Roy Iversen breaks the rules.
Order the bangers and mash at O’Meara Bros. Brewing Company in Lakeport and you instantly see his penchant for culinary malfeasance.
Instead of those famously bland mushy peas, he substitutes crisp green beans. The pleasantly earthy sweetgrass savor finds richness and a beautiful mellow trace from a sprinkle of bacon and nuts.
In place of runny onion broth, he covers the mashed potatoes in a robust and meaty brown gravy, one so satisfying it becomes tempting to order it by the cup. And he ditches the traditional Cumberland sausage and its gently peppered, herbal flavor for Schwarz sausage — mild in temperament, yet with a memorable creamy texture and soft, bittersweet char from the grill.
Does he apologize for ignoring the rigid regulations? Nope.
“It probably one of our top five sellers,” Iversen said.
The combination is as heavenly as grilled sausages and hearty mashed potatoes masquerading under what amounts to a colloquial epithet can be.
Bangers?
As the story goes, food shortages during World War I — when German U-boats tormented the seas — caused meat packers to fill the sausages with all manner of scrap, including bread, cereals and water.
Of course, other stories have this change in recipe occurring during the second World War, when German U-boats again targeted anything bobbing on the open waters. Either way, the resulting waterlogged sausages tended to hiss, pop and sometimes explode when dropped onto a hot grill.
But that was then. Nowadays pubs — particularly O’Meara Bros. — rely on the best sausages they can find. They are plump and rich, with a mild flavor that allows caramelization from the grill to stand out.
Iversen focuses as much attention on the other elements, however.
“I’m a meat and potatoes guy,” he said. “The mashed potatoes are important.”
Each day he and his kitchen staff mash red potatoes, skin on. But Iversen blends in a measure of russet potatoes, the kind generally reserved for baking.
“They add more flavor,” he explained.
The gravy is a marvel. A hale and strapping foundation of beef serves as a playground for earthy spices, sparks of pepper and — off in the corner — a bittersweet, almost nutty impression. The flavors rollick and romp, yet in a space defined by the O’Meara Bros. chef.
It’s a bold, yet balanced affair.
“We start with a beef base, flour, water and secret spices, of course,” he said. As the gravy condenses, he adds a splash of the restaurant and brewery’s Bevin St. Brown Ale.
The result is beautiful … if that word can be applied to “bangers.”
“I’m happy with it,” Iversen said of the dish. “People come in just for it.”
And so, if he chooses to shun the rules, well, perhaps it’s best to change the rules to suit him.
Dave Faries can be reached at 900-2016
