Turkey and The Wolf hosted the last of Todd Pulsinelli’s Warbucks pop-ups on Tuesday night, letting him test dishes that will grace the menu of the highly-anticipated restaurant opening on Magazine Street come mid-October.
News of BRG Hospitality’s new venture came earlier this summer when Pulsinelli announced he was stepping down from his role as executive chef from August — the company’s flagship restaurant.
Warbucks — named after the chef’s rap moniker — trades the elegant, fine-dining fare he’s been preparing over the past five years, for fun and casual bites inspired by ‘90s culture. The restaurant will also serve frozen drinks and large-format cocktails, as well as selected local beers and buckets of High Life ponies.
“We’re trying a few things from the menu,” shared Pulsinelli. “We’re going to test our burger and our cauliflower caesar salad — just some fun things we’ve been working on from dishes we did at different restaurants. But we’ve changed them around a bit and kinda made them our own in a way.”
The buzz from the restaurant was palpable at last night’s savory soirée. A line was already forming while the team was still prepping for the event. In a matter of minutes, the sandwich joint was packed with the who’s-who of the service industry, embracing and greeting each other while servers with T-shirts sporting the new restaurant’s logo ran around frantically catering the red-checkered paper food trays.
The dishes they served up were the following:
Shrimp Rings with Finger Lime Cocktail Sauce
It seems like they’ve already developed a cult following, and with good reason; the dish is delightfully deceiving. You bite into it expecting one thing, and get an immediate brinier bite from the pink filling. You’ll be dipping away to your heart’s content.
Charred Broccoli and Cauliflower Caesar
A different take on the traditional salad tossed with a silky white anchovy dressing, and topped with a paper-thin bread crisp and freshly shredded parmesan. Arguably the least exciting of all the dishes.
Smoked Pork Belly Shisho “Lettuce Wraps”
A tasty, bite-size way to consume the trendiest cut of pork. It’s light, tangy and a bit spicy. Where other pork-belly dishes tend to overwhelm, this one leaves you with room for more.
‘Le Warbucks’ Burger
A magnificent sight: two beef patties bookended between poppy-seed dusted buns, dripping with melted Swiss cheese and a red wine whipped foie-gras butter. The first bite sent chills up our spines.
Neapolitan Stuffed Twinkies
With a nostalgic nod to our childhoods, these were the perfect ending to a fun meal and a great teaser of things to come.
