Italy Comes to Leonardtown!

The Bottom Feeder has long touted The Cow and the Fish Restaurant as the top source of quality dining food in Southern Maryland.  Michael and Sylvia Chase turned one of the many “Cap’n so and so” places situated on Route 235 into a place that turned out the best chef made food in the County.  They have decided to open an Italian Ristorante in closer by, in Leonardtown! in what was once Smokey Joe’s on the Town. Michael will turn his talents to producing “real” Italian food such as handmade ravioli, and believe it or not, Osso Buco! If his Bolognese Sauce served at the original place was any indication, he will accomplish this admirably. After all, his first culinary degree was from Girona, Spain where he was taught Mediterranean-style cooking using fresh herbs and spices to bring family and friends together around the dinner table, which will continue to be it’s model. So it’s not just another “Pizza Joint” link in a chain, peddling pre-made pies with manufactured ingredients. The Slice House has put others to shame and currently remains the only purveyor of credible Pizza in town.  They expect to open around the first of the month.  Authentic Italian cuisine has long been a missing component of our local options.

 

For those familiar with the layout of their new home, “Smokey Joe’s on the Town”, there was a big honkin’ Smoker in the middle of the place. It will continue to be of use for Sunday Lunches, producing Smoked Rosemary Chicken, herb lemon butter Chicken, and Prime Ribs. Once they have moved, be sure to go in and talk to Sylvia who has many stories and experiences to share.

 

The Feeder has received no compensation of fried oysters for this recommendation!

 

I am afraid “DFD” will remain dark for a while.

 

 

 

 

Told to Comeback!

Want to run down a side road for a minute, while Mr. Keller’s chicken sits and waits a bit.

Funny how things work..you start intending to write about Fried Green Tomatoes, and end up in Louisville.

  I keep thinking I’m leading the field and somebody “up there” reads my blogs.  Look what appeared in the Washington Post

AResized Keller One wcm t6s 2001001 – 5996

I was intrigued by the subject of course, but on the second page was this sub-headline

With “comeback sauce”.  Huh?

So, start of side road.  Starting down the road, various signposts tell us:

 

The name comes from the tradition in Mississippi that any time you leave a place, people don't say "goodbye" or "see you later," they say "Y'all come back." So I'm betting this sauce was made to seal the deal. It worked!

 

Comeback sauce is a dipping sauce for fried foods or as a salad dressing in the cuisine of central Mississippi. Similar to Louisiana remoulade  the base of the sauce consists of (presumably Duke’s) mayonnaise and chili sauce (or some approximation of that combination).^[2] The origin has been credited to The Rotisserie, a Greek restaurant that was located in Jackson, Mississippi.  Jackson was one of the many Southern towns where Greek immigrants found cafe jobs beginning in the 1920s. They learned the trade and English, eventually opening their own businesses. By midcentury, most of this city’s mainstay restaurants were owned by Greek families

The version from the article:

Another fancier version:

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup chili sauce
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1 teaspoon prepared spicy brown mustard (or Creole mustard))
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons onions (minced)
• 2 cloves garlic (finely minced, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)

Gather the ingredients.

 

Add all of the ingredients (mayonnaise, chili sauce, ketchup, mustard, oil, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, onions, garlic) to a jar and mix well to combine. Seal the jar with a screwcap lid. Refrigerate the jar overnight before using.

Serve in individual portions for dipping or spread the sauce from the jar and enjoy!

 

Got me to wondering about various “regional” sauces;  Of course in the realm of BBQ there are too many to recount, Carolina alone has variations with in the state, mostly vinegar based;  Alabama boasts “white” mayonnaise based sauces;  Texas has a bunch of ketchup based and so on….

 

A singular sauce is bound to Louisville Ky., and the Annual Derby: Henry Bain’s Sauce:

 

Henry Bain was a maitre d' at Louisville's all-male Pendennis Club in the early 20th century. This recipe was obtained through the current president of the club. This is a steak sauce. Some people add a small (yeah, you bet)  amount of bourbon whiskey (Duhh, Kentucky, Bourbon?, Duhhh)

 

1 (17 oz jar) Major Grey Chutney

4 ½ Ounces pickled walnuts

1 (14 Oz) bottle ketchup

1 (10 Oz) bottle steak sauce (such as A1)

1 (10 Oz) bottle Worcestershire Sauce

1 (12 Oz) bottle tomato-based chili Sauce

1 Dash hot pepper Sauce or to taste

Let me just reach in the pantry and get those Pickled Walnuts!

 

At any rate it is just another example of the wide variety of American Food!

Y’all come back now!