Wednesdays with Denny the Gumbo Guy

July 14, 2004

Some time ago, my Dad called and asked me to meet him for lunch. He said it’s Wednesday, that means “Gumbo Day” at the Union Street Station and I should get there by 10 minutes to 12 or we wouldn’t get a booth.
I thought it was an odd choice for him, being a country club, polo-shirt kind of a guy, and this is a 100-year-old bar in downtown Traverse City. I arrived on time to find him in a booth, having already ordered for me. We sat quietly waiting… with awkward silences and then it arrived… This delicious looking bowl filled to the brim and overflowing with gumbo.
My first taste took me by surprise, “Hey! This is good gumbo,” and the silence gave way to pleasant conversation: “Look at that shrimp! I bet this okra is the frozen kind -- where would they get fresh okra?”
Over time, we have found a lot more to talk about, like books, art, and life in general, and I look forward to “gumbo day.” We count the number of shrimp and see if it tastes as good as last week or if the usual cook, Denny, is on vacation.

GUMBO LINEUP
I have noticed that we are not the only regular gumbo eaters. There is a so-called gumbo of humanity in the bar on Wednesday – bikers, hikers, bankers, lawyers, and editors – an unlikely mix that blends well together, just like the gumbo. It is as if once a week, this magic elixir pushes aside the differences of the world. It unites us in one harmonious symphony of tastes, with just the right amount of kick to jump start the senses. The composer of this masterpiece is Denny (who asked that his last name not be used for this article). I was fortunate enough to get an interview with him to share some of his secrets.
When I arrived for the interview Denny was in the kitchen as usual. He’s a teddy bear of a man with a pony tail tucked under his hat and smiling eyes behind his glasses.

NE: How long have you worked for Union Street Station?
Denny: About 14 years… before that I hung out here a lot, played in some bands, and ran open mic night.

NE: Where did you get your cooking skills?
Denny: I apprenticed with the Hilton Corporation and was taught by two Austrian gold medal winning chefs. They were really tough. If you were chopping the wrong way they would slap your hand. They wouldn’t let us take any short cuts. We were taught that as chefs we have a lot of responsibility on our hands for the health and safety of our customers.

NE: Is the gumbo your own recipe?
Denny: No, it came from a woman who worked on a Texas, offshore oil well years ago; we’ve tweaked it a little.

NE: Would you be willing to share some of the secrets of a good gumbo with us?
Denny: Sure, there are a lot of soups
called gumbo – the dark or blackened roux is the secret.
The roux is equal parts flour and butter you bake it for five hours in a 400 degree oven. It’s called Cajun napalm or dangerous molten flour. You’ve got to be very careful! (Denny does this the day before and lets it cool.)
I’ve made hare (rabbit) gumbo with andouille sausage and I’ve seen it made with pork, chicken and lobster. It all depends on how much money and time you want to spend. We do a seafood gumbo and we use the big expensive shrimp. Most places don’t.
I like canned okra. If you use fresh or frozen you should sauté it. I use finely chopped ham and white fish, crab, onions, peppers, chopped tomatoes, and a splash of red wine. Any meat you use for gumbo should be roasted in the oven and all the drippings used in the stock. The seafood goes in last along with the baked rice. The spices I use are onion powder, lemon pepper, Lea & Perins, a tiny bottle of Tabasco sauce, just a pinch of peppers -- don’t overdo it -- and salt to taste.
There are a lot of gumbos. No two are the same. The closest I’ve found to ours was in New Orleans at the House of Blues. I’ve had gumbo at Anton’s and about 20 other places down there and most of them have a lot more broth. They are not as chunky as ours. Both my brothers live in New Orleans and one of them served gumbo at his wedding.

NE: What is your favorite food?
Denny: Hummm... boy I don’t know... you know food is love... I had a piece of wedding cake last week and it had strawberry filling. Now that was a little slice of heaven.

NE: Oh yes that reminds me my sister Mary wants to know if you are married?
Denny: No… but I’m looking forward to it.
(At this point I wrote down my sister’s phone number and gave it to him thinking to myself that this is one nice man who can cook and has a job).

NE: How many bowls of gumbo do you sell on Wednesday?
Denny: About 50 or 60. We have quadrupled the original recipe. This is a group effort here at Union Street with Dave the owner, and Kate the manager. She has added so much -- she got the kitchen really going -- and Libby, she runs all over. Our whole crew is involved.
(Denny then said that his job was the easiest. Libby strongly disagreed then added “I have customers who tell me that Denny’s gumbo is better than any they have had in New Orleans.” She also told me he rarely goes on vacation. Denny said he has been gone two times. Once he broke his leg skiing and he came in to make the gumbo and then went home to rest.)

NE: Do you enjoy what you do?
Denny: Yeah it’s our little kitchen under the stairs, we call it the soul kitchen. (The kitchen is tiny. It’s behind the bar and under the stairway, just like Harry Potter; it suits him well.).

NE: If you could cook for anyone in the world, who would that be?
Denny: George Bush and Bob Dylan. I’d make them gumbo or pork chops.

NE: Do you know what happened to Jimmy Hoffa?
Denny: No...
(I have never done an interview before and just thought I’d throw that in.)

NE: Do you think if Hoffa had been here eating gumbo, instead of at that Italian restaurant, that he might not have disappeared that day?
Denny: Yeah, probably not.

NE: And finally is there any message you would like to pass on? (He thought for a few seconds and then became very serious).
Denny: I just hope we can find the real answer to world hunger. It’s right there in front of us but no one is taking responsibility for it. It makes me sad that I have to throw out bread crust every day someone in the world could be eating that. I hope Americans know just how lucky we are.

I left that interview with a good feeling and deep respect for this quiet unassuming man. And I highly recommend that sometime you invite a friend and find your way to Union Street Station. Join the Wednesday lunch bunch for some of Denny’s gumbo or his other delicious soups and sandwiches. The atmosphere is very casual with jazz music softly playing on the sound system. Libby the waitress always takes good care of her customers and you will probably see Dad and I counting our shrimp and enjoying ourselves... and each other... and all it took for that to happen was finding some of the best gumbo in the world. Thank you, Denny. I’ll see you Wednesday.

This is Carol Ebright’s first article for the Express. She is a resident of Traverse City.