New Beginnings
Welcoming 2021 with NYE dinner and Kev’s birthday brunch at Dyron’s Lowcountry
By Jan Walsh
We arrive for NYE at Dyron’s Lowcountry early, in time to hang out with executive chef (and beaming new dad) Randall Baldwin and his beautiful wife Laura. And we finally get to meet their baby boy, Bennett. What a doll! Just looking at those big, beautiful eyes, gives me hope… 2021 must be better than 2020, if only for this precious child.
We also catch up with co-owner, Sonya Powell, along with her husband, Dyron, both of whom are also optimistic of the year ahead. Kev and I toast the coming New Year with a bottle of Prince Alexandre Cremant De Loire paired with our favorite app, Bayou La Batre Blue Crab Claws. As we dip the plump, delicious, fried claws in Chef’s exceptional house-made, bourbon cocktail sauce, they disappear before our eyes.
For entrees, Kev is so tempted by the Prime Beef Shortribs, but decides on the Wood Fire Black Angus Beef Tenderloin. And I have a difficult time, resisting the South Alabama Cornmeal Fried Captains Platter. But the Iron Skillet Seared Sunrise Caught Black Grouper sounds like a must. Kev’s tender, juicy steak is cooked to order and enhanced by a beautiful Bearnaise sauce. He substitutes sweet, mashed potatoes for his favorite, Randall’s buttered mashed potatoes. Kev says they are second only to mine. But I know that means my mashed potatoes are second to Randall’s. My grouper is a gorgeous piece of fish. Seared to a golden on the outside and white and succulent on the inside. It floats on a bed of speckled cheese grits along with sauteed green beans bursting with freshness, delicate jumbo lump crabmeat, and citrusy satsumas, all enhanced by a creamy, white wine butter sauce. This delightful dish has it all!
For dessert we share a dreamy Bananas Foster, with Meyer’s Dark Rum and Jemison Pecans… ending our last meal of 2020 on a sweet note.
On January 1, I learn that Dyron’s is going to start serving Sunday brunch again, getting my New Year off to a great start. We make reservations and
are the first in the door on Sunday
morning, which starts Kev’s birthday week. How thoughtful! Randall honors Kev with happy birthday greetings on the menu along apps and entrees spelled out in orange and blue, to bring back a War Eagle memory these two guys share.
We start with the same bubbles and claws from NYE, along with Beignets. The decadent beignets are served warm along with a luscious chocolate ganache and tasty strawberry cream cheese. Next arrives cups of Dyron’s famous gumbo and biscuits. The gumbo is deep, dark, and layered in rich flavors. It is packed with oysters, shrimp, and sausage. No better anywhere! And the biscuits are always a must, perfect in size, soft in texture on the outside, and fluffy on the inside. So incredible that we always order extra and take some home for tomorrow’s breakfast. Also, for the table a plate arrives of Banana Bread French Toast with the caramelized bananas, similar to our bananas foster on NYE. Oh, my! Thick cut slices of banana bread and caramelized bananas are drizzled with a lovely vanilla bean syrup. Highly Recommended!
For
entrees Kev is delighted to see his favorite, Dyron’s famous Tanglewood Farms Buttermilk Fried Chicken. And I am all over the Iron Skillet Seared Rainbow Trout. Kev’s boneless chicken is perfection, as always. Each bite of crisp crust enveloping white chicken breast meat, dredged in Conecuh sausage gravy, pleases the palate and comforts the soul. The mashed potatoes are once again marvelous. And the bacon braised collard greens are better than my grandmother’s. My trout is mild, delicate, and flaky. Its nutty flavors are taken to a new dimension by its roasted pecans. The texture and flavor of the beautiful Brabant potatoes are the best I have ever had. Even the green
beans taste like they were picked this morning. A scrumptious brown butter vinaigrette finishes off the dish.
The trout and the banana French bread have new accolades, as 50 Favorites 2020-2021, as entrée and all-time favorite winners. And Dyron’s Lowcountry was named a Food Warrior 2021, for making it through 2020 as a Member Restaurant and into 2021!
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