Enjoying Southern Hospitality at Succotash

Ryan Keough, co-owner and executive chef of Succotash in the Jewelry District, started cooking around the same time he started school at Johnson & Wales. During his time there he had the opportunity to travel to Ireland and study classic French technique. From there he's moved to Boston, New York, Chicago and finally back to Providence. Read on to see how his experience has influenced who he is as a chef today.

Why did you become a chef?
All the classic chefs inspired me. As a kid you watch PBS and all of the cooking shows – Jacques Pepin, Julia Child, Lidia Bastianich, Martin Yan. I loved it. It was Martin Yan who at the end of his show would say, “If Yan can cook, so can you.” At such a young age it was funny, but then I would go upstairs to the kitchen and try. 

Succotash is such a unique name. Where did you get it from?
It comes from a Narragansett Indian dish, and it's a traditional Rhode Island dish. But I use succotash all the time. I use it all the time in different restaurants, that and ratatouille. It's got bacon, corn and lima beans. It reminds me of Thanksgiving; it's a New England thing, and a Pennsylvania thing. It is on the menu and it will stay on the menu. I would recommend eating our cast-iron pan-seared catfish with it.  

What's a source of inspiration for you?
The co-owner/partner of Succotash (Umberto Sorbo) flies me out to Miami and Boston to do research. We look at a lot of restaurants and food. One day we'll pick an Italian restaurant, a breakfast restaurant, etc. and we'll look through their menus, order a lot of items, try the best of the best and then create our menus. There are so many restaurants, even in Providence, I pull inspiration from.

What did you learn from your time in Ireland?
I learned classic French technique and about the local culture. Everyone in Providence talks about farm-to-table. This was farm-to-table. There was a local butcher, fish monger, mushroom forager and dairy products. Everything on the menu was from a local farm in Ireland. It's what they've been doing for a long time. 

How do you give back now that you have all this experience?
In some ways I'm a teacher now. I teach and learn at the same time now. I like to show [JWU] students the experiences that I went through. They stage before they work here. But when they shadow here, I have them do it during brunch when it's the busiest. I want them to see a busy restaurant, a line moving together, the front of the house moving, the managers talking together. 

Let's talk about the food. Describe a bit about the menu.
I always wanted to do breakfast and brunch. The menu changes every two months to keep it seasonal and fresh and to keep me interested. Everyone likes change; I don't want anyone to get bored. 

What's a gotta-have entrée for a first timer at Succotash?
Biscuits and Gravy. You could eat it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It's the bacon fat and fresh-made love that goes into it. We make the biscuits with salted butter. Then I would have you wash it all down with bourbon.

I hear you have Chicken and Waffles…
Chicken needs a marinade, and we use a house made barbecue sauce and buttermilk. After one day in the marinade the chicken is great. After two days it's awesome. Then, we season the flour batter with Cajun spices. The waffles are light, fluffy and made with vanilla. We also use Vermont maple syrup. You can smell the vanilla coming off the waffles.

What meal do you make for yourself at home?
My wife, Kristina, cooks for me. She's a better cook than me. She cooks all the classic Italian dishes, and when she cooks for two, she cooks for 20.

Are there any plans for the future?
We're currently working on a new smokehouse where the theme is low and slow. It's a huge space in Cranston and we're working with a local brew-master to create a rotating brew system with the ultimate goal of one day getting the brew on the market. We have a lot of great ideas for this place.