Creating a dish for a restaurant can be a tedious task. Often it requires a nuanced approach tospecially sourced ingredients and several iterations and tastings before a chef will agree to put it onthe menu. That’s one (very common) scenario.
Another is far simpler and for Bistro 301's chef Chase Schnatter, really just lucky happenstance.
“It was around 4 p.m. on a Friday night and we needed to do a special. We had extra salmon, some pineapple and a ton of rice. I put together those and some other ingredients we always have on hand and there it was, a salmon special,” said Chase Schnatter. A similarly non-scripted pork chop with shallot compote turned out to be a winning entrée during the hoopla of Kentucky Derby week.
Running with what’s in-house to come up with a dish within minutes is the on-the-fly inspiration Schnatter has honed over several years. Starting as a dishwasher at The Village Anchor, followed by positions as line cook and sous chef at other restaurants, he landed the coveted spot of chef de cuisine at Bistro 301, the casual eatery featuring upscale regional-leaning dishes on West Main Street.
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And if his last name sounds familiar, that's because itis. His uncle is thatJohn Schnatter, the pizza mogulbehind Papa John's. His father is Chuck Schnatter, formerly of Papa John's and now with local coffee chainHeine Brothers.
Talk about a food legacy family.
With his famous connections, he has the advantage of seeing another angle of the food business from behind-the-scenes.
"My dad never expected me to be a chef. He thought I’d go into sales. That wasn’t for me. I think he’s surprised and proud of me,” Schnatter said.
In this, his first management role, he likes running the kitchen his own way, but after a 12- or 13-hour shift, there are nights he questions why he chose being a chef as a career.
“The answer is because I enjoy cooking, the people I work with, and trying new things to see if they work and fixing them if they don’t. I learn something new every day,” he said.
A menu change is underway at the restaurant. Most of the new dishes remain a secret, but he let slip that he plans to include crab cakes and an Asian chicken salad. What isn’t a secret at all is that Bistro 301 is in a prime spot of downtown Louisville’s resurgence.
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“Everything is happening downtown and there’s so much energy it’s amazing. Bistro 301 is going to be crazy busy when the convention center opens. We’re making this a spot where people want to hang out. Even now, I never know what a day will bring. One minute we have no reservations but then we have 150 people. I love that excitement,” said Schnatter.
Not knowing what to expect adds a bit of a thrill to his professional life. He takes some of that “let’s see what happens” attitude home. He and his girlfriend, Onyx Kinnett, let their imaginations take off when it’s time for dinner at home.
“We’ll go to the grocery and get a bunch of stuff and have fun with it,” he said. A recent trip to Kroger sent them home with chicken wings. They thought about making buffalo sauce but didn’t want the usual sauce. So, they started with butter and added hot sauce, onion powder, garlic powder and a little whiskey, and tossed it all with the wings.
A super quick and easy dinner they make when he gets home around 11 p.m. (restaurant hours, remember?)is a club sandwich with toasted whole wheat bread, chipotle aioli, roasted ham, turkey and chicken, lettuce, tomato and a fried egg. When there’s more time to prepare dinner, they like to mix up a marinade for a pork loin, and pair the meat with mashed potatoes and green beans.
What a chef cooks for himself is often intriguing to the non-professional, as is what the chef would cover if he were teaching a cooking class.
His first lesson? "Clean-up as you go.”
He’s a neat cook at work and at home and is one who’s clearly irked when dirty dishes are left by others in his sink.
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Once past the tidiness, he tells advice seekers, “Don’t think about the cooking too much. It’s just food, not rocket science or surgery. Listen to music. Drink a glass of wine. Have fun.”
When he’s with his uncle, Papa John, do they talk “better ingredients, better cooking,” the pizza chain’s motto?
“No, but it would be funny if we did,” laughs Schnatter. “But I have thought about putting a pizza on the menu just to see if I can make a good one.”
Bistro 301, 301 W. Market St., 502-584-8337, bistro301.com
Asian BBQ Salmon
Serves 8
- ½ red onion, diced
- ½ yellow onion. diced
- 1 whole tomato
- Juice of 1 lemon
- One small bunch cilantro, chopped
- Pinch of kosher salt
- 2 cups frozen corn
- ½ pineapple, sliced
- 1 ½ quarts chicken stock
- 4 cups jasmine rice
- One side Alaskan salmon, skin on
- Butter
- Salt and pepper to taste
Asian BBQ Sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon cayenne
- ½ cup ketchup
- 3 tablespoonsgarlic chili sauce
For the pico de gallo: In a mixing bowl, combine the red and yellow onions, tomato, lemon juice, cilantro and salt. Set aside. In a pan, roast the corn and grill the pineapple. Dice the pineapple and add to the mixing bowl. Toss all ingredients carefully.
Skin the salmon. Cut into eight portions. Add a little bit of butter to a skillet. Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Sear the salmon on both sides. Top with BBQ sauce.
In a separate bowl, add all the ingredients for the BBQ sauce. Mix well. In a saucepot, boil the chicken stock and Jasmine together until rice is tender.
To serve: Place the rice on a plate. Top with seared salmon, then the pico de gallo.
Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes
Makes 12 crab cakes
- 3 1-pound cans jumbo lump crab meat
- 3 1-pound cans crab claw meat
- One red pepper, small diced
- One yellow pepper, small diced
- One green pepper, small diced
- One orange pepper, small diced
- One red onion, small diced
- 2 small bunches parsley, finely chopped
- 1 ½ cups heavy duty mayonnaise
- 2 cups bread crumbs
- ½ cup Old Bay seasoning
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Vegetable oil
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients except the vegetable oil. Toss carefully. Sear the crab cakes in the vegetable oil until they are golden brown. Place them in the oven for 10 minutes or until they are warm inside.
To serve: Place Lemon Aioli on a plate. Place crab cakes on the aioli. Top with Jamaican Tartar Sauce.
Lemon aioli
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- Juice of one lemon
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
Mix together all the ingredients. Set aside.
Jamaican Tartar Sauce
- 3 cups mayonnaise
- Pinch of blackened seasoning
- 1 cup minced sweet pickles
- ½ cup capers
- ½ small shallot, diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
Mix together all the ingredients. Set aside.
Strawberry Sorbet
Makes 2 quarts
- 3 ounces water
- 6 ounces sugar
- 12 ounces fresh strawberries
- ½ teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
To make simple syrup: In a saucepan, add the water and sugar. Cook until the mixture reaches the consistency of syrup. In a blender, blend the syrup, strawberries and lemon juice. Pour mixture into a pan. Freeze for one hour or until mixture reaches the texture of sorbet.
