine was like a rainbow of beef: mid-rare on the first bite to almost full on well on the last. Fat saved it."

"Mine was definitely medium. I like 'em pinker than that. Luckily, it was still awesome."

"Well, really, the two things that make food taste good saved it: salt and fat"

"A bit salty, came out medium rather than medium rare, but worked perfectly."

Caramelization:

I don't care if the burger you are eating is smashed on a flat top or grilled in the back yard, it needs the flavor and crunch that can only come from a good char. For me, the saltiness of this burger did a good job pulling some juice and fat out of the patty before grilling. This led to an impressive set of grill marks which were dark, defined and indicated that the grill-person didn't waste time playing with the meat - it was cooked on one side, then the other, then plated.

The Toppings:

To Bill's point, its a little to easy to jack up a burger with all the extras to hide an otherwise subpar burger, so for the purposes of this project I am eating the burgers as they come. In this case, that meant lettuce and raw onion. The lettuce was crisp and fresh, providing a pleasing crunch. The sharp contrast of raw onion made for a good combo. No complaints.

As far as toppings, no two burgers were ordered the same during our visit, but there was a healthy representation of cheese burgers around the table.  One taster commented that the, "Rarebit sauce is not to be missed". 

Personally I was sad nobody opted for the house made bacon, because I would have been tempted to "tax" a bit of it off their plate had it shown up.

The Bun:

Often overlooked, a bun can make or break a burger experience. Far from being a marquee player of the burger team, it should instead play the part of journeyman, providing solid defense and a pop from time to time. For a burger throwing off as much juice as the one at Dressel's, the brioche bun did a fine job holding things together until the last bite. Like an edible Temper-Pedic pillow it stood up not only to the burger, but repeated two handed trips from plate to pie hole. From my perspective the bun was well done.

However, some of the diners disagreed and commented:

"It was just an oddly bagel-shaped enriched white bun.  There was no real egginess to it the way you would expect from brioche.  I also wished they’d toasted it more.  Someone did do it, but mine seemed like an after thought as apposed to an attempt to actually get it crisp."

The Verdict:

Readers voted the burger at Dressel's the twelfth best burger in St. Louis. Given how well rounded and executed I thought this burger was, it seems to indicate that the "best burger" in St. Louis will be orgasmic in a way that is usually reserved for a sandwich at Katz's Deli. And while that works in the movies, I'm not sure it will happen here in St. Louis. 

For me, the mix of salt and burger juice makes for a fine burger, one of the better burgers that I've had here in town. To get the best out of a burger from Dressel's I would suggest that readers order their burger a little less done than you really want it, and skip the condiments because this burger does not need them to hide behind. 

Others at the table thought that the burger at Dressel's was at best average with a chance of being much better. I can find common ground with that perspective, because it was not a perfect burger. Instead it hangs out in the lukewarm water between run of the mill and potentially great. And lets face it, here in St. Louis, that's not always an undesirable place to be.

Revisiting An Old Favorite And Two Rookie Efforts

The Old Favorite - The Tin Can Tavern "Ten"

A favorite stop of mine during football season is the Tin Can Tavern on Morgan Ford. Around noon friends make their way over to this South City landmark for stiff bloody marys and comfort food to:

1. Help soak up the toxins from the previous nights festivities
2. To nip at the proverbial hair of the dog, because for the Jets, Bills and Browns fans amongst us, it usually ends up being a long, long afternoon.

While much of the menu at the Tan Can is topnotch pub food, the mini corn dogs and tomato bisque are amongst my favorites, I usually find myself thinking about the burger on Thursday or Friday, long before Sunday ever rolls around.

The burger at The Tin Can is called the "Ten" and it comes with bacon, choice of cheese (including none, thankfully for me) and sauteed onions riding on two five ounce beef patties. While this is not a dominating double burger, at least compared to a favorite of mine - the "Big Block" Burger at The Penguin in Charlotte, North Carolina, it is well made and quite tasty.

Burgers are not cooked to order at the Tin Can, so every Ten is cooked to medium / well. However, what this burger lacks in juice it makes up with a crispy exterior to play against the star of the show - the pairing of perfectly cooked bacon and onions. The choice of side off this great menu of comfort food allows the diner to tailor the dish to the vibe of their Sunday. Make mine with mashed potatoes and gravy, a well executed cole slaw or the fries, which are quite good and would make a great partner of some malt vinegar or mayo if they were available at the table.

For the meek or calorie minded the Ten has a smaller brother, the "Five", but really, its Sunday and you're watching football, get the real deal and worry about it on Monday.

Rookie Effort 1 - Plaza Pastries and Donuts

Long under construction, the series of buildings at Connecticut and Morgan Ford has started to come alive with the opening of a child care center, a donut shop and soon, a family restaurant. The entire venture is the project of one family and the development of the property has been a labor of love filled with lots of do it yourself projects and sweat equity - just the thing a quickly developing street like Morgan Ford needs.

A quick check in with Google Maps shows that this new shop sits in the heart of the south St. Louis donut scene. Surrounded by at least a half dozen shops, some of which are Route 66 landmarks, the competition is indeed tough for this start up, but the shop should do well servicing the Tower Grove neighborhood. 

The morning I stopped in, the front counter case was filled with a variety of donuts, however I was disappointed to see several empty cases behind the register. Perhaps the owners are just planning for future demand, but for some reason that I still can't put to words, it made me worried about this small shop. It just made things feel incomplete, they didn't look sold out - they just looked empty. Very odd.

However among the several dozen choices, I was happy to see examples of both cake and yeast based donuts. The cake versions were well made; crisp from frying but not greasy. The yeast donuts I tried reminded me of a dense pâte à choux and came complete with a semi-sweet cream filling.

I happen to think that half the appeal of a donut shop is the coffee, which when made correctly should be thick enough to hold a spoon straight up and served by a lady in a beehive hairdo if at all possible. If I can't have that pairing, it at least has to be fresh (because of the volume of product moved) and a perfect foil for the fried goodness that is the American donut. The coffee should also be made for you, in my opinion. Alas, this is not the case at Plaza Pastries and Donuts, where I was given a cup of joe and a single serving of half and half before being told that the sugar was at the end of the counter and I could fix my own.

Am I nitpicking here? Probably. Did I feel let down? Without a doubt. Unfortunately for me, the ritual is just as important as the product most of the time.

In the end, I'm not so sure having this shop so close will stop me from making the drive to World's Fair or the Donut Drive-In, which not only produce outstanding examples of this classic road food, they have the coffee and old school service to back it up. I am excited that they are here though and the donuts are good enough to make this shop a great addition to the quickly developing Morgan Ford strip.

Rookie Effort 2 - Teaching Reis How To Make Peter Reinhart's Neo-Neapolitan Pizza Dough

Not much of an update here, but pizza night is a big deal in our home. So big that we have it once a week. I'm happy to report that Reis took a great interest in the construction of this Neo-Neapolitan Pizza Dough. I'll make a baker out of him yet.

Lazy Fall Afternoon In St. Louis

While its fleeting in duration, its hard to beat fall here in St. Louis.

I recently found a new fall past time that involves the back yard, a hammock and watching Reis check out the trees swaying in breeze until he falls asleep like his Pop.

Sara took this fantastic picture of Reis and I sharing some "Dad and Duder Time". 

Amuse Bouche For September 11th, 2009

Another day, another group of disjointed things I've been reading and doing....

• Excited that I'm developing a new concept around work day lunch time eats, angered that I forgot my camera when I left for work, again.
• Lamenting that it looks like I will miss American IPA night at The Good Pie as well as Hop In The City this year.
• S. 1650: A bill to amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to improve the purchase and processing of healthful commodities for use in school meal programs has entered the Senate. More at Slow Food USA
• Really enjoying the September 21st edition of "The Nation" which is dedicated to essays on Food Democracy, with essays by Alice Waters and Michael Pollan among others. Complementary to a recent article in Time on the real cost of cheap food.
• Sauce Magazine takes a tour of some of the best fries in St. Louis, manages to forget the amazing fries at The Dubliner. They make up for it with the recipe for the Subcontinental at The Royale on page 30 of the Wine, Beer & Spirits supplemental to the September print copy. While I almost always avoid cheese sandwiches, I'm oddly intrigued by the photo of the meatloaf melt at Jennifer’s Pharmacy. I blame Jonathan Pollack's tasty photo for my change in attitude.
• A year ago today I juxtaposed George Washington, Geroge W Bush and Sarah Palin. 8 years ago I walked out of my office to grab some coffee, looked up Broadway and saw the WTC on fire. I'm also still unsure if I should develop the roll of film I took that morning as I walked out of the city to Queens.
• Sure it works on the coasts, but will my Son get beat up when I pack him his first Bento Box for a school lunch?

Andrew And Reis Take On Five Guys And Their Burgers And Fries

General Housekeeping:

Its been some time since I've sat down and posted for this site, but for good reason. Since my last update on March 20th, I've been getting ready for the birth of my son, Reis Andrew Veety and getting used to life with a baby. 

Two months into this adventure, my wife and I have been out and about, visiting our favorite restaurants and antiquing, which along with hanging out with friends, have always been our primary past times. We've also been plugging around the kitchen and grill, trying to figure out how to cook and experiment with the great meals that we've enjoyed sharing with friends and readers over the years while bending to the demands of a super cute 10 week old.

Its been an adventure, but I'm happy to report that in my absence I've continued to work with some of my favorites, including burgers and backyard BBQ. I've even gotten quite good at a new pizza style - pizza bianca - in addition to working some more with Chicago deep dish and a giant calzone the size of a large pizza bent back on itself.

Recent Pizzas:

Pizza Bianca with a chard and kale pesto, summer squash and zucchini carpaccio and shallot.

Pizza Bianca with roasted tomato and red peppers, artichoke heats, baby spinach and olive oil.

Veggie Chicago style deep dish with a friends top notch home-brew - a tasty "My Neighbor Is A Dirty Pirate Hooker" ale.

From the grill:

Lemon pepper chickens on ginger ale cans, smoked over apple wood.

Exploded Jucy Lucy's waiting for a veggie Jucy Lucy to warm up. Veggie Lucy, how depressing.

The Main Event:

Now that we are back out and about, I'm ready to refocus on exploring the best eats that St. Louis has to offer. Also, if the road trips Sara and I used to take around the country exploring food and visiting with friends and family was fun, it will be even better with Reis in tow. I'm excited to get started, so lets.

Out of the box I wanted to focus on a recent addition to the St. Louis county landscape, Five Guys Burgers and Fries. I've been reading about Five Guys for some time on my favorite burger blogs (A Hamburger Today, Hamburger America and Road Food) and I've waited and waited for one to show up in St. Louis. Five Guys seems to polarize folks into two camps - fans and haters. The fans rave about the quality of the burger and the extensive choice of toppings. Haters focus on the greasiness of the burger, how they are only cooked to well done and how average they are compared to other burgers. 

I have to think that the complaint about the overall averageness of the Five Guys burger has to stem from the fact that they are still expanding across the United States, and the word of mouth is not jiving with the actual experience. Anything short of magical turns out to be a disappointment worth complaining about, or so it would seem from my reading.

Before actually trying for myself, I suggested Jeff Lash (intrepid road warrior and sometimes guest poster) try Five Guys on a recent trip to Philadelphia. Jeff did indeed make a stop and forwarded me this picture of a sad burger at Five Guys, taken with a very capable iPhone camera. 

Jeff indicated he was in the "average" camp. Photographic evidence in hand, I was beginning to think that Five Guys would be a loss. I also wondered where this burgers friends were, seeing only ketchup and some wilted lettuce. Then I remembered a trip to Pam's Chicago Style Hot Dogs that Jeff and I took last fall, and this burgers accompaniments match up pretty well with the dressing of his hot dogs then.

Still, condiments and personal preference aside, this was one sloppy and poorly constructed burger.

So, with Reis, Sara and Jeff Lash's family in tow, we headed out into St. Louis Country to see if Jeff's experience was the standard or the norm for Five Guys and their burgers... 

Babies waiting on burgers while parents munch on peanuts.

The Burger:

A far cry from Jeff's experience, I decked out my first Five Guys with bacon, mayo, mustard, ketchup, lettuce, grilled onion, pickles and raw jalapeno. When accompanied by friends, the burger becomes much more appealing. It also helped that the St. Louis version appeared to be assembled by a competent person, where as the Philadelphia version really looked like a real life "Whammyburger".

While the burger was cooked to well, it was still moist and had some great caramelization from the grill. The patties played well with others, especially the crispness of the pickle and the biting heat of the jalapeno pepper, which in its raw state resembled the color green usually reserved for the Chicago style hot dog. 

The bun was toasted on a grill before assembly and seemed capable of absorbing any grease thrown off by the burger itself. Truth be told, I don't know what it is with people complaining about greasy burgers anyway. For me, burger happiness is forgoing the napkins and licking juice and grease off your hands and forearms. We are eating burgers here people, when has a neat and tidy burger ever been fun, let alone tasty?

A real treat was the wrapping for this burger. The plain aluminum foil carrier smacks of indifference to the burger inside, however for me, it was like getting a perfect Christmas present wrapped only in newspaper. Humble in appearance, it puts the focus on the burger.  Utilitarian in purpose, it kept the burger warm longer than wax paper ever could, which seemed perfect for take out.

In general, I did not find the burger overly greasy, instead I found it a step above your traditional fast food fare. Is it a great burger? Probably not, instead it rates about even with Johnny Rockets or Red Robin. Does it far outshine most of its fast food/national competitors in the St. Louis area? Without a doubt, and at the price, I would drive past the gobs of chains that litter St. Louis and seek out one of the several stores that have popped up around 270 and deeper into the county. 

However, I do have to scratch my head and wonder why they are not venturing into the city. I've heard rumors of a store opening near Brentwood, but I have not been able to verify that, yet.

The Surprise - A Five Guys Hot Dog:

What you don't read about very often is that Five Guys is also a hot dog shop, selling dogs split down the middle, grilled and then topped with the same toppings as their burgers. A unique take on the hot dog in St. Louis, the dog at Five Guys is more like a hot dog sandwich. 

I covered mine with bacon, grilled onion and relish to complement the all beef dog. Thinking back on it, I should have taken this chance to make a hot dog / dagwood sandwich because the construction of this dog and the vast amount of toppings available lends itself to the idea.

The novelty of this dog also is its major drawback - by making it into a sandwich the bun is called upon to do a duty its just not cut out for. The bun appeared to be steamed and disintegrated quickly into the dog and toppings to make a tasty yet amorphous mess.

I will be back to again to try and make that dagwood dog though. 

The Missing:

The fries. We ordered a large fry which was enough to satisfy 4 adults. The fries are cut naturally with the skin on and fried, then piled into giant styrofoam cups and all around the paper sacks that each order is served in. The fries were not salted when they came out of the fryer, which I think is a mistake. They were also soggy from the oil, indicating that they were cooked poorly. They were a largely forgettable addition to an other wise above average burger night out.

The Verdict:

Put me in the fan camp, but there is lots of room for improvement. Given Jeff's experience in Philadelphia, I worry about quality as these stores melt into the local landscape. Kudo's for having malt vinegar for the fries, but shame on you for the actual fries. Kudo's for joining us here in St. Louis, but shame on you for ignoring the city. 

I will be back though, because the burger, while cooked to well done, it also well above the average.

(For the record, Reis slept though most of this meal. That's good, because if he had been fussing, chances are he would have been covered in burger juice and condiments.)