Q&A: Master of the seafood buffet

Allgauer's on the Waterfront, a third-generation restaurant owned by the hotel in which it is located — the Hilton Chicago Northbrook — is expanding its seafood offerings. It recently added "all-you-can-eat" Maine lobster to its weekly seafood and prime rib buffet. The buffet featuring more than 30 different hot and cold foods has been a longstanding Friday night tradition for the upscale eatery. SeafoodSource recently talked to Josh Hill, chef de cuisine at Allgauer's, about the restaurant's evolving seafood repertoire.

Blank: Why did you decide to add lobster to Allgauer's buffet?
Hill: Two or three years ago, crab and lobster prices were getting out of control. We took lobster off the buffet, and left crab on. Now, pricing has leveled off, so we put it back to get people back. It fluctuates, but we get an average of 60 people at the buffet.

What other seafood offerings are on the buffet menu?
Crab legs and shrimp have always been on there. We have four different fish, and one carving fish. For the carving fish, I try to do a more upscale fish, such as Hawaiian swordfish, ahi tuna or crab-crusted salmon. I leave it whole and put a nice dipping sauce or relish or aeoli with it. We also have corn-crusted tilapia and other fish. I like to change it up, especially when we have consistent customers.

How have the seafood offering on Allgauer's regular menu changed?
We change the menu every three to four months. With this recent change, I tried to go more cost-effective, because people are more cost-conscious right now. I found a real nice tilapia — Regal Springs fresh farm-raised tilapia — and offer a crab-crusted tilapia with sauce for USD 26.85. Right now, I have a chipotle-roasted salmon with pomegranate reduction for USD 23.95. We also have Asian-style ahi tuna with wasabi mashed potatoes and a signature dish, potato-crusted halibut.

Where are you finding high quality seafood?
The pricing on Hawaiian black bass and Hawaiian swordfish has been very good, so I have been using it on my seafood buffet. [My suppliers include] Supreme Lobster, Fortune Fish and Wabash Seafood.

Back to all Foodservice & Retail stories >