Last night’s sneak peek party at Rye (900 E. Market) was designed to give the small and invitation-only crowd just a taste of what’s to come when it opens officially on Tuesday, Jan. 3. And it achieved that.
Not only was manager Erin McDonald not overly forthcoming with details about the establishment (plus, she was busy), she asked me to put away my camera because “we’re not allowing photographs of Rye until we’re open next week.”
OK, fine. I played along. Private party. Private business. Her call. When the wraps are officially off, we’ll show more.
And much to my chagrin, I only got to stay 30 minutes before bolting off to a family dinner elsewhere. But what I saw and tasted definitely has me eager to return.
Using the evening as a practice run, chef Tyler Morris’s kitchen busily churned out single-plate tastes of simple dishes like pomme frites, roasted veggies, pastrami on rye (natch) and what I predict will be known as the city’s best burger.
Why is it that good? Because it was cooked perfectly medium, bright pink from top to bottom, surreally tender and seasoned with only salt and pepper.
How do they do that? My hunch is the kitchen is using a Cvap cabinet, a low temperature heating and holding cabinet that allows precision cooking of proteins. Cvap is made in Louisville by Winston Industries and is one the industry’s most incredible tools. It’s found in everything from fast food to fine dining establishments. Ever had Equus’s ridiculously tender brisket? It’s cooked 31 hours in a Cvap.
Without being too technical, a hamburger is heated to, say 130F or 140F and is held at that temp until ordered. When a customer requests one, the burger is removed from the Cvap and seared briefly on a grill or griddle just for some flavorful caramelization. The result is a burger with a scrim of brown along the outside, but bright pink from top to bottom inside—not pink in the middle and surrounded by chewy brown layers.
I couldn’t see the Cvap in the open kitchen (which is gorgeous and done up in white tile), but given my “no pictures” order, I didn’t nose around too much.
Two other reasons I’m convinced they’re using this is Morris is a veteran of chef Tom Collichio’s restaurants (Craft in Manhattan), where Cvaps are used. Plus, Rye investor Aaron Yarmuth’s uncles, who own the Sonny’s Barbecue chain, use them in all 140 stores. Again, this is a good thing.
And if they’re not using Cvap, I want to learn the miracle of what they’re doing.
UPDATE: McDonald emailed Friday to say they’re not using Cvap. Now I’m really curious! Until I learn next week, refer to above-mentioned miracle and expect an unreal burger.
Other elements: The décor features loads of wood (a beautiful, lengthy bar dominates the front room, tables are made from wood slats topped with heavy glass) and brick, specifically walls that speak of the modest (appears to seat around 100, though private party space holds more) space’s history as an historic building.
Modern touches include rock, rap and hip-hop trickling from the sound system (if you’ve experienced the high-decibel ear-daggering at Silver Dollar, just imagine the opposite ideal) and dramatic contemporary lighting. The look is beautifully minimal.
If there were takeaway menus, I didn’t see them, so we’ll have to wait until Tuesday to see the final lineup. A picture on Rye’s Facebook page shows a one-pager bearing three categories of Bar Bites, Small Plates and Main Eats—the kind of simplicity I really appreciate.
Its website isn’t live yet, but you can bookmark it, or you can visit its Facebook page to see some great time lapse videos and pictures.
Want to chat with them directly? Call 749-6200.
Dinner hours are Tuesday and Wednesday, 5-12 p.m., and Thursday-Saturday, 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.
**PS: Vote daily to help make Louisville the south’s Tastiest Town in Southern Living magazine. Click here to cast your vote.
Steve Coomes is a Louisville restaurant industry veteran turned food writer. In his 22-year career, he has edited and written for dozens of national trade and consumer publications including Nation's Restaurant News and Southern Living. A past restaurant critic and food feature writer for Louisville magazine, he pens features for ...
redict will be known as the city’s best burger.
