Far beyond bar fare - Iron Horse chef brings eclectic menu to downtown institution
By GREG PATENT for the Missoulian
From a young age, Todd Engel demonstrated an unusually strong interest in food. In preschool, he learned the magic of making butter by shaking cream in a jar until the curds separated from the whey; when he was older, he wrote breakfast menus for his parents and placed them by their bedroom door; and before he became a teenager, he asked for presents of cooking pots, pans and knives instead of Super Nintendo games.
When Todd was 12, he got a job washing dishes for a well-known Chicago catering business, and over the next several years learned to make all kinds of food from scratch, including pastries and cakes.
When I asked Todd if there was someone in his family who inspired his interest in cooking, he said his father played a big role. Todd’s dad was a law student, and he wound up doing the cooking because Todd’s mom worked full time. The food wasn’t fancy, but it was good and basic and it satisfied.
If you thought the Iron Horse Brew Pub in Missoula was just another burger joint, you are wrong. Todd Engel, executive chef at the Iron Horse, displays the Nuevo Tuna Casserole, one of many creative offerings on the menu. Photo by MICHAEL GALLACHER/Missoulian
At Homewood-Flossmoor High School, Todd was thrilled to discover the curriculum offered three different cooking classes: two on the basics and nutrition, and a third on international cuisine. Todd enrolled in all three and brought his own knives to class.
After graduation, Todd attended Prairie State College in Chicago Heights for two years and pursued a liberal arts education. Kendall College followed, and Todd enrolled in their esteemed culinary program. He was in his element there, and received a thorough training in all aspects of cooking, including classic French cuisine. The baking instruction began at 4 a.m., which meant very long days.
While at Kendall, Todd was hired as a paid intern at the then brand new American fine dining restaurant, Courtright’s, in Willow Springs, Ill. This turned into a yearlong job, making his stint at Kendall College last three years instead of two. But it gave Todd invaluable on-the-job training in all aspects of running a successful restaurant.
After graduation, Todd worked for four years with Vida Talandis, owner of a highly successful catering business, Bon Appetit. Catering parties for 500 or more people became routine, and the experience taught Todd an entirely different aspect of cooking for a crowd. He catered all the parties when Barack Obama was running for the U.S. Senate from Illinois.
This brings us to 2004 and a series of events which ultimately landed Todd in Missoula. While in Chicago, Todd and a close friend, Camson, bought two Argentinian mastiffs, the Dogo Argentino. Camson knew Missoula and decided he wanted to live here. He also wanted his dog to have the companionship of Todd’s, so he campaigned to convince Todd to relocate n by calling twice a day, every day, for six months until Todd finally gave in.
“It was a brave but stupid decision because I was giving up a perfectly good job that made me happy,” Todd says.
He moved here in June 2004, with the promise from Camson that he’d be supported for two months. The two months stretched into four, at which point Todd began looking for work. Iron Horse chef Brad Yaeck hired Todd immediately, and he soon became sous chef. In 2006, Yaeck left, and Todd was promoted to head chef, the position he holds today.
Todd’s broad training and experience in many areas of food production have made him an ideal head chef. He oversees a huge staff, is responsible for designing the menu, ordering supplies, catering parties, creating menus for special dinners and making sure everything runs without a hitch. For an establishment that routinely serves 200 lunches and 400 to 500 dinners daily, a smooth-running operation is essential.
Iron Horse owner Tami Ursich works closely with Todd on menu development, scheduling parties and special events. She is a hands-on owner who checks each plate before it is brought to the customer.
The menu offers much more than typical bar food. The old standbys are still in place: fish and chips, club sandwiches, burgers and patty melts. But you also have Baja Taco (a battered fried halibut filet served in a pita with bacon, guacamole, lettuce, tomato and red onion); Tequila Glazed Shrimp (jumbo shrimp sauteed and glazed with tequila served atop tender rice cakes and jicama slaw); and Beef Tenderloin Stroganoff, among the dozens of items to choose from.
The steaks are hand-cut every morning, the salad dressings made from scratch, and the beef is Montana beef. Unique desserts for the Iron Horse are prepared daily at Bernice’s Bakery, Wheat Montana makes their Texas-size loaves, and Worden’s Market bakes their rolls. Todd tells me the salmon he buys is non-farmed Atlantic salmon.
Over the past 18 years, the Iron Horse has become a Missoula institution. It offers a beverage bar with a full array of liquors, beers, ales and wine. What’s really new is the diversity of its high-quality food.
Saddle up
The Iron Horse, located at 501 N. Higgins Ave., is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner. Hours are from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays. Bar hours are 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. The restaurant hosts private parties and offers catering services. Telephone: (406) 728-8866.
Greg Patent is a food writer and columnist for the Missoulian and Missoula.com.
