Several things make a steakhouse a steakhouse:
a slightly smoky piano bar, comfortable seating, and thick, juicy
slabs of steak.
Gallagher’s reminds me of the
restaurants I visited as a child when I went out with my parents
and their friends for a nice meal on a Saturday night — a
white-linen-tablecloth kind of place, formal enough for suits and
ties, where ball caps and jeans are welcome as well.
Soft piano music plays as you enter the
restaurant, which is divided into intimate dining rooms lit by the
warm glow of chandeliers. Comfortably upholstered high-backed
chairs invite you to sit back, relax, and enjoy a leisurely meal.
There’s a lot to like about
Gallagher’s, but let’s start with the steak. One local
business owner tells me when he wants to treat his wife to a good steak, he
heads for Gallagher’s. I see his point. You can get ribeye,
top sirloin, ground steak, pepper steak, New York strip, filet
mignon, crabmeat-stuffed fillet, or prime rib. Prices range from
$14.95 for the 16-ounce top sirloin to $22.95 for the large cut of
filet mignon.
My husband and I dined at Gallagher’s
recently with another couple. One of the men ordered prime rib, the
other top sirloin. The prime rib was tender and pink, as it should
be, with just bit of fat marbleizing the meat, and was served with
horseradish sauce. The sirloin, ordered medium-rare, was firm and
flavorful. It was cooked nearly perfectly, although it was slightly
more done on one part than on the other. Those who desire an extra
touch of flavor — although these steaks really don’t
need it — may choose blue-cheese sauce; Cajun blackening;
mushrooms, onions, and peppers; or the house specialty, the
divine-sounding Escoffier topping, made with sweet butter, garlic,
and blue cheese.
I chose the pecan-encrusted pork chops. The
two large chops were tender and perfectly prepared, but
unfortunately the nuts proved a distraction from the meat buried
beneath them. Although this lovely dish would benefit from a
lighter coating of nuts, the homemade apple-ginger chutney spooned
over the meat lent a pleasant zing of flavor and spice.
A highlight of the meal was the tossed dinner
salad that came with each entrée. The large bowl
of crisp lettuce, tomato, and cucumber was better than average, but it
was the house dressing that really merits mention here. The thick,
creamy, sweet dressing contained large chunks of warm, cooked bacon,
with which the salad was also topped.
Gallagher’s offers diners several
appetizers, additional salads (including a dinner-size
blackened-steak Caesar), chicken, and fish. We skipped the
appetizers, which ranged from pesto-stuffed scallops to crab cakes.
(The most interesting of the lot was the battered and fried
asparagus.) We did try the pasta primavera, which consisted of a
large bowl of linguine noodles tossed with a nice variety of
vegetables, including broccoli, green beans, mushrooms, and red
peppers. The yellow Alfredo sauce that dressed the dish was milder
and less smothering than some I’ve had and provided a nice
creamy counterpoint to the pasta.
Gallagher’s offers a nice wine list, but
the waitress will gladly offer you an old-fashioned after-dinner
drink such as a grasshopper (crème de menthe, vodka, and ice
cream).
Gallagher’s is located at 2242 S. Sixth
St.; 217-522-8888. Hours: 5-11 p.m. Tue.-Sat. The piano bar is open
8 p.m.-midnight Fri. and Sat.
St. Pat’s leftovers
Corned Beef and Corn Chowder
Use your St. Patrick’s Day leftovers to
make a hearty soup. Corned beef is flavorful, so a little goes a long way.
Ingredients
One serving cooking spray (five one-second
sprays per serving)
One medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon
fresh thyme, chopped
4 ounces lean corned beef, diced (about 1
cup)
10 ounces frozen corn kernels
45 fluid ounces canned
cream-of-potato soup made with fat-free milk
1/8 teaspoon black
pepper or to taste
Directions
Coat a large soup pot with cooking spray and
set over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft (about
five minutes). Stir in thyme, corned beef, and corn; cook,
stirring, for two or three minutes more. Stir in potato soup and
bring to a simmer. Let soup simmer for five minutes and season to
taste with pepper. Yields about 1 heaping cup per serving.
Flavor booster: Fennel seed, with a flavor
similar to rye, is a wonderful complement to corned beef. Add 1/2
teaspoon of fennel seed to the potato soup and reduce the thyme by
half.
— Recipe courtesy of Weight Watchers
This article appears in Mar 17-23, 2005.
