Big Belly's Claude Hawk Jr. an Artist With A Burger

Whenever you hear the word "chef," you automatically think of Bobby Flay, Rachel Ray or Anthony Bourdain, my personal favorite. But what about the perfect burger? That's an art form in and of itself with very few able to master the art. However, Claude Hawk Jr. of Big Belly Burgers, 109 W. Bloomingdale Ave., Brandon, most certainly has mastered this technique.

Born in Atlanta in 1967, Hawk has weathered quite the storm in his controversial world. As a child he would pull up his milk crate and drop french fries for his father at his restaurant, The Blue Dolphin Cafe.

At this point in the interview, I could see Hawk get a small wrinkle between his eyes as he remembered standing on that crate taking orders from his father, "Drop fries," and he would comply with a smile.

He also did dishes and ran the food out to the tables in this soul-food type of restaurant, and this is where it all began. The youngest memories are usually the strongest and have the biggest hand in shaping our lives. This is probably why soul food is Claude's favorite style of cooking with his most favorite meal being collard greens with ham hocks and red beans and rice.

His parents also owned and operated the Paradise Living--Personal Care Home with a constant 35 residents. His father insisted on home-cooked meals and passed this legacy down to his son, hence the suffix Junior. When his father left the assisted living facility to take care of the business part of their lives; Hawk took over the kitchen and did rather well. Hawk found himself to be a natural at the whole family and holiday type of restaurant environment and as a result, he still hasn't found the time to get his culinary degree. The school of hard knocks has provided more than one sheepskin in the culinary field, including Claude Hawk Jr's.

When in high school, he entered the HOST program, which stands for Hospitality Observation Service Training, where he was greatly influenced by Miss Pickering. He was the only boy in home economics and he thrived on these words from his teacher, "Cooks can make a good and honest living." He then ran into Herman Gamicher who brought the HOST program into West Fulton in Atlanta to further the kids' educations and provide jobs. He lasted for a while but soon gave way to his wanderlust.

Hawk was actually a spoiled rich kid before he joined the U.S. Army in 1987 as a food service provider and a second job description as a food technician. He grew up hard in the Army and, when he got out, he met up with Lenny Russo, who was the first actual chef he worked for in his life, besides his father.

He has held a few executive chef positions, most notably the one with Lou Walker, from the television show, "In the Heat of the Night." They opened a blues and jazz-themed place called Blues in the Alley and he has even cooked for Condoleeza Rice. His eyes lit up at this point and I can't blame him.

He found Big Belly's through a friend. He was working at The Game Stop, that place in Ybor City. Kimberly is an awesome boss he states and, after talking to her, it's obvious she feels the same way about him.

Outside of work, he is active in Narcotics Anonymous and has been clean and sober for three years--an act to be applauded on its own merit. He sponsors several people and is active in the Hospitals and Institutions program that provides assistance to those who can't find it elsewhere.

His eyes welled up at this point, so I changed the subject. I asked about his future plans and he says he's not leaving Big Belly's.

I asked if they were going to expand into the empty room next door to Big Belly Burgers and he smiled and said, "Just around the corner...possibly."

I asked about a franchise and he stated that he wasn't at liberty to say but there was a twinkle in his eyes.

He shared a personal recipe with me for Grit Muffins. That's right, I said Grit Muffins.

GRIT MUFFINS

2 1/2 cups cooked and cooled grits.

4 cups corn meal

3-4 eggs

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup sugar

Combine all ingredients and scoop into greased muffin tins. Cook at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. Pour on honey or your favorite jelly and enjoy. (Brown sugar can be substituted for sugar.)

I am personally going to try this recipe within the next week and I'll let you know it turns out.