At some point, I entered what is known as “My Martini Phase.” And I would like to thank the bartenders at Corner Chop House.
Their daily social hours with the restaurant are held from 4pm to 6pm most days and 2:30pm to 4pm on Sundays.
I went to see them early on my first visit, slipped into a seat at the bar, and noted the small selection of $10 cocktails. Top: Martini…as you like.
I looked for a “Princess Bride” reference, but I’m just barely dirtier than Buttercup Pure any day of the week. (This day was Tuesday.)
I would like to add some shards after the shake to refresh and make it longer. I want a horrible olive that I can handle two bites of. I want to swirl it around on my pick and watch the funky blue cheese and booze dance in the glass. I do all these things and sigh. This is a very good drink. And it’s only $10.
I’m drinking a traditional Chop House cocktail, but the Corner Chop House is starting to feel much more like a neighborhood bar as the patrons begin to slide in around me. Many customers are on a first-name basis and often joke around with the bartenders.
Slurp grilled oysters in a pool of aromatic, spicy, and smoky ‘nduja butter. A hearty portion of cocktail shrimp is topped with plenty of exciting homemade sauce. I take another sip. I wish I lived closer.
“We wanted our social hour menu to have something for everyone,” said General Manager Jayton Fee. “Martini, Manhattan, so people can get these classics at a really affordable price. Come in after work and get a $10 espresso martini. This is our pricing where we want you to come in for a meal often.”
People certainly frequented this space when it belonged to happy hour hub Dexter’s here in Hannibal Square, and it’s sparked romantic memories among locals since the space closed in 2019.
As you look around Corner Chophouse, a Winter Park-only concept from the team at Indigo Road Hospitality (led by Steve Palmer, creator of Charleston’s famous Oak Steakhouse and multiple James Beard Award nominees), it would seem that the lingering ghost of Dexter’s has finally been released.
Fee has spent time at several Oak Steakhouses during his Indigo days and says each one is special.
“But I really like what we’ve done here. We’ve been here, we’ve had fun, we’ve done things the way we want to do them. We’ve created something completely new.”
New to me was the macaroni and cheese side ($14), which I really wanted to write about, but this phenomenon doesn’t happen often, so while posting my favorite recipe, I jokingly voted the now-closed Korean restaurant’s tteokbokki the best dish in the city.
Now, I want something from Chef Nick. The squiggly, toothy radiatori hanging in the creamy cheddar mornay is key.
“I was helping open Oak Steakhouse in Rogers, Arkansas, and they had a radiatore in dry storage. One solo box. I had never seen this noodle at any of the restaurants I’d ever worked at. It was so cool. And when we opened, I knew this was going to be my mac and cheese noodle. The sauce would coat it so well and coat every bite.”
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The sauce is a Cheddar Mornay White American Amalgam, which is basic but classic.
Of course, the sides themselves are a Chop House staple. Bread is also available, but here it’s milk bread and luxurious salted butter ($8). Baby Kale Caesar ($15) brings double the nutty flavor with a storm of toasted pepitas and aged pecorino.
This also has a nutty flavor and is the star of adding chops to your home. The 20-ounce dry-aged bone-in ribeye ($130) is memorable to share, with a fine char and a beautiful medium-rare interior. Can it be shared? yes. leftovers? Also, yes. But trying to explain the difference between regular beef and dry aged beef to a teenager was painful. Mainly because this lesson required us to abandon take-home snacks.
Dry-aged steaks are richer and more expensive than your average cut. Explained by chefs John Tesar and Gerald Sonbright
“This process releases the excess moisture found in regular steaks,” Billings explains. “But it doesn’t dry out completely, so when you cook it, you get a tender, delicious steak.”
This is Steakperson’s steak, whose muscle fibers have softened during the aging process. It’s incredibly moist, with very little liquid, but it’s velvety, concentrated and firm with the flavor of the steak.
The beef in the bar is also a banner. Here you can find the Corner Steak Burger ($21, also available at brunch). Topped with buttery maon cheese and a tangy mustard sauce gribiche, it’s simple, elegant and extremely flavorful. Also served with beautifully seasoned waffle frites.
“We trim all of our beef in-house,” Billings says. “So when we cut a rib roast, filet or New York, the parts we’re cutting can’t be used for steak. We take them out and blend them to make our ‘steak’ burgers. Consists of lots of fillets, but plenty of others for a balanced fat content and a great juicy burger.
When one of the pastry chefs suggested adding hummingbird cake ($14) to the menu, Billings, who had never heard of it, was hesitant to explain it to her.
“Smashed pineapple, bananas and pecans,” he laughed. “I was hesitant.”
Then he tasted it. We encourage you to do so too.
“It’s very balanced and flavorful, and all the ingredients work well together.”
It has brown butter cream cheese frosting and homemade caramel on top.
Corner Chophouse recently hosted a bourbon dinner in a private room. $150 per person plus 20% gratuity includes multiple courses including multiple combinations from Blanton’s, EH Taylor, and Buffalo Trace. 24 guests signed it. I had the lobster corn dog. It was a bright atmosphere and I learned a lot. They hope to hold events like this on a regular basis.
Jayton, Billings, and the team here, they seemed to be very much a team when I visited, and seem to be working cohesively to build something special. It’s not just a phase. That’s a plan they’re definitely implementing.
On my second visit, I got 3 olives instead of 2.
The martini thing may not be a phase for me either.
Find me on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, Instagram @amydroo or the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com, and for more foodie fun, join our Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group.
If you go
Corner Chophouse: 558 W. New England Ave. in Winter Park, 321-972-2383: Cornerchophouse.com
