Finding joy at the table
When Whistling Table Executive Chef Mac Russell explains why he chose the catchphrase “dine joyfully” for his restaurant, he can’t help but grin. The food scene in Birmingham, he said, isn’t slowing down, and he’s jubilant about bringing people another source of happiness through what he loves best: “fresh, flavor-forward food.”
“The [name] Whistling Table, it sounds like a restaurant, but I wanted to make sure people know this is going to be a joyful place,” he said. “The table is so important. We all gather here, it’s not a meeting, it’s all relationships. … It’s such an important part of life.”
Russell, known for the last several years for his popular food at the Shindigs Catering food truck he started with Chad Schofield, recently launched his “refined-casual” Forest Park restaurant as a way to continue with some of Shindig’s favorites while still introducing new and creative farm-to-table menu items and experiences.
Formerly the V. Richards storefront location, Whistling Table opened its lunch menu for the public June 11 and launched its dinner menu the week of July 16.
“The nights are going to be totally different, it’s going to be more for the experience,” Russell said prior to the dinner menu launch.
Although Russell wants this to be a place for anniversaries and celebratory occasions, he said it’s primarily “a neighborhood place.” It can be anything from grabbing a to-go cup of coffee in the morning to coming in for a grain bowl and juice bar for lunch to meeting up for a date night or wine-tasting later. Russell wants people to be able to come multiple times a day, like he used to do at the V. Richards café and market space.
“I understand how it used to be, and I’m trying not to lose that convenience,” he said.
Not only is he excited for his servers and bar staff, but he also said his beverage director and sommelier are “phenomenal, and will bring a lot to the table.” With recent approval of a liquor license, Russell said Whistling Table will be offering a variety of wines, some closer to a retail price. He said he understands everyone is on a budget these days.
Russell, who graduated from Culinard and also studied wine in Italy, previously bounced around to restaurants including Birmingham-favorite Hot & Hot Fish Club, Renaissance Ross Bridge Golf Resort & Spa and Standard Bistro.
Whistling Table Chief Experience Officer Maggie Hannum has worked with Russell for the past five years, she said, and wanted to work for him because of how dedicated he is to service and farm-to-table dining.
“It’s funny how consistent he is, with his ingredients, too,” she said. “He is really focused on treating people well. He takes the time to invest in the people.”
Russell said he definitely got his love for “throwing things together to eat” from his time on the farm with his family, and he will always try to make food fresh daily.
“I realized no one was coming back to the farms [for food]; they were going to the cities,” Russell said, but he wanted to make farmers part of the process for his restaurant and give back to the local economy. For his Whistling Table menu, he has local farmers, some from his own family, come by several times a week to sell fresh produce from the farm, as well as family-raised cows, chickens, rabbits and pigs from them.
“The whole point is being able to sustain a local community,” Russell said.
Although he said it’s a lot harder than he thought, it’s worth it to see locals becoming successful and sustaining themselves.
Russell, who is a believer in a menu with a few classic staples and a wide variety of flavor-heavy creations, said the restaurant has been packed since he opened, and that they even had to extend their lunch hours.
For the safe-bet eater, Whistling Table has menu items such as the “MacDaddy Burger,” a bacon cheese burger made with Selma slaw and strawberry catsup, and the “Fish and Grits,” a spiced of version of a classic made with crispy catfish, purple HighLife Grits and summer succotash.
If people are interested in trying some tangy and fresh combinations of flavors, there’s the “Som am Poke,” which is a bright, colorful bowl of Gulf tuna, vegetable noodles and green papaya with champaign mango, cucumber, Okinawa spinach, dehydrated pineapple and local microgreens with the creaminess of avocado puree, or the “Mater & Melon” salad made with crispy field peas, charred peach, whipped feta and cucumber white balsamic dressing with the option of lamb.
“What we try to do is serve appropriate-sized stuff that has more flavor or a cool texture or pretty food, so you are using all your senses to try to fill up instead of doing larger portions or eating too much,” Russell said.
Savory plates blasted with sweeter flavors include the “Rabbit Agnolotti,” made with Reggiano broth, crispy brown butter, farm vegetables, red vein sorrel and rabbit jus, as well as the “Fried Pork Chop,” which includes eggplant puree, blackberries, charred vidalia and heirloom tomato mojo, avocado and nasturtium mole.
Visit whistlingtable.com for more information.