Dishes I Have Loved - G. Michael's
Sometimes I just can't do a full review. There are people I know too well and places I've been too many times to even try to be objective. G. Michael's is one of those places. That being said, there are a few things they always have on the menu which deserve special mention, and I would be remiss if I left them out.
I know a lot of people who go to G. Michael's just for the fried chicken. One person visits twice a week at least to bask in the goodness which is the buttermilk and herb marinated, fried, truffle-oil doused, gravy-laden goodness. It's one of only two chicken dishes I've met that I will actually order in a restaurant (the other is the chicken and grapes at Basi Italia). Here it is, in all of its glory - half of a deboned Amish chicken, Southern fried to perfection, with cabbage and polenta on the side:
The other thing I love at G. Michael's is the Shrimp & Grits. Now, when I was a young Northerner trotting off to college in the South, I met a lot of grits. I was terrified of them, quite frankly. I met a lot of lumpy, Cream of Wheat textured white grits, mostly of the instant variety. When asked at restaurants if I would like a side of grits, I was known to laugh at waitresses and say incredulously "Do I sound like I'm from around here?! We Yanks don't eat things called grits" (no offense to Southerners). I thought the very idea of "shrimp and grits" sounded like one of the worst ideas ever conceptualized. I should have known better.
I can't remember at what point I discovered that I loved grits. I think it came when I learned to love "polenta," which is essentially the same thing (don't get into a semantic argument with me here, they're both cornmeal); of course, there are lye-treated hominy white grits, which we won't get into here. The grits at G. Michael's are made with Anson Mills stone ground yellow cornmeal.
In my opinion, grits should have very little of a gritty quality. If properly cooked, the grits should have a silky smooth, almost custard-like consistency. There should be no lumps. Milk, cream, and butter are nice additions in the cooking process, and a good dose of salt never hurt anyone (unless you're salt-sensitive). These are Charleston-style shrimp and grits; well, I can only assume so as the chef was trained in Charleston, SC. Country ham, spicy andouille sausage, and shrimp are sauteed in tomato juice with scallions and tomatoes, the whole mess is treated with a massive jolt of butter and then poured over the properly cooked (see above) grits. The spicy sausage, the slightly gamey and salty ham, the large crunchy shrimp, the rich tomato broth - it's heaven in a bowl. Other local grits pale in comparison (I'll touch on the state of shrimp and grits in Columbus at a later date). This could easily be a meal - although it's an appetizer - and it's a steal for $10 a pop
Info: G. Michael's Bistro 595 S 3rd Street in German Village 614.464.0575
