Hog & Hominy
Biscuits and Gravy
Deviled Eggs – Lardo, Pickled Mustard Seeds
Hot Brown – Brioche, Turkey, Porcellino’s Bacon, Fonduta, Gravy, Egg
Margherita – Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Basil
Red Eye – Pork Belly, Egg, Fontina, Celery Leaf, Sugo
Peanut Butter Pie – ‘Nilla Wafer Crust, Vanilla Pudding, Bananas, Whipped Cream, Peanut Brittle
Carol’s Delightful Smile – Oreo Crust, Malted Chocolate Mousse, Whoppers
Strawberry Vanilla Pie – Biscuit Crust, Pistachios, Marsala Caramel
Located across the street from Michael Hudman and Andy Ticer’s more formal Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen, and offering an all-day “Sunday Funday” menu even on Mother’s Day, our arrival at Hog & Hominy just after 7:00pm found the dining room absolutely jumping at full capacity, and thankfully having made reservations long in advance it was mere moment before we were seated at the far end of the restaurant directly in front of the Pizzaiolos, the dimly lit area surrounding a wood burning oven a stark contrast to the cacophony outside.
Named a Best New Restaurant by several publications, and minimally decorated with low ceilings and concrete floors that only seemed to amplify the sound, it was to friendly and efficient service slightly less refined than that across the street that we were treated – a few questions answered leading to a three-course meal during which only a biscuit that seemed a day old and vastly overpriced at $6 would fail to impress.
Essentially a ‘small shared plates’ sort of space, with menu prices trending from $5-$20 depending on size and complexity as ingredients were universally top notch, it was with the aforementioned biscuit that alongside deviled eggs draped in lardo that the meal began, and arriving quickly on their heels a reinterpreted Hot Brown that took the Louisville staple to new heights with the addition of bacon from the next-door butcher plus shredded turkey and creamy fonduta beneath gravy and an egg that saw the bowl eventually wiped almost dishwasher clean.
Moving on to pizzas, considered by some to be the very best in Memphis, it seemed almost prerequisite to first taste the house Margherita, and with a leopard-spotted crust rife with char yet still chewy and pliable one might go so far as to call this a new reference standard, the light yeast tickling the palate as mozzarella pooled amidst tomato sauce both acidic and lightly tinged in smoke.
Remiss to pass on pancakes, even at the late hour, a second pie was instead ordered based on its critical praise and ‘signature’ status, and as much as others at the table weren’t sure such an odd interpretation would suit their palates, the Red Eye in fact turned out to be an absolute showstopper as meaty sugo melded with shredded pork belly beneath a freshly ruptured yolk, the fontina adding its own buttery notes to the mix while leaves of celery added just enough vegetal levity to keep the otherwise hefty flavors in check.
Rounding out the evening with a different sort of pie, or more appropriately pies, suffice it to say that what Andrew Michael offers in the form of subtlety and elegance amidst its dessert menu is no less apparent in the sweets and Hog & Hominy, and although the signature Malted Chocolate Mousse entitled “Carol’s Delightful Smile” is indeed good, the seasonal specials of Peanut Butter Pie given the ‘Elvis-treatment’ with added bananas and the silky Strawberry Pie on a crust made of buttery biscuits were even better, the former somehow melding two desserts we’d enjoyed earlier that day at Central BBQ into a single slice that stands above the best pies I’ve tasted to date.
