Dayton Food & Dining | New ramen night kicks off at Dayton underground bar, other ne ws 🍜

Hello, food fans! Last week my donut dreams came true. Prior to National Donut Day, my photographer and I went to Stan the Donut Man in Dayton to see how they make donuts.

We showed up just in time as they were making blueberry cake donuts and pineapple fritters. Lindsey Roberts, who owns the donut shop with her two sisters, allowed me to flip the fritters in the fryer using “giant chopsticks.”

I’ve always wanted to work in a donut shop, so I was very excited they let me give it a try.

Now this week, is the Miami Valley Restaurant Association’s Burger Week that runs through June 15. If you’re heading out to eat this week, several restaurants in the Dayton region are featuring burger specials. From Moeller Brew Barn in Dayton with a PB & Jam Burger to The Florentine Restaurant in Germantown with a Southwestern Burger done chimichanga style, there’s a lot of unique creations. CLICK HERE for a full list of what to expect.

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Dayton chef launches ramen nights at Tender Mercy

Credit: The Idea Collective

Dayton Chef Mariah Gahagan is launching “Send Noodz” — a ramen night from 5 to 8 p.m. every Wednesday at Tender Mercy.

To kick off the series, guests can expect $15 bowls of tonkatsu ramen with pork belly chasu, fresh noodles, seasonal vegetables, house pickles and local duck eggs. For $5 more, guests can add on a Lucky Dog Sake juice box.

To make tonkatsu ramen, it’s a labor of love.

Gahagan starts off by marinating pork belly for a couple of days before she can sous vide, press it and crisp it up to order. She then roasts a pan of pork bones that goes into a stock pot to boil with ingredients like ginger, scallions, carrots, celery, onions and dried mushrooms. She lets the stock simmer for 24 hours.

Everything is house made, besides the noodles. Gahagan said she pickles local vegetables and uses local duck eggs to top the ramen.

She described the ramen as “pure comfort.”

READ MORE: Dayton Chef Mariah Gahagan has 32 years in local restaurant scene

Mudlick Tap House plans to relocate to Uptown Centerville in 2025

Credit: Natalie Jones

Mudlick Tap House is relocating from downtown Dayton to Uptown Centerville.

“The restaurant is very much alive and well,” said Jennifer Dean, who owns Mudlick Tap House with her husband, Forrest Williams. “After 10 years in business, nearly eight of them in downtown Dayton, we have decided to relocate to Uptown Centerville.”

Here’s what I know:

Dayton-area food truck owners compete for dollars and to stand out

Credit: Natalie Jones

For as little as a few thousand dollars, any entrepreneur can try to turn their love for food into a thriving food truck business, maybe even with eyes on opening a brick-and-mortar restaurant some day.

And many are trying. The number of food trucks licensed by the Montgomery County health department grew more than 60% over the last decade. There are now hundreds of them, varying from classic corn dog fare to exotic and unique specialties.

But success as a food trucker involves hustling as much behind the scenes as when they are inside the trucks selling food and drinks to long lines at local festivals and events.

Austin Warman and Justin Hamilton own and operate The Food Pitt, a Dayton-region food truck serving smash burgers and homemade macaroni and cheese. They say it can take two days to prep for five days of events.

The business owners take extra steps of making their own pickles and slicing their own lettuce and tomatoes — raising the bar of what it means to have made-from-scratch food. They have partnered with Baker Benji’s in Dayton for smash burger buns, and have created their own special sauce.

“If you’re going to start a food truck, don’t come in thinking it’s easy,” Hamilton said. “Make sure you know it’s going to take a while for you to be big and make money. Be ready for your pockets to be empty for a little bit.”

CLICK HERE to read more about what it takes to own and operate a food truck.

Firsthand experience working on a food truck

I saw firsthand what it was like to work a food truck at the Dayton Blessing of the Bikes event at Kil-Kare Raceway in Xenia a few weeks ago. Cory Thompson, the owner of What The Taco?!, allowed me to tag along.

His set-up is similar to Chipotle or Hot Head Burritos where everything has been prepped ahead of time, so building tacos during an event is easy and seamless.

Thompson is always the one building the tacos, while someone else is taking orders. As the third person on the truck that day, I started off by warming up flour tortillas on a small griddle. Heating up the tortillas was easy, but it became hot real quick — especially with three people in the trailer.

I’m the type of person who likes engaging with customers, so eventually I weaved my way into taking orders. Thompson has it down to a science — by the time the person is done paying, he already has their tacos ready to go. I didn’t even have to write anything down.

During this event, What The Taco?! had Jamaican Jerk Chicken, Ground Beef, Barbacoa Beef and Black Bean & Roasted Corn (vegetarian and gluten-free) Tacos. They also had chips and salsa.

Of course, I couldn’t leave without making tacos. For those few people that came at the end of the event, I do apologize for the overstuffed, mess. It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, I just hope they had a fork!

Having the firsthand experience gave me a better understanding of what’s it like to work a food truck. You’re always listening, watching and trying to serve the customer as fast as possible.

Honestly, I would do it again!

WATCH: Behind the scenes on a food truck

Quick Bites

🥞 Legacy Pancake House to reopen next week: The restaurant is opening on Thursday, June 20 in the former spot of Holly’s Home Cooking, located at 489 E Dixie Drive in West Carrollton.

🍦 Jubie’s Creamery opens in Troy: The ice cream shop is located at 79 Foss Way in the former home of Oh Crêpe. The owners have added a drive-thru window. READ MORE

🍳 Brunch returns to Mack’s Tavern: The neighborhood bar in Washington Twp. will serve brunch every Sunday in June from 9 a.m. to noon.

🍑 Nashville’s Peach Truck is back: Here’s where you can find fresh peaches this summer

Recipe of the Week: Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Last week when I shared that I’m trying to reduce my grain intake, one of my readers shared a recipe for Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies. This recipe only calls for five ingredients, so I decided to give it a try.

All you need is:

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk the egg, brown sugar and baking soda together in a bowl until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the peanut butter and mix until well combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Scoop onto the baking sheet with a 1 1/2 inch baking scoop (or use a tablespoon) and space the cookies 2 inches apart.

Flatten the cookies slightly and bake for about 10 minutes until puffed and just beginning to turn golden around the edge. Don’t over bake, they will still be soft, but will firm up as they cool.

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to a rack. Enjoy!

These cookies are delicious. They taste just like your typically peanut butter cookie and are super easy to make. The recipe is from a website called The View from Great Island. Thank you so much Leslie Parsons for sharing this recipe!

Tell Us

Thank you so much for reading my weekly newsletter! If you see a new restaurant opening or are wondering when an establishment is expected to open up, feel free to email me here, and I’ll check it out.

One of my readers is looking for two recipes from Dominic’s, a Dayton restaurant that first opened on South Main Street in 1957. If you have the recipe for the restaurant’s chicken livers or pasta sauce, email me here.

Remember to follow Dayton Daily News on Facebook or search our Food & Dining section for the latest stories. I’ll have continuous updates on my Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok pages.

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