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Comments417 Cooking Class: Hickok's Steakhouse
Katie Pollock
(page 1 of 5)
The 417 Cooking Class is a series that highlights the best local chefs and their creations, plus wines paired with each course. In the following pages, you'll find recipes for the four-course dinner that Hickok's Steakhouse and Brewery prepared for the September class at Metro Builders Supply's sparkling demonstration kitchen.Hickok's Steakhouse and Brewery is relatively new to the Springfield scene. The baby of a restaurant is not even a year old, but already it's found a comfy home downtown. It's the newest third of the Agrario-slash-Hickok's-slash-Patton Alley Pub trifecta of tastiness on Patton Avenue-a block of the city that Eric Zackrison has somewhat taken over with these three decidedly different restaurants. Where Patton Alley Pub has more beers than you can shake a pilsner glass at, and Agrario has classy items such as Denver lamb ribs served with apple slaw, Hickok's takes a more down-home steakhouse approach to the business. The restaurant has a drawing (by local painter Susan Somer-Luarca) of Wild Bill Hickok on the brick wall, newsprint menus, a wild West feel, lots of brick and wood decor and a microbrewery, and it offers steak, steak and more steak to families and hip downtown-dwellers alike.
The menu even offers a challenge to daring diners: the infamous Dinner for Four. It's four pounds of sirloin, four dinner salads, four sides of mashed potatoes, four sides of sautéed vegetables and a banana split for four. It's intended for-you guessed it-four people. But the offer is on the table for individuals who want to take it on themselves. If they eat every last bite of it on their own, it's free. Some people have tried to complete the daunting task, says Sous Chef Dave Geier, but not many. No one has succeeded. The most valiant effort only got the person halfway through the meal, he says.
For 417 Cooking Class purposes, we won't ask anyone to take a swing at a four-pound sirloin. Instead, you can watch Dave and Kitchen Manager Kevin O'Connell create steakhouse fare with Patton Avenue-esque touches in the test kitchen at Metro Builders Supply.
The meal will begin with an iceberg wedge salad covered in chunky homemade bleu cheese dressing. It's what Kevin calls a "classic steakhouse staple," and it's topped with crunchy bacon and zesty red onions. The next course is a simple but delicious take on typical shrimp cocktail. The grilled shrimp cocktail is sprinkled with plenty of spicy seasonings, served hot and dipped in Hickok's own blend of freshly made cocktail sauce. The main course is a double thick, French cut smoked and grilled pork chop with apricot-chipotle glaze and sautéed sweet potatoes. It's an uncomplicated and tasty blend where savory meets sweet meets spicy, all on one plate. For dessert, the classic banana split is given a new face. The grilled banana split has slightly charred bananas and pineapple, chocolate and strawberry sauces, vanilla ice cream and, of course, a cherry on top. Each course is made in front of you by Kevin O'Connell and Dave Geier and paired with wine.
You might not be able to take on a four-pound hunk of beef, but we're pretty sure you can create this meal at home. Go to the next page to check out the recipes and try for yourself.
Reader Comments:
Students in cooking schools are trained with basic to advanced cooking skills. They learn to cook delicious cuisines using raw ingredients. The chefs also tell them about the natural and healthy living.
http://www.culinaryschoolsprograms.com/