Joshua Sturma can still hear the voice of his former boss at the Shack in his head. A fiery Italian who was passionate about food, the man would lose his mind any time he'd go back into the kitchen and see his cooks under-seasoning or undercooking the hash browns.
"People don't like fucking potatoes," he'd yell at anyone within earshot. "You know what they like? They like butter! They like salt. They like their potatoes fucking cooked!"
In the midst of his tirade, Sturma's then-boss would take a squeeze bottle of melted butter and shaker of salt, smother the browns with them, then take a spatula to smash the thinly shredded potatoes with the entire force of his ire.
Sturma admits the approach was a little heat-of-the-moment intense, but he also understands why the message was so important. People screw up hash browns, Sturma says. They think of them as a throwaway side that is only on the plate because it needs to be and therefore put as little effort as possible into heating them up and getting them out to the table. Sturma thinks this is a crime — that if you cook and season your hash browns properly (six minutes, not four and a half, and loaded with butter and salt, he insists), they can be a multi-textured, deeply satisfying earthy delight. That's why he serves the most quintessential version of the dish you'll find, why you'll rarely see any left on his customers' plates, and why his restaurant, Hatch'd (6931 Gravois Avenue, 314-448-1642), is one of the area's most thrilling daytime spots.
Sturma's road to breakfast glory began when he was just a kid working in restaurants around town but really took off in 2011 when he began working for OG Hospitality Group, the restaurant group behind the Tavern Kitchen & Bar, the Corner Pub & Grill and the Shack Breakfast & Lunch. Though he arrived at the Tavern a 15-year industry professional, Sturma had his eyes opened to what true hospitality looked like working for OG as he rose through the ranks with the company. After landing at the Shack, Sturma became passionate about the idea that even simple breakfast and lunch could provide the same level of service and care as fine dining, and he dove headfirst into helping the group execute its vision as it expanded throughout the St. Louis area and into Kansas City.
Sturma dreamed of opening a restaurant of his own one day, so when his hope to buy into the Shack's ownership group failed to materialize a couple of years ago, he left the company to venture out on his own. During that time, he worked at the storied south St. Louis Italian restaurant Trattoria Marcella as he sketched out a plan for what his own daytime spot would look like. Though he had the menu nailed down quickly, the full picture of what he wanted his place to be materialized once he found the right space: the former Quincy Street Bistro in Princeton Heights. After signing on his dad, Paul, as a partner, securing the space and dealing with equipment problems that nearly crushed his restaurant dreams, Sturma welcomed his first guests into Hatch'd last May.
From day one, Hatch'd has been a roaring success, and the hash browns tell you all you need to know about why this is the case — not because they are flawless (they are), but because they demonstrate Sturma's uncompromising, every detail counts approach to running a restaurant. Every dish embodies this philosophy, from the best-in-class hash browns to a flawlessly cooked cheese omelet, cleverly named Sweet Dreams Are Made of Cheese. The eggs are beautifully prepared so that you can still see the waves from where the spatula gently folded them. Fluffy and (praise the lord) not a touch of brown on them, the eggs are stuffed with molten cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, then garnished with sour cream and chives for a decadent morning treat.
The same care is given to the Pastramolette, an omelet filled with housemade pastrami, onion, red pepper and Swiss cheese. Like a combination of bacon and sausage, the gently peppery pastrami seasons the eggs with smoke and meaty flavor without being overwhelming. It's a beautiful addition to the omelet-filling pantheon.
Skillets are equally successful. If the Hot in Hurr — a beautiful, mouth-tingling melange of hash browns, luscious Mexican chorizo, jalapeños, green chili salsa and queso — is the embodiment of Southwestern flavors, the Slingers Club nails south St. Louis' quintessential dish. Here, the Hatch'd kitchen crew smothers hash browns and mild breakfast sausage patties with over-easy eggs, cheddar cheese, diced white onions and beefy, greasy spoon diner style chili. This is where you send an out-of-towner looking to experience a gut punch of St. Louis pride.
Hatch'd may nail St. Louis' signature breakfast dish, but it shows that love to Philadelphia as well through its Benny's Got Beef, a riff on eggs benedict made with housemade brisket smothered in jalapeno queso that tastes like the most respectable version of a Philly cheesesteak I've had outside the City of Brotherly Love.
These creative dishes make up a significant part of Hatch'd menu, though the restaurant is equally adept at delivering the classics. Pancakes, flavored with just a whisper of vanilla, are perfectly golden and light, then crisp up just the tiniest bit around the edges; waffles are delightfully malty and crunchy on the outside, then yield to a soft interior. Biscuits and gravy deliver exactly what you want — fluffy and smothered with velvety sausage-flecked gravy for a classic and utterly delicious interpretation of the country breakfast staple.
However, the dish that caught me off guard was the South Sider, a breakfast sandwich featuring an over-medium egg, American cheese and fried bologna served on griddled toast. Not only was the dish a gooey, decadent dream, it was also unbelievably nostalgic. I truly felt as if I was eight years old, sitting in my mom's kitchen and eating her signature grilled cheese; she used Spam instead of bologna, but something about the way that uber-melty American cheese melded into the white bread while the cured meat provided a salty pop brought me back to my youth.
Sturma had that same experience as a kid growing up on the city's south side, though his mom used bologna. He suspected most St. Louis natives enjoyed some version of that sandwich in their youths, and it was important for him to tap into that — not only because it's delicious but because he believes food is one of the purest forms of warmth and joy we have as a community. Noshing on that South Sider and a side of his perfect hash browns while reveling in nostalgic bliss, it's hard to disagree.
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