December 18th, 2012 by Brian Schwartz – Comments (9)
“It’s a gastropub.” Most restaurateurs have to stop and pause when asked to describe their restaurant with one word, but Brian Biehl, talking of The Alley, which opened Monday night, doesn’t hesitate. A gastropub, for those who don’t know (and I sort of knew but did use Google) combines the convivial, homey ambiance of a bar with gourmet food and a chef who’s a star. It’s a tough combination to get right. New York’s Spotted Pig is the most famous example. Brian admires Spotted Pig, and perhaps pays it homage with the blond wood decor of the main bar room and the little pig sculptures that grace the small yet cheery dining room that sits off to the side ready to welcome any patrons who do not want a bar atmosphere. If anyone can get the concept right, it’s Biehl, since he worked in several fine Tulsa establishments that could be called gastropubs: The Tavern (aka Brady Tavern) and Fassler Hall. Now he’s teamed up with Chef Mitch Neely, whose varied resume includes stints at the Summit Club and the Grub Truck. I’d like to try more of the menu, but based on my visit on opening night, the place is a winner.
It’s a cozy place. Isn’t that Smoke’s owner Mitch Dees and and chef Michelle Donaldson at the bar? Could be! It’s the sort of place celebrities might well hang out. (And of course it has a lot of history, having once housed St. Michael’s Alley, Tulsa’s beatnik hangout in the early 1960s, and Rick’s Cafe Americain, one of Tulsa’s first gourmet restaurants.) But we weren’t there for that, we were there for the food. Could Mitch Neely deliver? Oh yes he could.
They have lots of neat appetizers, such as scotch egg and poutine. Everyone told me to try the braised pork belly ($9). But we went straight for the entrees. This is Chicken Duo ($21). I loved the elegant, elaborate presentation. No bar food, this! I loved the taste even more. The breast was rolled around spinach and mushroom and topped by a bit of tarragon aioli. I didn’t taste the aioli but the roulade was tender and tasty. I liked the thigh even more. Grilled, delicious, with crispy charred skin, it was complemented with great grits as well as pickled fennel and fried hominy.
Cathe had pasta.
This is Squash Linguine ($15). The menu says ravioli but they do that only on weekends since it takes too long to make all those tiny squares. Like the ravioli, though, the linguine is made by hand, and has a great chewy texture. There’s a great creamy sauce made with sweet squash and a hint of nutmeg. Another winner.
I’d love to be able to show you a third dish. Betty’s my neighbor, I buy her dinner three times a week and I love her, but when I want to review a restaurant she usually orders the same thing I do. And she had her heart set on the chicken. “I don’t care about the review, and besides Brian lets every one of his many girlfriends order whatever expensive things they want!” (This is true.) I wish I’d ordered the braised short ribs with parsnip puree and shallot jam ($18). So you’ll have to be content with two dishes. Perhaps I’ll write a more comprehensive review later on. Don’t worry, I’ll be back.
The Alley
3324 E 31 St
960-2822
Open for lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday
I don’t know if children are welcome but I’m sure they are as long as they don’t sit at the bar.
http://alleytulsa.com/dinner/
Brian Schwartz: Author
Born in NYC, age 0, on my birthday. College in Oxford at age 16. Law School in New Haven, Conn. 6 years travel in Africa and Asia. Haven’t done much lately. Still, I’m the only Tulsa member of the little-known Omega Society. www.theomegasociety.com
I speak enough Chinese to order food not on any English menu. Spanish French Italian too (not fluently but food-ently) My favorite restaurant is Jean-Georges in New York. But those NYC chefs would sell their soul to get the produce available from the farms around Inola.
“A writer writes alone. His words tumble forth from a magical inner void that is mysterious even to himself, and that no one else can enter.” And yet, the most important thing to me the writer is YOU. Without you to hear them, my words are worth less than silence.
Tags: Pub
9 responses so far ↓
Jerry Parkhurst Dec 27, 2012 at 4:50 pm
Had lunch the week they opened. Very good and will return soon for drinks and dinner. Looks like this will be a winner.!!!
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Jeremiah Dec 30, 2012 at 8:12 am
We were not impressed. Gastropub is a term to be used when the beer, not bar, selection is top notch and the food is even better. The beer list was actually pretty good. The food was just ok and definitely overpriced though. I liked the decor and the staff and service were great. But if the food isn’t quality, then I wouldn’t go calling it a gastropub just yet.
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zstyles Jan 11, 2013 at 1:39 pm
I have to say, this place is great! The food was VERY resonable compared to a venture out over on 71hellstreet with the chains. The fish and chips were FAR and beyond anything else you can find for the price, the scotch eggs were awesome, white chili was amazing and the service was fast, friendly and you didn’t have to deal with teenagers taking your order while texting and acting bored..this is a place that was a great lunch choice and also I am sure for dinner..
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Boot~C Jan 21, 2013 at 7:29 pm
I just had lunch there today. The table shared an order of poutine as an appetizer & it was great.My mother said the short rib panini was good, but on the small side. For us the fish was soggy,more like funnel cake batter. My corn chowder was over spiced w/ cumin.As much as we wanted to like The Alley there wasn’t really anything to bring us back.
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zstyles Jan 24, 2013 at 10:10 am
The fish is not your typical “Oklahoma” fish batter, its not made of water but Guinness beer…they do tell you this before you order, its very light, fluffy and yes does seem like a funnel cake minus the sweet fat of a funnel cake…
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Boot~C Reply:
January 27th, 2013 at 6:03 pm
it may have been made w/ beer, but it was soggy & there was a grey gel between the batter & the fish, it was gross & inedible. as to our server telling us anything? he was inept, I got a cup of soup instead of the bowl I ordered & after being asked for sweetener for tea he came back only to serve the food & clear table/drop off check.
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Tulsa Zephyr Feb 5, 2013 at 8:18 pm
We met with friends for brunch on Saturday at 11:00 and sat at a tabletop in the bar area. Very comfortable and we really like the remodeling they’ve done. The bartender was very outgoing and professional, explaining the specials and attending to us promptly. I had the cornbeef hash and it was very good. It comes with potatoes, but one downside is that there is a $3 charge for toast! The Bloody Marys were very good. I’m looking forward to trying other menu items, but hope they adjust the price point on some items.
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Kent Siegrist Mar 28, 2013 at 11:04 pm
There is nothing “gastro” about this gastropub. It is just a dumpy little pub.
I came to this place because a then manager at Brady Tavern said he was leaving for this new amazing establishment. I waited several months for them to get their feet on the ground, and tried it out.
When you walk in, you are not sure whether to wait to be seated, or just grab a place on your own. We were finally pointed toward a table. Our table was sticky, as was the floor, and asked for it to be cleaned. After being wiped twice, I was still sticking to it.
Burger was pretty tasteless. NO WAY this is a $13 burger, in anyone’s world. Putting ground beef on an upscale bun does not make the grade. You need a quality and unique beef grind if you are going to market a burger with a double digit price point. This burger is blown away by a number of other Tulsa establishments, most of which are also lower priced. The double fried “frites” were an even bigger disappointment. Double fried should be browned and crisp. These were barely fried once in cold grease. Barely brown, soggy, and without flavor. McDonald’s makes better fries than these.
Pork loin was cooked to the proper temp and juicy. Bravo – it is easy to overcook and/or dry out. Meat carried a lot of smoke flavor, but it is obvious that the smoke came from smoke powder sprinkled on, not from the meat being cooked in a smoker. The pork rested on a bed of beans (that were very over-salted) and topped with greens that were flavorful and fresh. As a whole, the dish was a disappointment for $15, but would have been acceptable at closer to a $10 price point (with a clean table).
Atmosphere was rather dated.
Nothing compelling about this place; will try another new place looking for the hidden gem before I would return for another $13 burger disappointment.
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George May 14, 2013 at 10:47 pm
Visited this place last Sunday. Our waiter screwed up our order twice, we ended up waiting 45 minutes. When we finally got our food, the order was still wrong. 2 of our four orders was completely cold as they must have sat on the counter for 15 minutes. We didn’t send the food back for fear of what cooks do to food that is sent back. The floor needed to be swept and mopped as it was sticky. Reminded me of the floor at the midnight movie. This place is way too expensive. Will not go back.
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