CityView Magazine

food Steak-Out Expert tips for coaxing restaurant results from your backyard grill T By Katie Gard he warm Carolina weather is upon with a nice, hot grill (about 400 degrees fahrenheit). "The us once again, and you know what that reason you use kosher salt as opposed to regular iodized is means — it's grillin' time! From burgers to brats and grilled veggies and shrimp, locals are pulling out the charcoal and the propane, wood chips and barbecue sauce, and gearing up for a summer spent outdoors with family, friends and food. And while most grilled meats are known for their ease of preparation and lackadaisical approach, there's one menu item that can cause even the most seasoned of backyard chefs to break into a cold sweat — The Steak. Arguably more sophisticated (and certainly more expensive) than its hamburger cousin, beef steaks, like fine wines, are held to a higher standard than typical cookout cuisine when it comes to cut, flavor and the ever-elusive perfect level of "doneness." Every individual has his idea of the best way to grill a steak, but we've taken the liberty of asking a few of Fayetteville's favorite food connoisseurs for tips on grilling the perfect cut of beef. Chef Bill Bowermaster of ScrubOaks Restaurant, famous for the slow-cooked prime ribs that owner Tim Holtsclaw slow roasts, said the key to a perfect steak is a simple seasoning of kosher salt and ground peppercorns combined because it melts to the steak, forming a type of crust," he said. And while many people maintain that a grilled steak should only be flipped once, Bowermaster's ritual is to flip it four times, to let the juices mingle and to ensure even cooking. "There is no substitute for a steak that is properly seasoned," said Nick Parrous, one of the owners of Luigi's Italian Restaurant, which ages and cuts the beef in-house. A dry-rub of kosher salt, ground pepper and dried oregano is the restaurant's secret to a properly seasoned steak. While the ribeye is the most popular steak on their menu due to the cut's flavorful reputation, "Nothing," Parrous said when asked about his personal favorite, "compares to a well prepared New York strip." He prefers a warm, pink center (medium-rare) and a charred exterior, a doneness best achieved with a very hot grill (around 600-degrees fahrenheit) and a pouring of melted butter, which he said is the trick to producing a good flame. "It's the heat that gets the juices flowing and activates the fat for the best flavor profile," Parrous said. "You have to know your grill," said Luke Poulos, one CityViewNC.com | 25

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