FM Kitchen & Bar
Texas comfort food is king at artistically outfitted Hildebrand spot
THE CONCEPT
A casual-cool repository of Southern comfort food along the Washington Corridor from Ryan Hildebrand. The former Triniti chef, who cut his culinary teeth in French fine dining, found inspiration for FM in Texas farm-to-market roads and old-school roadside restaurants.
THE SPACE
A retro garagestation vibe permeates the lofty dining room courtesy of Erin Hicks, who had architect Jim Herd’s clean, spare, heavily windowed building design to work with — think details such as vintage pickuptruck bumpers and grills and faded beer signs. In the sprawling backyard, artistic flourishes — painted bricks, a mural by local graffiti artist Daniel Anguilu — mingle with Adirondack chairs; umbrella’d picnic tables; and patio games such as giant Jenga, bean bags and pingpong.
THE FOOD
The menu, Texan in flavor, stars a classic cheeseburger. Snacks might involve Frito pie or shrimp and avocado campechana; there’s a classic Cobb or Caesar salad, too. Plates with more heft: chicken-fried steak, fried shrimp and hush puppies, lemonthyme brick chicken and Salisbury pork chops with mushrooms and onion gravy. For dessert? Bread pudding and loaded shakes. Hildebrand plans to expand the menu eventually, adding dishes such as smoked brisket, smoked chicken tortilla soup and a Vietnameseinspired meat pie using smoked brisket burnt ends.
THE DRINKS
Twenty-three beers on tap with additional taps for cold-brew coffee and five cocktails, plus a decent selection of bottled and canned beer. The fairly priced wine selections are available at $7 a glass and $25 per bottle. Cute touch: Instead of a bucket of beers, the bar uses mini plastic coolers.
ONE MORE THING
FM has a regular schedule of local bands playing on the patio, which Hildebrand likens to an urban park. “It’s a break from the city,” he said.
THE DETAILS
1112 Shepherd, 832-8046006; fmkitchenandbar. com. Open 11 a.m.midnight daily.