By Mike Thayer
Signature dishes, it’s food that embodies a region, it’s a celebration of iconic cultural flavors, where natives and tourists alike embrace that bowl, that plate, that sandwich, that finger food and say, “You HAVE to try this!”….
Examples of iconic signature dishes includes the Rueben sandwich in New York; crab cakes in Baltimore; The Philly Cheese Steak in Philadelphia; Fried Chicken in Atlanta; Deep dish pizza in Chicago; Bratwurst in Milwaukee; Gumbo in New Orleans and Cedar plank Salmon in Seattle.
So with all that iconic food in mind, does Wichita have a signature dish, or is the Mid-Continent City a melting pot of foods and flavors?
Having fun and inspired by this Signature Dish Challenge, I decided to enjoy the offerings of Fat Ernie’s Family Dining, known for its Chicken Fried Steak!
Chicken Fried Steak
It’s a classic comfort food dish, a classic Diner dish, it’s one of my all time favorite dinners. Chicken Fried Steak, smothered in a creamy country gravy with mashed potatoes and some fried okra on the side…. It’s another dose of YUM!
Typically made with a cheaper, tougher cut of meat like round steak or cube steak, the meat is tenderized, seasoned, breaded and fried to perfection.
Pulling into Fat Ernie’s located on South Hydraulic for lunch on a Friday, there were just a couple open spaces in the parking lot. The restaurant was about 3/4 full when I walked in and found an open seat at the counter.
I sat on a stool with a direct view into the kitchen, there were four waitresses busy picking up orders and delivering them to customers. It took awhile before one of them asked what I wanted to drink…..
ME: Water will be fine.
WAITRESS: Did you need a menu?
ME: Yes please
Fat Ernie’s menu is extensive, there’s something for everyone, comfort food favorites covering breakfast, lunch and dinner. I quickly found what I was looking for, that chicken fried steak!
Noting I was done with the menu, Robin the waitress came over to take my order.
ROBIN: It didn’t take you long to decide what you wanted!
ME: No ma’am, I’ll take the chicken fried steak.
I completed my order for the steak to include my favorite pairings for this meal, mashed potatoes and gravy, okra and a side salad with ranch.
Robin brought out my salad in short order, freshly tossed lettuce with a generous portion of ranch dressing.
My direct view of the kitchen didn’t disappoint, the guys were cranking out a lot of food and every plate looked fantastic going out. As I was about to put my fork down in finishing the salad, Robin was bringing me my lunch.
ROBIN: Did you want some rolls to go with that?
ME: Yes, thank you, this look great!
Look at that HUGE portion of steak!
Not only did it look great, it tasted great! First off, it was a HUGE steak, tender, seasoned perfectly and that breading was spot on delivering fantastic flavor and crunch. The gravy was creamy delicious and the whipped potatoes embraced it ever so nicely. Oh, and those bites of fried okra complimented the whole meal. EVERY bite was another dose of YUM!
My meal cost $13.64 plus tip. Thank you Fat Ernie’s for making such great chicken fried steak! The food at Fat Ernie’s gets five stars, but the service, while friendly and polite, was not as attentive as it could have been. Yes, the place was busy, but there were times when the waitresses were standing around. It took awhile for my drink order to be taken, I wasn’t asked how my meal was and I never got my rolls. The overall rating for Fat Ernie’s is four stars. I look forward to going back and trying something else on the menu!
Fat Ernie’s Family Dining is located at: 2806 S Hydraulic Ave, Wichita, KS 67216.
But my search has only just begun…. I’ll be visiting a large variety of restaurants and sampling all types of food, getting input from patrons and restaurant gurus alike, trying to get a feel for what Wichita’s Signature Dish might be….. Oh, and national chain restaurants will NOT be a part of this challenge, I’m keeping it as local as possible, a true evaluation in finding what might be Wichita’s Signature Dish.
Stay tuned!
What a challenge huh? I am SO looking forward to the rest of this challenge!
What do you think might be Wichita’s signature dish? Comment below.
In search of Wichita's Signature Dish – Checking out Fat Ernie's Family Dining – Bachelor on the Cheap
By Mike Thayer
Signature dishes, it’s food that embodies a region, it’s a celebration of iconic cultural flavors, where natives and tourists alike embrace that bowl, that plate, that sandwich, that finger food and say, “You HAVE to try this!”….
Examples of iconic signature dishes includes the Rueben sandwich in New York; crab cakes in Baltimore; The Philly Cheese Steak in Philadelphia; Fried Chicken in Atlanta; Deep dish pizza in Chicago; Bratwurst in Milwaukee; Gumbo in New Orleans and Cedar plank Salmon in Seattle.
So with all that iconic food in mind, does Wichita have a signature dish, or is the Mid-Continent City a melting pot of foods and flavors?
Having fun and inspired by this Signature Dish Challenge, I decided to enjoy the offerings of Fat Ernie’s Family Dining, known for its Chicken Fried Steak!
Chicken Fried Steak
It’s a classic comfort food dish, a classic Diner dish, it’s one of my all time favorite dinners. Chicken Fried Steak, smothered in a creamy country gravy with mashed potatoes and some fried okra on the side…. It’s another dose of YUM!
Typically made with a cheaper, tougher cut of meat like round steak or cube steak, the meat is tenderized, seasoned, breaded and fried to perfection.
Pulling into Fat Ernie’s located on South Hydraulic for lunch on a Friday, there were just a couple open spaces in the parking lot. The restaurant was about 3/4 full when I walked in and found an open seat at the counter.
I sat on a stool with a direct view into the kitchen, there were four waitresses busy picking up orders and delivering them to customers. It took awhile before one of them asked what I wanted to drink…..
ME: Water will be fine.
WAITRESS: Did you need a menu?
ME: Yes please
Fat Ernie’s menu is extensive, there’s something for everyone, comfort food favorites covering breakfast, lunch and dinner. I quickly found what I was looking for, that chicken fried steak!
Noting I was done with the menu, Robin the waitress came over to take my order.
ROBIN: It didn’t take you long to decide what you wanted!
ME: No ma’am, I’ll take the chicken fried steak.
I completed my order for the steak to include my favorite pairings for this meal, mashed potatoes and gravy, okra and a side salad with ranch.
Robin brought out my salad in short order, freshly tossed lettuce with a generous portion of ranch dressing.
My direct view of the kitchen didn’t disappoint, the guys were cranking out a lot of food and every plate looked fantastic going out. As I was about to put my fork down in finishing the salad, Robin was bringing me my lunch.
ROBIN: Did you want some rolls to go with that?
ME: Yes, thank you, this look great!
Look at that HUGE portion of steak!
Not only did it look great, it tasted great! First off, it was a HUGE steak, tender, seasoned perfectly and that breading was spot on delivering fantastic flavor and crunch. The gravy was creamy delicious and the whipped potatoes embraced it ever so nicely. Oh, and those bites of fried okra complimented the whole meal. EVERY bite was another dose of YUM!
My meal cost $13.64 plus tip. Thank you Fat Ernie’s for making such great chicken fried steak! The food at Fat Ernie’s gets five stars, but the service, while friendly and polite, was not as attentive as it could have been. Yes, the place was busy, but there were times when the waitresses were standing around. It took awhile for my drink order to be taken, I wasn’t asked how my meal was and I never got my rolls. The overall rating for Fat Ernie’s is four stars. I look forward to going back and trying something else on the menu!
Fat Ernie’s Family Dining is located at: 2806 S Hydraulic Ave, Wichita, KS 67216.
But my search has only just begun…. I’ll be visiting a large variety of restaurants and sampling all types of food, getting input from patrons and restaurant gurus alike, trying to get a feel for what Wichita’s Signature Dish might be….. Oh, and national chain restaurants will NOT be a part of this challenge, I’m keeping it as local as possible, a true evaluation in finding what might be Wichita’s Signature Dish.
Stay tuned!
What a challenge huh? I am SO looking forward to the rest of this challenge!
What do you think might be Wichita’s signature dish? Comment below.