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newlenoxpatriot.com DINING OUT
the New Lenox Patriot | November 15, 2018 | 27
The Dish
RMU brings the bayou to the suburbs with latest pop-up
Bill Jones, Managing Editor
There is a restaurant in Orland
Park that greets diners
first with the sounds of jazz.
Its tables are decorated with
beads and plastic trumpet
centerpieces.
Flowers spring forth from
the mouthpieces. And a wall
of windows offers a view of
the young chefs whipping
up Cajun and Creole favorites
such as sausage gumbo,
shrimp po boys and bananas
Foster bread pudding.
It is dirt cheap. And it will
not stay in business for long.
But that is all part of the
plan for Robert Morris University’s
Suburban Bayou
— a pop-up restaurant experience
run by students in the
school’s culinary program.
The sophomores cook, while
the seniors manage the front
of the house, including everything
from the menu design
to the table decorations,
place mats and logos.
It runs 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
Tuesdays through Nov. 27
(though it is closed Nov. 13),
offering area residents the
chance to try three courses
from up-and-coming food
service talents for just $10
and the understanding that
the restaurant is designed to
be a practical learning experience.
“We appreciate people
who want to come in and
support the students,” said
Brad Hindsley, who oversees
the program. “We appreciate
honest, [constructive]
feedback.”
Last year, the space offered
a wide range of Americana
as the Regal Eagle. But
the narrowed focus for this
year’s theme has led to more
interesting results, according
to the students. And Hindsley
had to agree.
“I think this group has
done a better job than previous
groups, simply because
they took ownership of it
early,” he said. “I think this
is one of the best menus I’ve
seen a group of students
work together on.
“All of the students got
behind it.”
Hindsley said the idea of
Cajun and Creole cooking
has come up before, but students
usually shy away from
it before it comes to fruition.
This year, it was a unanimous
vote, and the students realizing
they were all on the same
page early in the process
meant more time to develop
the concept, Hindsley said.
“I think this year’s [concept]
is better,” senior Denondria
Means said. “I think
this year’s is better because
we’re in charge ... and everybody
was able to come
together on this.”
As a senior, Chris Vasquez
has been part of an RMU
pop-up restaurant once before,
but he said this year
was a “totally different experience.”
“It’s been more fun,” he
said. “We’re bringing a taste
that doesn’t exist in the Midwest.”
Senior Kimberly Bell
is unique for two reasons
among her peers. She got a
chance to work the front of
the house two years in a row.
And while most seniors said
they liked their time in the
kitchen better, Bell relishes
working up front.
“I would considering myself
a people person,” she
said of the interest.
She said this year was fun
because the concept challenged
her to learn about a
different cuisine so she could
present it properly to diners.
And fellow senior Christin
Stanton said the move to the
front forces students to tap
into different skills.
“It’s a lot different being
On the menu
Suburban Bayou’s menu
is divided into three
sections. For $10, diners
get to pick one appetizer,
one entree and one
dessert. Here are the
choices.
Appetizers
• Black bean cream
soup
• Sausage gumbo
• Grilled chicken salad
• Cucumber tomato
salad
Entrees
• Shrimp po boy
• Pork medallions
• Okra etouffee
Desserts
• Pumpkin spice
beignets
• Bananas Foster bread
pudding
in the back of the house than
the front,” Stanton said.
Hindsley said the biggest
challenge he presented to
students with the theme was
to consider that with the Cajun
and Creole focus, many
dishes would use similar flavor
profiles, and not everyone
likes their food spicy.
“It was important to me to
make sure the students balanced
the menu,” he said.
Both Bell and Stanton said
they think the pumpkin spice
beignets — warm, fluffy
pumpkin-spiced fritters,
dusted with powdered sugar
— the group concocted were
the best thing on the menu.
But taste being what it is,
Vasquez said the shrimp po
boy is his go-to item. And
Means is partial to the vegetarian
dish, an okra etouffee,
featuring bell peppers, zucchini
squash and a gravy
atop a bed of rice.
“I love it,” Means said.
In addition to water and
The shrimp po boy at Robert Morris University’s Suburban Bayou pop-up features panko
fried shrimp on a hoagie roll, with lettuce, tomato and a remoulade, served with a side of
coleslaw. Photos by Bill Jones/22nd Century Media
Suburban Bayou
Robert Morris University,
82 Orland Square Drive
in Orland Park
Hours
11 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesdays
until Nov. 27
Reservations
Email Brad Hindsley at
bhindsley@robertmorris.
edu
The sausage gumbo at Suburban Bayou is a hearty
sausage and vegetable soup with a little bit of kick.
soda, the restaurant also offers
diners a strawberry lemonade.
And while the famed
cocktails of New Orleans
might be off limits for the
student-run Suburban Bayou,
the group got close enough
with a non-alcoholic sangria.
Hindsley said the whole
experience is unlike anything
else he has seen from
his students. He only asks
that diners come with an
open mind and understanding
that the experience is designed
to be educational.
The sophomores in the
program/in the kitchen are
Thomas Langley, Margaret
Ringbauer, Kalin Ross and
Andrew Sombraske. The seniors
in the program/front of
the house are Mitchell Harris,
Andre Holden, Marysa
Magliano, Bell, Means,
Stanton and Vasquez.