By Chanda Temple
The fork glides through the braised beef short rib like butter. The taste and texture remind you of an old school pot roast Sunday dinner cooked with comfort and care.
On the fork’s second round, creamy cheese grits and sautéed asparagus take center stage. They hold your attention, but you still can’t forget how the first course’s rich-tasting roasted butternut squash soup made you feel. It was velvety smooth and oh, so inviting. And not to be outdone, the Italian lemon cream cake drizzled with a homemade raspberry puree brings in a bright, sweet finish that turns heads and tastebuds.
The person behind this simple and satisfying showcase is Matt Murphree, a chef who has cooked in other Birmingham restaurants before settling in at Arlington in 2015. Since he’s been there, he’s changed the game in the way Arlington presents its monthly lunches and in-house catering for booked events there.
“When I serve people, I want it to be good,” Matt said. “I want them to walk away happy, full and hopefully, come back for more.”
After having the recent short rib lunch at Arlington, Geno Lestor plans on being a repeat customer. “When I scooped the short rib and grits together, it gave me a feeling of eating at a five-star restaurant,” Geno said. “I would have paid top dollar for that.”
But these lunches won’t break the bank. In fact, they are just $15, and are part of Arlington House’s new Harmony and Heritage lunch series, which is held every first Thursday of the month. The series is a way to connect the community to Arlington and its new programs coming for 2025.
Matt works with Arlington Director Toby Richards and the organizers of Harmony and Heritage lunches as he brings years of his culinary skills to the table.
He graduated from Culinard in 2004, and he started working at V. Richard’s Market in Forest Park. He started out in the meat section, handing customers cuts of steak, fish and cheese at V. Richards.
He saw more for himself, but had to wait his turn to climb the culinary ladder. He later made it to the sandwich line, and eventually advanced to a supervisory role. He left V. Richards to pursue other culinary jobs, including working at the former The Veranda on Highland in Birmingham.
In 2015, Matt landed at Arlington and worked to transform its catering menu. Today, people hosting events at Arlington can build a menu with everything from flounder seared with a tomato and eggplant ragu and lemon herbed rice or grilled steak with a mushroom hash and Arlington steak sauce; to grilled chicken breast with herbed potatoes, creamed spinach and artichoke or grilled pork tenderloin, vegetable hash with a creole honey mustard, just to name a few.
“As long as people can try something they are not used to having, that makes me happy,” Matt said. “I have had several people say they don’t like collard greens. But they have mine and they liked them. That’s a win.”
Matt has been pleasing palates with his special spin on dishes for years. Praise for his grits and short ribs have won high praise time after time.
The short ribs featured a New Orleans-inspired tchoupitoulas sauce, which is a reduction of honey and vinegar and then fortified with Demi-glace. Matt garnished it with green peppercorns and small, diced roasted red peppers. Patrons have said they like how the sweet and spicy blend to give the meat an unexpected surprise with the first bite.
While some chefs prefer to use heavy cream in their cheese grits, Matt prefers sour cream. In the cheese grits he served with the short rib, he used chicken stock, a little bit a sour cream and cheddar cheese.
The roasted butternut squash soup was a puree of butternut squash, onions, celery, butter, garlic and dried thyme mixed in with salt, pepper, chicken stock, brown sugar and apple cider vinegar.
“I have a passion for what I do. I love to cook,” Matt said.
Savor This! The next Harmony and Heritage lunches will be Feb. 6 (apple and arugula salad, salmon, mashed potatoes, asparagus, lemon butter and pecan pie) and March 6 (broccoli cheese soup, lemon herb chicken, sautéed vegetables, rice pilaf, lemon herb butter and pecan pie.)
The meals are $15, and reservations must be made in advance by calling 205-780-5656. Doors open at 11:30 a.m., and lunch is from 12 to 1 p.m.
All photos in this story were shot by Chanda Temple.
Chanda Temple is an award-winning writer living in Birmingham, AL. She blogs at http://www.chandatemplewrites.com. If you have a food story idea, email her at chandatemple@gmail.com. Follow her food postings on Instagram at @chandatemple.
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