By Jim Duncan CVFDude@aol.com
Mullets accommodates two personalities
Mullets is the latest restaurant from an enterprising corps of friends known as Full Court Press (FCP). A decade ago, they decided it would be boring to open a second edition of any of their early successes — Hessen Haus, Red Monk or Royal Mile. They reasoned that building something new and unique would better maintain their enthusiasm. El Bait Shop, High Life Lounge, Sbrocco and Fong’s Pizza followed. Because all those restaurants are south of Walnut and east of Fourth, they played a major role in regenerating the previously dilapidated part of downtown near the river and the train tracks. Each restaurant injected personality into an historic building that might otherwise have been demolished. So, every time FCP announces a new project, I get both excited to see it and worried that they might cannibalize their other businesses.
Mullets is named for both the ray-finned fish that is popular in Adriatic cuisines and the haircut that was outlawed in Iran this month. Fittingly it has two personalities. I barely recognized the riverfront building that housed multiple short-lived restaurants before Mullets. It’s been remodeled in the image of historic waterfront cafes on the Tennessee and Kentucky Rivers and the Gulf of Mexico. Pine wood walls and furniture, boat and trailer antiques, and a double deck patio transport visitors with FCP’s customary authenticity. A short bridge walk from Principal Park, Mullets also serves as a baseball bar. High def televisions, an MLB network subscription and plenty of baseball memorabilia have turned the place into a popular pre-game and post-game gathering spot for I-Cub faithful, many of whom wear museum quality antiques themselves — OAKS and even BRUINS jerseys. On game day, the place had a flavor of Wrigleyville.
Mullets serves breakfast on weekends and a single menu for lunch or dinner daily. The former seemed quite popular during a recent baseball home stand though I never had to wait for a table. Basics were well covered: sausage patties had perfect sear; pancakes were moist; bacon and eggs were cooked as ordered. Egg, meat and starch breakfasts started under $4. In the river café mode, biscuits and gravy were Southern quality and gargantuan. Smoked salmon hash and omelets were great closers, able to get the tough customer who wants something different for breakfast.
In this era of food police, the river café is an endangered species, even the historic old joints in the South. Hardly any government authority allows restaurants to serve fresh catch anymore. That’s a real pity this year as Iowans pull basket after basket of delectable striped bass off the Scott Street Bridge. Mullets compensates with a couple odd fish, at least for local restaurants. Triggerfish won’t surprise anyone who is familiar with the flavor of fried perch. Blue gills (Illinois’ state fish) have a reputation for being fabulously tasty but incredibly difficult to clean. That made Mullets’ fried version a guilty pleasure. Catfish had a heftier, more familiar flavor. A shrimp and crawfish po boy and a cup of chowder were surprisingly mild. Tuna salad delivered a perfectly cooked piece of ahi on salad greens. Frog legs were tough and exhausted after their long journey from China, but my waiter removed them from my bill without even being asked. Potato salad and coleslaw were more Midwestern than Southern, with lots of sweet creamy texture and no acid kick. Salty clam cakes and fried pickle chips, a staple of river cafés, encouraged rehydration. Pizza, burgers, burritos, wings and tacos also complemented the high-end beers and inexpensive wines that pumped lifeblood into the happy patio.
Bottom line — Mullets is another slam-dunk for FCP.
Side Dishes
Something Good Soul Food closed… The new Iowa State Fair cookbook is now on sale at www.blueribbonfoundation.org/catalog.html. CV
Caption: Shrimp and crawfish jump out of a po’ boy at Mullets, 1300 S.E. 1st St. Kitchen hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Saturday through Sunday, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
