Cooking Class: Eddie Merlot's Bananas Foster
Cooking Class visits the kitchens of area restaurants, whose chefs share their popular recipes.
An impressive wave of light, soothing colors washes over visitors to Eddie Merlot's Prime Aged Beef & Seafood in Gateway Four, Downtown.
Walls of windows, curved columns topped by glass art-deco light fixtures, pale geometric carpeting and intricate abstract mosaics add to a light-filled atmosphere, a strong contrast from the traditional dark steakhouse aura of an old English pub.
“It's primarily a steakhouse, but distinctively different,” says the appropriately named general manager Larry Stakes, 50, of Dormont. “Most steakhouses are closed off, smoke-filled and have dark wood.”
Eddie Merlot's Pittsburgh location is part of a chain of 10 steakhouses in six states, with an 11th under construction in Colorado.
The light decor at Eddie Merlot's was carefully chosen with women in mind, Stakes says.
“The owner realizes that women make the majority of spending decisions. He wanted to put in a steakhouse that's different,” Stakes says. The choices have had an effect: “Many nights, the women outnumber the men.”
The executive chef of Eddie Merlot's in Pittsburgh is Raymond Dial of Indianapolis, home of The Smoking Goose Meatery. The Smoking Goose provides charcuterie for the restaurants. Four charcuterie items are $14; eight items are $28.
Various appetizers, salads and soups are available, but steak and seafood are the prime attractions. Steaks include Greg Norman Signature Wagyu steaks; the bone-in New York steak is $79 for 20 ounces, and the 32-ounce Tomahawk rib-eye is $99.
Wagyu is a Japanese term that refers to several breeds of cattle, many of which originated in Japan or were interbred with Japanese cattle. Meat from Wagyu cattle is known for its quality and intense flavor because of its marbling and high percentage of unsaturated fat.
“Our steaks are very highly marbleized,” Stakes says. Such marbleizing “melts and becomes tender. It tastes like butter; it's so good.”
Eddie Merlot's recommends people split the Tomahawk rib-eye, “but we have a lot of people who want to tackle it by themselves,” Stakes says.
Other steaks include a Platte River Ranch natural filet mignon at $43.50 for 10 ounces or $34.50 for 7 ounces.
Eddie Merlot's also offers bison: a 20-ounce bone-in bison rib-eye steak for $49 and bison filet mignon for $45 for 7 ounces.
Seafood is a highlight of the restaurant, too, with one lobster tail for $35 and two for $68; the tails come split for convenience. Alaska king crab legs are $33 for a half pound and $64 for a full pound.
“We try to cater to everyone with our Chef's Creations,” Stakes says. The $27 entree items include triple-prime short-rib meatloaf with sauteed green beans and roasted garlic mashed potatoes; roasted Bell & Evans chicken half with truffled miso honey glaze and heirloom potatoes; a double-cut pork chop with Southern Comfort barbecue sauce, green beans and roasted-garlic mashed potatoes; trout amandine, sauteed with almonds and accompanied by sauteed green beans; and beef short-rib Stroganoff, with mushrooms, cream, pappardelle noodles and shaved parmesan cheese.
Diners can add a Caesar or Merlot iceberg salad to any of the Chef's Creations for $3.
Eddie Merlot's opened April 23, 2014. Last summer, the restaurant added 50 seats on an outside patio. Even though Eddie Merlot's is in the heart of Downtown, the trees and shrubbery of Gateway Center make the patio area quiet, says Stakes, a San Antonio native who moved to the city 20 years ago. Having started as a dishwasher right out of high school, he was with Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for 18 years.
Sandra Fischione Donovan is a contributing writer for Trib Total Media.
Eddie Merlot's Bananas Foster
Bananas Foster is a sinfully delicious ending to dinner that somewhat absolves the guilt that can accompany dessert. After all, it originates with a healthy fruit.
“This is something everyone can make at home,” says Larry Stakes, general manager of Eddie Merlot's, Downtown, who is periodically pressed into tableside service to make the restaurant's signature dessert.
The whole process takes about five minutes and, if the cook chooses to flambe the dessert sauce, can be a dramatic demonstration for guests.
Stakes suggests choosing bananas that are firm and just short of ripe.
2 ounces butter
1⁄2 cup brown sugar
2 bananas, peeled and cut into fourths, lengthwise and widthwise
1 1⁄4 ounces creme de banana liqueur
1 1⁄4 ounces Myers dark rum
1⁄4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 scoops vanilla-bean ice cream, placed in two dessert bowls
Melt the butter in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the brown sugar and mix until it is smooth, for 30 seconds. Add the banana pieces, cut-side down, and toss them with the syrup to coat them, for about 30 seconds. Add the banana liqueur to the pan and stir until it is smooth.
Turn down the flame and, using a spoon, move the bananas and sauce to the half of the pan closest to you to make a clear spot to flambe the pan. Add the rum to the open spot in the pan and flambe. Turn the flame on high, and, with the pan still flaming, sprinkle the cinnamon into the pan, through the flame to make sparks. After the flame has died down, turn off the heat, and stir to combine all ingredients.
Bring the pan to the bowls of ice cream. Using a spoon and fork, place the bananas equally into each bowl (four slices each). Ladle a bit of the sauce with the spoon over the bananas and ice cream. Return the pan to medium heat and cook for 30 to 45 seconds while stirring to thicken the syrup slightly. Remove the pan from the heat and ladle the remaining sauce equally into each bowl. Wipe the bowls clean of drips. Serve one bowl to each guest with a dessert spoon.
Makes 2 servings.
