A crowd of satisfied Memphis diners shook his hand and offered pats on the back after a big night at Kelly English Steakhouse at Harrah's St. Louis, but the chef for whom the restaurant is named was a little distracted.
English is known for stepping out of the kitchen to visit with guests at his Memphis place, Restaurant Iris, but on Saturday he served almost 400 dinners with a new staff, and he was busy in the kitchen.
Photo by Sid Hastings
Memphians Ashley and Sally Pace (left), join St. Louis friends Sara Reiff and her husband, Bob (hands at right) during Saturday's private preview dinner at the new Kelly English Steakhouse at Harrah's St. Louis casino in Maryland Heights, Mo.
So he didn't make it by his mother's table.
He was worried.
"Maybe I should take these to her room," he said, spying a floral arrangement in the restaurant's elegant lobby.
That sort of consideration is typical of English, who worked under star New Orleans chef John Besh for several years, including running his Tunica restaurant, N'awlins, before opening Restaurant Iris in 2008. It has not only earned him a loyal following in Memphis, but also friends, regular Iris diners happy to drive 300 miles to help christen the new restaurant, which officially opened Monday.
Jackie Glisson, who did the interior design of Iris and is a regular, was one of about 100 Memphis guests. He sang the praises not only of English, but also of Iris general
manager Jeff Frisby, who has been training the St. Louis staff for about three weeks.
"Right before I sat down, the waitress said, 'Welcome, Jackie. Would you like a Seven and Sprite?' That's how good Jeff is. She'd never even seen me, but she knew I'd be here and what I drink," he said.
English was approached by representatives from Harrah's more than a year ago, after he was named one of the Food & Wine Best New Chefs 2009.
"They needed someone with some name recognition, and I'm thankful that they thought of me," English said.
Plans for the steakhouse at the casino on the outskirts of St. Louis were unveiled in May, and English has been juggling duties between the two for the past several weeks.
With a straight shot of interstate connecting the two cities, St. Louis is a logical spot for a second restaurant. And casino restaurants are hot properties for top chefs.
Besh Steakhouse is in Harrah's New Orleans, and Atlantic City boasts restaurants operated by chefs such as Bobby Flay, Wolfgang Puck and Michael Mina. Those three, plus Emeril Lagasse and even Joel Robuchon and Thomas Keller have places in Las Vegas, a city that at one time offered little more than cheap buffets for gamblers.
But Iris won't get short shrift, English promises.
"I couldn't do this if I didn't have such an excellent staff. It's important that both restaurants are successful, that Iris continue to be a success, and we'll be able to do this because of every member of the great team we have," he said.
While the restaurants are quite different, there are a few similarities. The major difference is the size: Kelly English Steakhouse seats 196; Restaurant Iris has 45 cozy spots inside (and a bit of outdoor seating).
There are a few signature Iris items on the St. Louis menu. The brussels sprout salad with Benton's bacon, the lobster knuckle sandwich, the midnight snack of brioche, shrimp and eggs, and of course, the surf and turf combo of fried oysters and blue cheese stuffed in a New York strip all made it.
Some diners had a hard time choosing between those favorites and the new items.
"She's literally addicted to the brussels sprouts at Iris," Eric Callan said about his wife, Erica. The Midtowners started dining at Iris on the night it opened, and Eric, a Mississippi State alumnus, wagers a slab of Benton's bacon on the Egg Bowl each year with English, an Ole Miss alumnus.
Steve and Dean McFarland were longtime diners at La Tourelle and friends of owners Glenn and Martha Hays, from whom English purchased the property for Iris.
"I was so disappointed when La Tourelle closed, but when I ate at Iris, I was like 'Damn, it's as good as it ever was,'" Steve said. "Kelly is just great.
Pat and Lisa Parker were also La Tourelle regulars that made Iris their go-to restaurant.
"We always went to La Tourelle for our anniversary," Lisa said. "It so happened it was the first week Kelly opened and I called for a reservation. He answered the phone and said they didn't have any openings, but I told him my story and he said, 'Come on in,' and we've been going since then."
The weekend held a special treat for them. Pat is originally from St. Louis, works for a company based in St. Louis, and is a Cardinals fan.
"I got a call late Thursday (from a co-worker in St. Louis). He said 'What are you doing this weekend?' and I told him we were going to be in town. He asked if we could come a day early," he said.
It turned out his co-worker had an extra ticket to Game 7 of the World Series, which the Cardinals won in their hometown.
"It's a pretty good weekend," Pat said.
--Jennifer Biggs: 529-5223
Source: http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2011/nov/02/among-friends/?partner=RSS
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