To know Tom Meyer, executive vice president of Clyde’s Restaurant Group and its former corporate chef, is to know many things: He’s a talented chef; he’s an amusing extrovert who could probably chat amiably with a fencepost; he’s able to inspire chefs and to manage a sprawling network of kitchens simultaneously; he is a ceramist; and he has sold the Clyde’s brand with some bold events, such as the now-defunct sprawling Oktoberfest, the fall Oyster Riot and the summer farm dinners, all held at one or another of Clyde’s 11 locations.
“My boss lets me do what I want to try out,” he says. “I always try something new as ideas pop into my head. I make them happen.”
To know Tom Meyer also is to bookmark some memorable moments, such as the time he appeared at an Oktoberfest decked out in a dirndl made from a blue-checked tablecloth and blond pigtails woven from yellow police caution tapes.
But for many, to know Tom Meyer really is to know this: He pioneered the very hip “farm to restaurant” movement in Washington 25 years ago, long before it became the local buzz for green eating. In fact, longtime admirers of Meyer will remember the days when he drove around the countryside first in his own Ford Bronco, and later in a truck decked out like an ear of corn, to pick up various crops from farms located in Southern Maryland and Southern Virginia.
When recounting this bit of Clyde’s history, Meyer tells it this way: “We were coming back from the beach (in the summer) and we had been enjoying the wonderful local tomatoes and melons,” he says. “And I went to Clyde’s in Georgetown, and there was a hard melon from Chile in the restaurant. So I thought it would be easy to call up the farmers and order nice local melons. … Instead, I had to drive there to pick up the produce myself, and the round-trip took four hours. I just thought it was the right thing to do.”
He also remembers the day when the corn truck broke down, right in the middle of Key Bridge.
“I called AAA for help, and told them to look for a Ford pickup with an ear of corn. … It’s the only ear of corn on Key Bridge,’ ” he remembers telling them.
As Meyer and local farmers developed a trusting relationship, the farmers started to grow crops just for Clyde’s, including melons, tomatoes, peaches, asparagus and all the berries.
“We started using only eight bushels of tomatoes each summer,” he notes, “and now we use 68 bushels.”
Meyer certainly sent a prophetic message to other chefs: Fresh-local is best, a fact patrons corroborated by tucking into spring-fresh strawberry shortcakes and seasonal peach cobblers, blackberry pies and apple desserts composed of farm-picked goodies at any of the Clyde’s restaurants.
If it sounds like Meyer was born to be a chef, he probably was. As he recounts, “I have always loved food. Other kids used to watch cartoons. I watched ‘The Galloping Gourmet.’ I loved to watch him.”
Meyer also read Paul Bocuse’s cookbook — Bocuse is an early advocate of nouvelle, or fresh, cooking — and learned at an impressionable age about designing menus focused on fresh, seasonal ingredients.
Further, though he studied hotel management in college, Meyer decided that that part of the industry wasn’t for him. What he wanted was to cook, and got his degree from the Culinary Institute of America, after which he got his first restaurant job.
“I couldn’t believe that I was getting paid to do this. I just loved it,” he says. “We would work all the time, six days a week.”
And then young Meyer’s life made a sharp right turn: Clyde’s Restaurant Group partner John Latham invited Meyer to come to Washington to show how to make cannelloni di casa. Meyer came, cooked and conquered — and ended up opening Clyde’s landmark Old Ebbitt Grill more than two decades ago.
Now, he no longer works the line every day, but he does cook a lot, responsible with corporate chef John Guattery for creating many of Clyde’s unique dishes.
“I made this nice peach glaze with lots of spice,” he says, ordering the peach cobbler topped with ice cream and the glaze. “My style is like Ralph Lauren’s — it’s very traditional, so the chefs put the spin on.”
Restaurant Information
Clyde’s Restaurant Group: For locations and hours of the various Clyde’s restaurants, visit www.clydes.com.
Q&A with Chef Tom Meyer
What is your signature dish?
The trout Parmesan. It was the first dish I put on the menu, and it’s still there today. Also I did hot steak salads before anyone else did. The original dressing was a spin-off of a Caesar dressing with anchovies, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, oil and an egg.
Do you cook at home?
All the time. I cook just about everything. I try to get my kids interested in cooking; my son is more interested than my daughter. He loves jambalaya.
What is your comfort food?
Macque choux (a Cajun dish, traditional in New Orleans). I make the best with sausages, chicken thighs, garlic, tomatoes, corn, salt and pepper. There’s no liquid. I put the lid on and bake at 275 degrees for a couple of hours.
How do you define your cooking style?
Erratic, like the rest of me. I go on tangents, like I will do a paella or jambalaya and do it until it is perfect. I get obsessed about it.
Which is your favorite cuisine?
Italian, unequivocally. It cuts such a wide swath. I crave tomato sauce, and I love rich Italian dishes. The food is awesome.
From the Chef’s Kitchen
Turkey and Black Bean Chili
Serves 6
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 strips bacon, diced
1 medium onion, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
4 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 1/2 pounds ground turkey
One (15-oz.) plus one (8-oz.) can tomato sauce
One (15-oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 Tbsp. molasses
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, or to taste
1 tsp. salt
Grated Parmesan for garnish
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, add the vegetable oil and the bacon, and heat over medium heat. Sauté the bacon until crisp. Drain off half the bacon fat. Add the onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes.
Add the ground turkey and sauté for 10 minutes. Add the tomato sauce, black beans, molasses, hot sauce and salt. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 10 minutes; serve.
