Three months ago, Ballyhoo Grill at 7604 Ehrlich Road reopened under new management after suffering a bit of a decline in the quality of atmosphere and food over the years.
That has changed drastically.
The new Ballyhoo incarnation received two months worth of renovations, adding a screened deck with a new roof and remodeling the interior with new windows and décor.
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Ballyhoo Grill also rehired Chef Chris Fragale to revamp the menu and bring back the quality of food that customers remember. Manager Jimmy Ward is now charged with providing the freshest and highest quality food, replenishing their supplies with a daily shipment of the best seafood, vegetables and meats.
Patch sat down with kitchen manager and head chef Brian Taylor to find out what goes into the reborn Ballyhoo’s recipe for success.
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Patch: What is your background in cooking?
Taylor: No formal education in it. I’ve just been doing it while I’m in school for the
last 11 or 12 years now. I’ve worked here for about eight years. I worked at Macaroni Grill for three or four years, and a couple other restaurants like Spring Forest Café out in Orlando. About all I’ve done is work in restaurants.
Patch: What unique about working here compared to the other places you mentioned?
Taylor: Fresh food! Everything is made in house – sauces, soups and we get fresh fish in daily. We get fresh produce in every day. Everything is made and cut fresh right in the back of the house. I’ve never worked at another place like it. At every other place the food comes in frozen and you thaw it out. I’m not just saying this because I work here. I don’t think you can find better food around.
Patch: What is your favorite dish here?
Taylor: The stuffed tenderloin. It’s not actually on the menu, but we run it as a special sometimes. It’s a fillet stuffed with shrimp, made with some lemon white wine mushroom sauce and prosciutto on top. You can’t beat it. Other than that, all of our fish is good. I’m not really big on seafood myself, but I taste it to make sure it’s right and if you like seafood you’ll love ours.
We’ve also got a real good Bimini here. It’s a grouper dinner with seafood burrito mix, which is mushrooms, scallops, shrimp and breadcrumbs all mixed together. It’s called “Bimini Stuffed Grouper." It’s Bimini with the seafood burrito mix on top, another piece of grouper on top of that with a lemon white wine mushroom sauce.
Patch: I had the fish tacos and they were amazing.
Taylor: That’s good to hear. I’m the kitchen manager and head chef right now, so I’m back there in that kitchen all day just to hear that someone likes the food that much. That’s what I do it for. Every time someone comes by the kitchen and says, “Hey, the grouper was amazing!” That makes my day. I feel like I had something to do with that. It’s not just pulling a steak out of a bag and grilling it or heating up already cooked food. You have to do actual chef work. And that’s why I do it.
Patch: If we go to your house, what kind of food would we find?
Taylor: Microwave dinners.
Patch: Really?
Taylor: Yeah. I cook 12 hours a day here. But I’ll grill steaks and chicken. I make meat pasta all the time and fresh salads and fresh fruit. I like the fresh food and I rarely eat out. When I do, I’ll order pizza. My girlfriend loves seafood, though, so I have to have that for her.