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Some crowd favorites at The Mercury Grill include the Cracklin’ Chicken, Tomato Vegetable Risotto, Potatoes Anna and Lemon Tart with Raspberry Pulp.
DALLAS/FORT WORTH
March
2007
BY AMANDA FLATTEN
PHOTOGRAPHY BY
KAREN CAMPBELL
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ABOVE RIGHT:
Cracklin’ Chicken
LEFT:
Lemon Tart with
Raspberry Pulp.
RIGHT:
Tomato Vegetable
Risotto, |
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Growing up in Shreveport, La., Chef Chris Ward developed a love for food. “When I was a kid, we would travel around the world and eat,” he says. His travels combined with his mother’s fabulous cooking fueled his love for the culinary arts. Now a Dallas chef and partner at The Mercury Grill, Ward makes the food he grew up eating — and he admits he grew up eating extremely well. “I don’t think there are many people that can say they’ve eaten more rack of lamb than they have steak,” he says.
In 1979, while attending Southern Methodist University, Ward turned a summer job as a line chef at Arthur’s into a career. “I started at the bottom of the barrel and worked my way up,” he reflects. His talent was recognized, and his career was launched. From there he became the first executive chef at Agnew’s, and then went on to become the first executive chef at The Pyramid Grill at the Fairmont Hotel. Later, he moved to New Hampshire for a position as executive chef at Bedford Inn and Restaurant.
Then in 1998, Ward moved back to Dallas, partnered with Mico Rodriguez and the M Crowd Restaurant Group, and opened The Mercury Grill. The restaurant has a sleek, dark setting with a menu that Ward considers “contemporary American with a classical background.” While the menu changes every season, there are some favorite dishes Ward says he most likely will never take off the menu, such as the Foie Gras Flan with Truffle Oil and Wild Mushroom Ragout, Black Cod with Blond Miso and the Pepper Crusted Tuna Mignon with Cranberry-Corn Galette.
Ward says he enjoys the restaurant the most when it’s packed to the gills. “I get satisfaction from seeing people being happy when they come to my restaurant,” he says.
When creating new recipes, he likes taking something that is retro and making it in a new style. “I like taking an old dish that was popular years ago, re-creating it
and making it more aesthetically pleasing,” he says.
Ward’s culinary endeavors have received local and national accolades. In 2004, he was named “Best Chef in Dallas” by D Magazine, and in 2005, he was one of the finalists nominated for the executive chef position at The White House.
For more than two and half years Ward has taught cooking classes in the back of his restaurant in a private kitchen. Every other Saturday, 12 to 16 students learn
how to prepare four to five courses from start to finish. Ward says one of the best tips he can give when cooking is, “Taste as you go and season food before you
cook it.”
When it comes to the restaurant way of life, Ward has a realistic attitude. “It’s an ever-evolving deal,” he says. “You are only as good as you were yesterday because you’ve got to open the doors and do it all again the next day.”
All recipes are from Executive Chef Chris Ward of The Mercury Grill, 11909Preston Road, Dallas, 972.822.8757, www.mcrowd.com.
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One 4-pound whole chicken
2 tablespoons vegetable oil or clarified butter
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup brown chicken stock
Bone the chicken into four parts
2 breasts, skin intact
2 thighs and legs, skin intact — legs and thighs bones removed
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place a large heavy gauge sauté pan over
medium high heat. Add the vegetable oil or clarified butter to the pan.
Season the boned chicken with salt and pepper. When the oil begins to
smoke, add the chicken pieces skin side down. Don’t agitate the chicken in
the pan. It takes about two to three minutes to begin the browning process.
Place the pan in the oven and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until the
chicken is just cooked. The chicken is only cooked on one side — the skin
side. Remove the chicken from the pan and place on a “resting” plate, skin
side up. Deglaze the pan with the brown chicken stock and reduce until a
desired consistency is reached.
Place the chicken on a plate and spoon the sauce around the chicken
and serve. |
2 cups Arborio rice
5 cups vegetable or chicken
stock, brought to a simmer
4 tablespoons unsalted
2 tablespoons vegetable
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 cup marinara sauce
1/3 cup grated Reggiano
Parmigiano cheese |
1 cup assorted cooked
vegetables, diced or cut into
small pieces (such as
zucchini, squash, red
peppers, artichokes and
broccoli)
4 basil leaves, roughly cut |
Place the 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a heavy gauge pot. When the oil
begins to smoke, add the chopped onion and cook until the onion begins
to brown. Add the 2 cups of risotto and cook for 2 more minutes. Little by
little (1/2 cup at a time) add the warm stock to the risotto and cook until
most of the liquid has been absorbed by the risotto. Continue this process
until the risotto is al dente. Add the marinara sauce and the cooked
vegetables and mix well. Add the Reggiano Parmigiano cheese and
vigorously incorporate. Blend in the butter. Season with salt and pepper.
Add the roughly cut basil. Mix well and serve. |
2 cups Arborio rice
5 cups vegetable or chicken
stock, brought to a simmer
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 cup marinara sauce
1/3 cup grated Reggiano
Parmigiano cheese |
1 cup assorted cooked
vegetables, diced or cut into
small pieces (such as
zucchini, squash, red
peppers, artichokes and
broccoli)
4 basil leaves, roughly cut |
Place the 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a heavy gauge pot. When the oil
begins to smoke, add the chopped onion and cook until the onion begins
to brown. Add the 2 cups of risotto and cook for 2 more minutes. Little by
little (1/2 cup at a time) add the warm stock to the risotto and cook until
most of the liquid has been absorbed by the risotto. Continue this process
until the risotto is al dente. Add the marinara sauce and the cooked
vegetables and mix well. Add the Reggiano Parmigiano cheese and
vigorously incorporate. Blend in the butter. Season with salt and pepper.
Add the roughly cut basil. Mix well and serve. |
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