I told you about my love for Public House in Ferndale a couple years ago. It’s my favorite summer hang out with cool vibes, great food, a covered patio, and soft serve ice cream.
Helmed by Brandon Zarb, who is also the chef at nearby Imperial (which is on my list of places to check out), the food is consistently good and ever changing with monthly specials.
But Zarb likes to stretch his culinary chops even further with monthly menu takeovers. These menu takeovers are one night affairs where the typical Public House menu of sliders, apps, and the best fish entrée in the area is gone and replaced with dishes fitting a theme.
I have wanted to attend one of these takeovers for quite some time but it never worked out for one reason or another but when I saw the menu for the steakhouse takeover and it turned out to be a gorgeous day where I had the time to check it out, I knew I couldn’t miss it.
Even I can’t fully comprehend what it takes to open your restaurant but with a completely different menu for one day only. It’s not a set menu but a list of this time sixteen dishes to order from, some big, some small, all no doubt delicious. To do this successfully, Zarb has to rely on his culinary abilities and his team at Public House.
It’s clear it is worth the risk after only a few bites.
We sat on the covered patio because like I said it was a gorgeous day! Our waitress Chrissy was not only knowledgeable about the dishes but had tried them all and was able to speak confidently about them and recommend her favorites.
I ordered the Wanda drink, a tequila concoction with watermelon. When I asked for a second round with spice, Chrissy said they didn’t have jalapenos but recommended I try it with mezcal for a different twist. I ended up liking the second drink even better than the first.
On to the food. We began with the simple mason jar of pickled vegetables. It was vibrant and vinegary, the perfect way to open up your palate at the beginning of a meal. The shrimp cocktail was next. I used to LOVE shrimp cocktail but it doesn’t suit my tastes much anymore. This shrimp cocktail totally brought me back to the classic appetizer. The shrimp were tender and plump, perfectly cooked. And the mustard dipping sauce wasn’t too shabby either.
The simple endive and radicchio salad with apricots and apricot kernels blew me away. Can we please sell bags of toasted apricot kernels??? Also the creamy dressing was to die for.
It would have been nice if the potatoes, fried and wonderfully crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, arrived with the main entrees, but like so many restaurants these days we were told everything would come out as it was prepared. This is an ongoing issue I have with restaurants.
The only other issue was with the New York strip steak. We were at first told it could only be prepared medium rare, however Mom doesn’t like her meat prepared that way. Chrissy chatted with the chef who was able to cook it to Mom’s liking, but this shouldn’t have been an issue. Steaks should always be prepared how the customer wants them.
The steak itself was good, though perhaps a little tough. The roasted garlic and béarnaise were nice accompaniments.
The prime rib exceeded my expectations. Though having crispy fat on the exterior would have been nice, the meat practically melted in my mouth. I could live off that prime rib with the perfectly seasoned au jus.
Dad ordered the fried chicken with hush puppies, Cole slaw, and maple butter. It was a hit and a very generous portion.
We just had to try dessert so we went with the strawberry jam with almond cake and vanilla ice cream. While I honestly would have preferred just a giant bowl of their vanilla ice cream because it is EVERYTHING, the dessert was delightful with large pieces of strawberries and a wonderfully textured and flavored cake.
Here’s the bad news: you can’t have this particular menu because it was for one day and one day only and it is gone. But here’s the good news: there will be more unique, no less delicious menu takeovers in the future and I encourage you to seek them out.
ahhh that place always sounds so amazing!
The restaurant looks so good! But to be fair- there is a reason they recommend a certain cut to be cooked a certain way, so if you want it cooked differently it is probably going to be tough and isn’t their fault!
The steak was cooked medium, so it shouldn’t have been tough at all, but my real issue was that it took a five minute conversation to convince them to cook the steak to medium instead of medium rare. My mom almost had nothing to eat since the three steak entrees were all being served medium rare without exception.
That’s how a menu takeover works. You get it exactly as described. If you don’t want med rare steak, choose something else.
Hi Jen! Since this was not a fixed meal and we were able to order the dishes we wanted, I think the steak should have been cooked how patrons wanted it prepared. Also, since three out of five of the main entrees were apparently only being served medium rare that makes it difficult to choose something else without advance warning.
I want to know what Apricot kernels are??? I never heard of them. Everything looked great and I agree, if you like your steak more done, you should be able to order it that way and no good sirloin should be tough….
Apricot kernels are the inside of the pit of an apricot. They look almost like almonds and have a wonderful flavor and texture.
Sounds like a fun time! Too bad this was a one-time only thing — some of those dishes sound really good, and would be a hit on the regular menu. Fun post — thanks.
I totally agree some of those dishes need to be added to the regular menu!