Rural Missouri - October 2012 - (Page 16)

O U T O F T H E W A Y E A T S “The must-have, got-to-come-try is the Ultimate BLT,” says Katie. The sandwich features the restaurant’s thick-cut, house-cured bacon, which is baked with brown sugar and black pepper. Two slices of homemade bread are grilled, and then the sandwich is constructed with house-made roasted garlic mayonnaise, fresh heirloom tomatoes, lettuce and lots of bacon. Also popular are the Wabash “naked” burgers, a take on the build-your-own-burger concept. Patrons can choose among meats, cheeses, sauces and toppings. The half-pound, hand-pattied beef burgers are made from a custom blend of short rib, chuck and round roast. You also can order a pork burger or chicken breast. Other menu stalwarts include chicken-fried chicken, the Wabash Chicken Alfredo and three salads. There’s also the “Fast Train,” a rotating set of specials that provide a quick lunch option for just $7. The weekly chef’s menu, which is available online every Tuesday, features lunch and dinner entrées that highlight local ingredients. Some items, such as the Reuben sandwich, rotate on and off the menu as Jason turns briskets into corned beef. Other items are entirely unique creations that become reality once Jason learns what ingredients with which he’ll be working. For lunch, you might ﬁnd the “hot” hot ham-and-cheese sandwich made with sugar-cured ham, habanero cheddar and jalapeño mayonnaise on grilled homemade bread; a Cuban Panini featuring slow-roasted pork, ham, Swiss cheese and homemade pickles; or the Santa Fe Quesadilla made with grilled chicken, green onion pesto, pico de gallo, cheddar cheese and salsa ranch dipping sauce. Wabash Junction — which is named in honor of Stanberry’s railroad history — is perfect for a casual, relaxing dinner. Fresh, handcut beefsteaks and pork are featured weekly, including favorites such as blackened rib-eye, bone-in pork chops and the unique “Dinosaur Rib,” a slow-roasted, 8-inch beef rib smothered in homemade barbecue sauce. End your meal with a slice of the restaurant’s 4-pound cheesecake. Wednesday night is Global Cuisine Night, and Katie and Jason rotate Chinese, Italian and TexMex options. Seafood is featured on Fridays, and grilled prime rib takes center stage on Saturday. On Sunday, enjoy the all-you-can-eat brunch buffet. “It’s taken everyone — the community and our family — to make this happen,” Katie says. “It’s meant a lot to us to know how many people stand behind us.” abash Junction isn’t open on Mondays or Tuesdays, and for good reason: There’s no chef in the kitchen. In fact, executive chef Jason Thomas may not even be in Stanberry. Instead, you’ll ﬁnd him visiting the farmer who raises the beef he serves, chatting with a grower who has a new crop of vegetables to sell or picking out the best cheeses, breads and other foodstuffs that Gentry and Nodaway counties have to offer. Jason and his wife, Katie, opened Wabash Junction in June 2011 with a commitment to serving fresh, locally produced food. Each week, the menu changes Join editor Jason Jenkins on to reﬂect his visit to Wabash Junction what’s in the online edition at available. www.ruralmissouri.coop. Jason and Katie — both of whom have degrees in culinary arts — created a farm-tochef initiative that takes full advantage of the bounty from the county. “As a chef, you know what’s in season, but what’s really in season is sometimes a little bit different,” Jason explains. “I change the menu every Monday. I go out, visit all the different farmers and see what they have. Then I come back, spread it out and we make our menu.” After working for others at restaurants in St. Louis and Kansas City, the husband-and-wife culinary team decided it was time to strike out on their own. Katie was born and raised outside of Stanberry, so they moved back and began looking for a restaurant location close to family. By coincidence, Mike McQuinn, the town’s pharmacist, had just ﬁnished construction on a building in downtown Stanberry. Half of the structure was intended for his pharmacy, and in the other half, he wanted to open a restaurant. He was searching for a chef. “We were looking at the building across the street when we met Mike and found out what he was looking for,” Katie says. “It’s been a great partnership.” The food at Wabash Junction straddles the worlds of ﬁne dining and homemade favorites in a style that Jason describes as “new American fusion comfort food.” “We want to serve steaks and burgers and barbecue, and you’ll always ﬁnd that on our menu,” he says. “Then, if you’re willing to try something new, it’s on there, too.” While most of the entrées change weekly, Jason and Katie do offer a small menu of staple dishes that you’ll ﬁnd no matter when you visit. W by Jason Jenkins jjenkins@ruralmissouri.coop Katie and Jason Thomas opened Wabash Junction in 2011 with a focus on produce, beef and pork raised locally. Every week, the menu changes to reﬂect what farms have to offer, allowing this culinary couple to be creative with their dishes. Wabash Junction Where the menu changes often, but fresh and local stays the same Wabash Junction Specialties: Weekly entrées that change with availability of fresh, local ingredients. Also Ultimate BLT, “naked” burgers and grilled prime rib. Price: Lunch options start at $7; dinner entrées from $10.94 to $25.94. Sunday brunch buffet for $10.94. Cash, checks, major credit cards accepted. Details: Open Wednesday and Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Seats 85 in main dining room and 56 in private banquet room. No smoking allowed. Catering available. Directions: Located at 100 West 1st St. in Stanberry. Contact: 660-783-2200; www.wabashrestaurant.com WWW.RURALMISSOURI.COOP • Stanberry 16 http://www.wabashrestaurant.com http://WWW.RURALMISSOURI.COOP

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - October 2012

Rural Missouri - October 2012
Table of Contents
Comments
Columns
The future of food
A grotesque spectacle
Outdoors
Out of the Way Eats
Summon your stomach
Soothing suds
Hearth and Home
Out of the woodwork
Marketplace
Around Missouri
A heart to serve
Neighbors
Just4Kids

Rural Missouri - October 2012