Cask + Shaker Brings A Unique Gastropub Experience To Wellington

Cask + Shaker Brings A Unique Gastropub Experience To Wellington

Cask + Shaker Craft Bar and Kitchen recently opened at the Mall at Wellington Green adjacent to the new Paragon Wellington 10 movie theater.

With a separate exterior mall entrance, and lounge seating in the lobby of Paragon, Cask + Shaker offers classic cocktails, local brews and gastropub entrées.

Executive Chef Chuck Gittleman is particularly proud of the restaurant’s signature dish, Steak Frites.

“It’s my favorite dish. I’m from Miami, so it has a lot of Latin flavors to it,” he explained. “The cut of meat itself is a really tender cut. It’s one of my favorite steaks, the hanger steak. It reminds me of my youth.”

The entrée consists of a marinated mojo hanger steak, sautéed broccolini (a relative of asparagus that looks like a long broccoli spear) and yucca fries.

“The yucca itself is Latin, so it lends itself to the mojo flavoring of the steak, and it’s a little spin on French fries,” Gittleman said.

Historically, the hanger cut wasn’t particularly popular with the public, he said, and was considered the butcher’s cut to take home.

“It’s a really tender piece of meat. It’s pretty popular right now. A lot of places use it. It’s kind of a trend. We mojo marinate it, which is a lime juice, orange juice, chili, garlic, onions, cilantro and cumin. And then just salt and pepper, and it’s grilled,” Gittleman said.

The steak is topped with a chimichurri sauce, which has parsley, cilantro, lime, garlic, oregano, olive oil and hot chili.

Steak Frites is one of the popular dishes at Cask + Shaker, which has a gastropub atmosphere. Because there are farms nearby, Gittleman is focusing on getting more “farm to table” foods.

The menu has comfort food items to share with friends, such as Honey Sriracha Firecracker Shrimp, Fried Manchego Cheese, Angry Fried Calamari, Bacon-Wrapped Brussels and Char-Grilled Chicken Wings, which are baked instead of fried. There are also cheese boards with creamy, flavorful cheeses, and salads, including the Rustic Root + Fruit, which includes artisan lettuces, roasted beets, gorgonzola cheese, spiced cashew, dates and an apple cider vinaigrette.

Sides range from Truffle Fries to Old School Mac & Cheese, featuring semolina pasta, gruyere cheese, cheddar cheese and bacon Dijon crumbs. Handheld items, be it the BBQ Brisket Burger, the New School Grilled Cheese or the Crab Cake Sliders, offer delicious and interesting flavor combinations. Meals such as the Steak Frites and Pulled Chipotle Chicken Tacos round out the menu.

Family-friendly, there’s also a children’s menu with mac and cheese, flatbread pizza, grilled cheese and chicken tenders. Along with the food menu, gluten-free options are available, and Cask + Shaker features 32 draught beers, cocktails, bottled beers, hand-crafted specialty cocktails, wine and a full line of non-alcoholic drinks.

General Manager Brooke Camposano explained that most of the beers on-tap are local, South Florida craft beers. “We worked with a mixologist and created 10 of our own hand-crafted cocktail drinks that we serve here,” she added.

The wine menu includes “Interesting Whites” and “Interesting Reds,” Camposano said.

“They’re not your average wines, like your pinot grigios and chardonnays. They’re a little bit different, so that people would actually take a look at them and hopefully try them. They’re a little more popular, but not everybody knows about them,” she said.

Some of the interesting wines include Red Blend, Ferrari Carano “Siena” from Sonoma County, Calif.; Malbec, TerrazasReserva from Argentina; and the Riesling, Chateau Ste. Michelle “Eroica” from Washington.

“We offer tastings for anything that you’d like to sample,” Camposano said.

Inside the theater, there are trays that hold Cask + Shaker’s to-go boxes perfectly, Camposano said, which allows customers to comfortably enjoy their meal, and drinks, while watching the movie of their choice.

Customers have many options for seating, including an indoor lounge, outside seating with heat lamps when it is chilly out, indoor booth seating, indoor table seating, bar seating, and, of course, in-movie seating.

The windows at the bar open, allowing guests to sit on either side of the bar and enjoy the convenience of an indoor-outdoor bar.

Cask + Shaker is currently open from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Food and drinks are available for takeout, eat-in (reservations are suggested), and to be brought into the theater and enjoyed during a movie.

Cask + Shaker is located at 10312 W. Forest Hill Blvd. on the second level of the Mall at Wellington Green. For more information, call (954) 320-7112 or visit www.facebook.com/caskandshaker.

 

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