Remember The Radish

By Melissa Wiley in Food on Sep 4, 2013 4:30PM

Radishes are flooding restaurant menus of late. In season through late September, these root veggies with surprising spice are lending bite to more than salads as summer sings its swan song. They’re the flavor of the month for good reason, so eat your fill while they’re fresh.

We love us a sloppy po’ boy, and Big Jones, no surprise, makes one of the best in town, with its current iteration taking unexpected inspiration from the Far East. Paul Fehribach’s bánh mì po’ boy tops liver boudin and some tasty head cheese with heirloom radishes, red onions, cilantro, fish sauce, and siracha mayonnaise. Meanwhile, Tesori’s wild striped bass sits in a mélange of heirloom radishes, beets, kale, and walnut gremolata. And our favorite large plate at Red Door, the pan-roasted white fish, is served with an heirloom radish and pea salad as well as a side of fingerling potatoes.

Radishes’ real wheelhouse, as we all know, is salad. But even here they’re usually little more than a grace note. At TWO, however, Chefs Tom Van Lente and Kevin Cuddihee have put this matter to rights and created an heirloom radish salad with shaved fennel, frisee, homemade ricotta fritters, and raspberry-thyme vinaigrette, while Bryan Moscatello of Storefront Company serves up a merlot romaine salad that still manages to give the heirloom radish its due along with char, frisee, allium, and rye croutons.

If you want to stay home, consider pickling the little dears or just eating them with salt and a good pat of local butter. No matter what, always remember the radish.