Good Eats

Clockwise from above: Riley Stewart, Pepper Patch Salad with steak, three-cheese chicken quesadilla, Berry Good Salad with blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, grilled chicken and citrus vinaigrette dressing served with Strawberry Lemonade, and wood-fired shrimp. Urban Cookhouse is open Monday and Wednesday-Saturday, 10:30 am-8 pm; and Sunday, 10:30 am-3 pm. Located at 914 2nd Ave. NW in the 1960s-era Jack’s Hamburgers – interestingly converted by Cullman architect Jock Leonard – the regional franchise also has restaurants in Birmingham, Huntsville, Tuscaloosa and Nashville.

Good Eats

Urban Cookhouse

Fresh from local growers, grilled on Big Green Eggs ... any questions?

Story by David Myers Photos by David Moore

It has been clearly established that I love all kinds of food. Of all the foods I find irresistible, though, none rank higher than grilled meat.

At home I grill in all weathers – because I like to eat in all weathers. Grilling is one of the best things about eating at home. However, recently and to my delight, I discovered that I can go out to a restaurant and still eat the grilled meat I crave.

That’s exactly what Rose and I did at the Urban Cookhouse in Cullman. The beauty here is that the protein – steak, chicken, turkey, pork – is cooked in a kitchen equipped with a couple of Big Green Eggs, ceramic grills known for precise temperature control. Owner Riley Stewart smokes meat for 18 hours at 200 degrees inside the mounted grills that burn hickory wood and natural charcoal.

“It is,” he says, “the best way to cook meat.”

I say it’s the best way to eat meat, and the best way to eat the smoked meat at Cullman’s Urban Cookhouse is spelled out on its menu – in a sandwich, a wrap or with a fork and knife.

We arrived hungry and Riley promptly covered our table with food. We dove in like the kitchen was afire. I found the menu terrific, listing sandwiches, wraps, greens, and fork-and-knife plates.

The BALT is a riff on a BLT with avocado and turkey raising it to new heights. It’s a popular and trendy Cookhouse item. The White BBQ Sandwich delivers some heat with its grilled chicken and house-made white sauce layered with pepper jack cheese. The Buffalo Chicken Wrap came off the grill with a crispy and crunchy tortilla folded around cheesy chicken with a kick.

The Urban Cowboy is the Cookhouse’s most popular sandwich. It saddled up and rode into our hearts with its delicious limemarinated steak, melty pepper jack cheese, caramelized onions and peppers with a spicy

aioli. It’s also available alongside a bed of rice, a garden salad and warm orange roll. We’ve found a new favorite!

We couldn’t sample everything, but we tried. Other sandwich choices include Chipotle Braised Pork, Chicken Salad, Grilled Chicken, Grilled Pineapple Ham, Turkey Crunch, El Cubano and Grilled Cheese. A popular wrap is the Cookhouse – loaded with bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, smoked turkey, ham and honey mustard vinaigrette nestled in a wheat wrap.

Others are the Berry Good, Pepper Patch and Local Mix which feature their namesake salads packed in a wheat wrap. All are freshmade and tasty.

One constant that is prevalent in the Cookhouse protein options is the tenderness and juiciness of the meats, whether grilled or smoked. It stood out in every dish I sampled.

Speaking of fresh, it’s a word Riley uses a lot. And for good reason. The Urban Cookhouse concept of “farm to fire to table” is another constant that manifests itself in every dish.

Riley and his staff not only spend time in the kitchen, dining room, storeroom or office. They also go into the fields of area farms picking corn, fruit and vegetables. Restaurant staff spend several hours each morning washing, shucking, peeling and cutting in order to assure fresh and healthy ingredients.

There’s nothing processed out of house. The attention targeted to this approach can be trying, but the payoff is well worth it to diners and Riley alike. The food is delicious and healthy. The involvement of so many local providers is also a great value to the community.

“We try to use as much local product as we possibly can,” says Riley, who makes good use of nearby Festhalle Farmers Market in season. A highlight of the drink menu is the Strawberry Lemonade. It’s tangy and sweet but not overly sugary. The secret is a frozen stash of pureed strawberries from last summer’s local strawberry crop. There is little that tops the taste of fresh grown strawberries, and we found that taste in the middle of winter.

A dessert stand-out is the Half-Baked Cookie, baked to order and served warm in a tiny iron skillet oozing with chocolate.

Wine and beer are available, including several local craft beers. The menu includes “Cool Kids” options, which could be the best list of kid selections I’ve seen. Little rascals are certainly not slighted here.

The Urban Cookhouse offers “Take it to the House” options with call-in and window pickup. The restaurant is also a locally popular catering option. I understand why.