Sewickley Hotel offers that family feeling
People used to call Ken Brumm the Soup Nazi of Sewickley.
They don't call him that so much anymore, but Brumm, the head chef of the Sewickley Hotel, still makes delicious soups that regulars enjoy every day.
"Yeah, my beef vegetable is a favorite," says the McCandless resident. "We have people who come here just for my soup."
Brumm has been working at the Sewickley Hotel for 10 years, mostly as a sous chef, but got promoted to head chef a year ago. They quickly had to find another sous chef, so Brumm appealed to his son, Ken Brumm, Jr., a graduate of Pennsylvania Culinary Institute. Junior had been working at The Greenbrier in West Virginia as an apprentice, and turned down an offer in Virginia to come and work with his father.
"Dad said he needed help, so I came here," says Ken Brumm Jr., 23. "Sometimes we get at each other's throats, but I've been cooking with him since I was 12. I enjoy being able to work with him."
Ken Brumm, 45, says his son has been a godsend.
"Ken's really helped me out a lot," he says.
The Sewickley Hotel used to be a shot and a beer place back in the 1950s, says owner Keith Miller, who owns the restaurant with Jeff Tott, a local movie producer. Movie posters line the hardwood and brick walls of the narrow space, and a mural painted by actor Tony Curtis hangs on one of the walls.
"The original bar was next door, but it burned down," Miller says. "The restaurant has evolved into what it is now. "
Now, the restaurant is a homey, Cheers-like place where local celebrities hang out. Franco Harris, Lynn Swann, Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby visit, Brumm says, but no one bothers them.
"Everyone's treated the same here," he says. "We treat our customers and our employees like family -- that's important. When people feel like that, they want to stay around."
The cuisine is good old American, with French influences thrown in. Appetizers such as salmon and blue crab terrine, crab and artichoke casserole and peppered tuna skewers can be found on the menu. So can several pasta dishes and entrees like Grecian chicken, braised salmon, filet mignon, chicken marsala and parmesan crusted pangasius, the recipe for which Brumm is sharing with Cooking Class.
"Pangasius is a catfish shark that you can get at Sam's Club," he says. "You can also use other fish, like sole or flounder, for this dish."
Cherry and apple woods in the Sewickley Hotel's wood-burning stove give a lot of the food that distinct smoked flavor. The kitchen is ample-sized compared to the 68-seat dining room, and there is plenty of room for the Brumms and another chef, James Zuma, to prepare meals. Brumm estimates they serve between 70 to 100 meals every night on the weekend.
"I work at least 60 hours a week here because I come in on my days off to do paperwork," Brumm says. "My family and I also run Louis Castle Catering at James Center in the West End part time, doing weddings and parties. It's a long week."
Brumm has been cooking for 33 years, and says he cooked for the Fords, the Rooneys, the Heinzes and at the Allegheny Club. But his favorite place to cook is at the Sewickley Hotel.
"I like it here -- it's more family-oriented," says Brumm, who is married to Anna Marie, a baker at Giant Eagle, and also has a daughter, Tiffany, who is not in the business. "You get to know everyone. We try to make our food the way we'd want to eat when we're out. I enjoy making people happy.
"Everyone has bad days, but we can make them feel better here," he says. "I don't know how many times people stop me and say what a great meal they had."
Parmesan Crusted Pangasius
"I made this dish so much at home, I thought people would like it on the menu," says Ken Brumm of Sewickley Hotel.
Pangasius, he says, is a catfish shark that can be found at Sam's Club, among other places.
• 8-ounce piece of pangasius (sole or flounder can be substituted)
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons lemon olive oil
• 4 ounces parmesan cheese for coating, divided, plus 2 ounces for the crisp
• 1/2 cup white cooking wine
• 1 tablespoon butter
• Pinch freshly ground black pepper
Cut the fish into two pieces and season with kosher salt and lemon olive oil.
Cover both sides of the fish with a generous amount of parmesan cheese (see Photo 2 ) and place the top side of the fish into a hot, ungreased, nonstick skillet.
Cook the fish on both sides over medium-high heat until light golden brown.
Place the fish into a shallow baking dish and put the wine and butter around the fish. Don't let the wine go more than 1/4 of the way up the fish. Cover any bare spots with more parmesan and a dusting of pepper.
Place into a 250-degree broiler until golden brown and cooked through ( Photo 3 ).
For the parmesan crisp, take 2 ounces cheese and place a layer of it in the nonstick skillet ( Photo 4). Flip when brown and cut quickly. Serve with the fish.
Makes 2 servings.
For the crust:
• 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 ounces melted butter
For the filling:
• 2 pounds cream cheese
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 pound marscapone
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
To make the crust : Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the graham cracker crumbs and 1/2 cup sugar with the butter, then place on the bottom of a cheesecake pan and bake for 5 minutes.
To make the filling : Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees.
Using a mixer, mix the cream cheese, 2 cups sugar and cornstarch. Whenr fully mixed, blend in the marscapone cheese. Next, blend in the eggs and vanilla.
Pour into the graham cracker-lined cheesecake pan. Cover the pan in plastic wrap and then in tin foil, then place in a deep pan filled with 1 1/2 inches of water. Bake for 3 hours.
Additional Information:
Sewickley Hotel
Cuisine : American and French
Hours : 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. -3 p.m. Sundays
Entree price range : $14.95-$29.95
Notes : Extensive wine list and beer menu, with 12 beers on tap. Bands play on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Major credit cards accepted. Handicapped accessible.
Address : 509 Beaver St., Sewickley
Details : 412-741-9457
