Page 68 - South Mississippi Living - May, 2022

story and photos by Lori Beth Susman
The fine dining restaurant at Scarlet Pearl Casino Resort has a new chef and a reimagined menu, and already guests are raving about the delicious specialty dishes from Steakhouse Chef Matthew Kallinikos. Boasting a career spanning more than 20 years, Kallinikos joined the team at Scarlet’s Steaks & Seafood at the end of 2021. In the past four months, he has provided a more progressive Southern style to the dishes, with sharp attention given to using local products and those items found in Mississippi.
For example, the NOLA barbecue shrimp – one of
several new appetizers – features Delta Blues rice grits from Ruleville, Mississippi. The dish has Gulf shrimp braised in a Worcestershire and butter sauce served over the creamy grits. The shrimp are served peeled, with those shells used to make a stock that also goes into the velvety barbecue sauce. Everything about this dish is succulent and delicious.
That is Kallinikos’s goal as he and his team make everything, and we mean everything, in house. From sauces, stocks and dressings, to the sausage and pasta served, if Kallinikos plans to use it in one of his dishes, he makes it from scratch. The only exception is the wasabi yuzu vinaigrette that is served with the new lobster chop salad. That dressing, he said, is his favorite and he just doesn’t want to mess with it.
With a base of iceberg lettuce mixed with the vinaigrette, the salad is beautifully topped with colorful rows of poached Maine lobster meat, roasted corn, diced tomato, chopped egg,
haricot vert, bleu cheese and bacon. Each bite is a taste treat (and, Kallinikos is right about the wasabi vinaigrette being a winner).
Also new to the appetizer menu is the tuna tartar; bacon-wrapped scallops, tender and sweet, served with
a sweet corn puree and pepper jelly; and the pork belly bao bun, which features two sweet buns each with a piece of tenderly braised pork belly and crunchy pickled vegetables.
Entrees include a number of steaks, seafood and chef’s selections, such as the lamb rack chop and veal piccata. Boasting three pieces of veal that have been breaded in crackers and pan-fried, the dish uses the striploin cut, letting that flavor and tenderness elevate the lemon and caper piccata sauce. These dishes, along with the seafood entrees, are served with accompanying sides. The Ora king salmon, featuring a soy miso and pineapple glaze, comes over a purple sticky rice. The combination is a perfect blend and the results make for a fantastic meal.
Also added to the menu is the pan-seared scallops entree served with fresh fettuccine mixed with a pesto of arugula and pistachio and shaved summer truffle. The whole dish is bright, perfect for springtime dining.
Scarlet’s also offers oysters, a number of steak accompaniments and sides that can easily be shared. Desserts, made on property, are also featured each night. To see the entire menu, visit their website.
NOLA Barbecue Shrimp.
Hours:
Scarlet’s Steaks & Seafood at Scarlet Pearl Casino Resort
9380 Central Ave., D’Iberville www.scarletpearlcasino.com
Tuna Tartar.
Lamb Rack Chop.
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May 2022
Wednesday through Saturday 5-10 p.m. Sunday Brunch 10 a.m.-3 p.m.