Jared Cannon likes a challenge in the kitchen
In Chestnut Hill, restaurant and brewery Iron Hill is switching up the brunch menu weekly. It not only entices brunch-goers, it also keeps chef Jared Cannon on his toes. But weekend meals aren’t a big enough challenge for Cannon, which is why he’s creating special event menus all spring long. Spoiler alert: Baseball’s opening day will be delicious.
Is it difficult to come up with a brunch menu that changes each week?
No, it’s actually really fun. It keeps me in step and invigorated. Plus it’s another avenue to be creative. I like to take what people know and put a twist on it.
How much booze is too much booze at brunch?
I think two beverages at brunch is good. There is an exception to that, though: our Father’s Day Beer Brunch. That’s a five-course food and beer pairing.
Do you live in Chestnut Hill?
I live in West Chester.
What do you do in West Chester on your days off?
I try to venture into Philly when I can. I’m really excited about the food scene there. I grew up in north Delaware, but I’ve been living in Miami and I only moved back to this area about a year ago. So I like to go into the city and see what other chefs are doing. I went to Distrito and thought it was great. I’m a prior chef of Mexican cuisine, so it was cool to see how they interpret food.
You guys are doing a “Mexican Beer Dinner” in April. Did you help with the menu?
Of course! This is my chance to kind of flex my muscles. The beer dinners are a cool opportunity to sit down with the brewer and make something that a lot of people aren’t used to.
So the “Phightin’ Phils Pils Release” is another chance to do that, just with hot dogs?
Yeah. It’s another chance to take what people love and add a twist. I get to correlate baseball with hot dogs and beer. Coming up with the names [The Chili Choooooch Dog, The Chase Utley, You are the Man Dog, et al.] was the funnest part.
