28 Springs: Tempting Tastes
If a raw oyster worries you, or the difference between a glass for port and one for beer eludes you, there is a restaurant in Siloam Springs that can not only make you feel at home, but will leave you full in belly and mind.
Opened in 2012 and a sister restaurant to James at the Mill in Johnson, 28 Springs operates as a restaurant six days a week and offers themed tastings around their horseshoe-shaped bar monthly. The unique aspect of these tastings is how thoroughly Chef Dorothy Hall and self-titled “Head Drinks Enthusiast” Casey Letellier throw themselves into the events with a passion for sharing their knowledge. There may be a special fork for a particular dish, but there is no need for reading up on etiquette before arriving. Chef Hall will explain the how and why of the utensil as she also describes the origins and inspirations of the food she has prepared. Then, Letellier will detail the history of the wine, beer, or spirit he has chosen to complement the dish, and, while Chef Hall rushes back to the kitchen to prepare the next course, he also will stay at the bar to mix, to laugh, and to teach their guests.
With a population of just more than 15,000, and despite Benton County’s long history as a dry county, Siloam Springs was chosen as the location for the restaurant by the owners and Executive Chef Miles James. Letellier explains, “It is precisely in Siloam because Siloam is why the project feels worthwhile: Siloam is home, and we’ve been wanting for years for there to be a great community space we can be proud of.” Now, however, Benton County is as wet as its neighbor counties, and drinks flow as freely as the imagination of the Head Drinks Enthusiast and his bar chef, Bryan McKenzie, who makes their bitters, ginger beer, tonic, limoncello, and the collection of decoctions and infusions to be glimpsed within Mason jars behind the bar.
Still, 28 Springs is a delicious contradiction: the pastry chef is male, while the head chef is female, a flip-flop of the industry standard; bar staff includes John Brown University graduates who previously had little mixology experience; and one of the taps at the bar is filled with a beer selected not by the staff, but by the local Brewers of Siloam Springs (BOSS) club. One month, tap No. 14 poured a sour wheat beer brewed with coriander and salt but then next “a huge imperial stout made by a pair of mad Danish roving brewers,” according to Letellier. Also, though the decor of 28 Springs can pull off fancy, and visitors may have a disjointed moment of wondering if they aren’t in a much larger city, the spirit of the place is warm and neighborly. Children are welcome in the restaurant; vegetarians, vegans, and people with food allergies are happily served. One patron said 28 Springs fulfilled his need for a “third place,” an urban planning term describing a gathering spot that is neither at work nor at home, and that he therefore visits two to three times a week. As for the tastings, one large group from Oklahoma hires a van and driver and makes them a regular reason to celebrate.
The 28 Springs tastings are a four-course, set-price menu pairing food and alcohol. It is important to note the specialty dishes and drinks are available for these reserved nights only: the second and fourth Mondays and Tuesdays of the month. In 2013, December featured a Dickensian theme with grilled oysters, cream of chestnut soup, roast goose with plum sauce, and sticky toffee pudding, using locally sourced ingredients as available, and all paired with fortified wines such as sherry, port, and Madeira. For seasonal flair, the arrival of each course was accompanied by an orator in a top hat reading relevant scenes from A Christmas Carol and other works by Charles Dickens in which the particular ingredients appeared. Tastings such as this give Chef Hall the opportunity to serve each guest, for example, two oysters—the first to orient them in how to eat an oyster, and the second to let them enjoy it. Despite the meticulous attention Letellier gives to selecting a sherry to accompany the oysters, he is quick to note, “Pairing isn’t something that should require an expert. If you have two things that make you happy when you have them together, that is a successful pairing.”
For Chef Hall, a particular favorite tasting was Pork Loves Cider in October, which she describes as a “hilarious challenge of incorporating pork in to every course, with one obvious form called out on the menu, and then something a bit more hidden.” Other examples of monthly themes have centered on Belgian beer, rum and the tropics, or butter.
While 28 Springs’ social media outlets are filled with photographs and descriptions that may cause regret over flavors missed in the past, Letellier and Chef Hall have months of pleasure planned for the future. The month of April 2014 will focus on the food and wine of the Italian Piedmont, and May’s flavors will be Mexico and tequila. By June, they will return to the United States, nodding toward New York City with cocktails inspired by four boroughs: The Manhattan, The Bronx, The Queens, and The Brooklyn. Apologies may be due to Staten Island as the fifth, final, and forgotten borough, but the “Enthusiast” of Letellier’s job title has clearly been hard at work.
Although their location away from the larger population centers of Northwest Arkansas may initially deter visitors from out of town, the space created at 28 Springs is an unusual opportunity to learn in laughter and good taste. From its founding, Siloam Springs was a place of exchange and trade, with the Cherokee and later Oklahoma to the west and to the east with crops sent by rail. Now, Siloam Springs is growing again with a young and energetic local food scene, and it is the good fortune of Ozarkansas that hosts such as Chef Hall and Letellier, as Head Drinks Enthusiast, of 28 Springs are up for the challenge of exploring, learning, tasting, and then sharing.
