Anybody remember Bratten's Seafood Restaurant? (Salt Lake City: school, live, food)

[sayulita]

Hello Salt Lake Cityites!

I lived in Salt Lake City in the late 60's and early 70's and used to frequent a restaurant called Bratten's Seafood. They apparently no longer exist but I though I'd try this forum to see if I can locate a recipe for their Shrimp Chowder. It was tomato based and absolutely delicious which is why I still remember it after all these years. I was hoping that maybe the Deseret News or the Tribune might have published the recipe as a reader request and someone out there still has a copy of it.
If anyone out there has the recipe, could you kindly share it with me?
Thanks so much!

[dcisive]

Sorry, no recipe, but back in 1978 when I came out to SLC for the 1st time I went there. I agree their food overall was excellent. Most certainly superior to all of the current fish oriented restaurant offerings we have. It's a shame it had to go. It had it all. Ambiance and quality of food and service. Market Street grill only wishes they were that good.....

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by sayulita

Hello Salt Lake Cityites!

I lived in Salt Lake City in the late 60's and early 70's and used to frequent a restaurant called Bratten's Seafood. They apparently no longer exist but I though I'd try this forum to see if I can locate a recipe for their Shrimp Chowder. It was tomato based and absolutely delicious which is why I still remember it after all these years. I was hoping that maybe the Deseret News or the Tribune might have published the recipe as a reader request and someone out there still has a copy of it.
If anyone out there has the recipe, could you kindly share it with me?
Thanks so much!

Absolutely! I do remember it and I loved it -- the restaurant and the chowder. I actually do have the recipe, but when I got it (back when Bratten's was still in business), the ingredients were listed in the quantities they used to maked the chowder to serve in the restaurant -- in other words gallons, would have to be reduced to cups, and cups to tablespoons. Does that make sense? I will have to look for it. I'm pretty sure I have it somewhere since I always intended to try to figure out how to cut it down to a manageable size. If I can find it and you can do the math and try it out, just promise me that you'll post the revised recipe. Give me a day or so.

[CCSLC]

Originally Posted by Katzpur

Absolutely! I do remember it and I loved it -- the restaurant and the chowder. I actually do have the recipe, but when I got it (back when Bratten's was still in business), the ingredients were listed in the quantities they used to maked the chowder to serve in the restaurant -- in other words gallons, would have to be reduced to cups, and cups to tablespoons. Does that make sense? I will have to look for it. I'm pretty sure I have it somewhere since I always intended to try to figure out how to cut it down to a manageable size. If I can find it and you can do the math and try it out, just promise me that you'll post the revised recipe. Give me a day or so.

I've been looking for this recipe, too! And I actually need it in a huge quantity. If you can find it, I'd be happy to do the conversions for a more manageable portion, though.

Incidentally, there are a couple of "old school" SLC recipes I'm looking for. Anybody happen to know how to make:
-Chocolate mint cookies from ZCMI
-A Kay-Sa-Dee-A from Scott's Drive-In in WVC (particularly the unusual hot sauce)

[sayulita]

Originally Posted by Katzpur

Absolutely! I do remember it and I loved it -- the restaurant and the chowder. I actually do have the recipe, but when I got it (back when Bratten's was still in business), the ingredients were listed in the quantities they used to maked the chowder to serve in the restaurant -- in other words gallons, would have to be reduced to cups, and cups to tablespoons. Does that make sense? I will have to look for it. I'm pretty sure I have it somewhere since I always intended to try to figure out how to cut it down to a manageable size. If I can find it and you can do the math and try it out, just promise me that you'll post the revised recipe. Give me a day or so.

Yes yes yes! Please send it to me and to the poster following yours (zionide). I'm pretty sure I could figure it out. If not then maybe ZIONIDE can. Let's all work together to make this delicious chowder. I'm so excited! I was a poor 20 something back then and this chowder was all I could afford. But I remember it so well. Would love to have it in my recipe book. I eagerly await the recipe!

[sayulita]

Originally Posted by Zionide

I've been looking for this recipe, too! And I actually need it in a huge quantity. If you can find it, I'd be happy to do the conversions for a more manageable portion, though.

Incidentally, there are a couple of "old school" SLC recipes I'm looking for. Anybody happen to know how to make:
-Chocolate mint cookies from ZCMI
-A Kay-Sa-Dee-A from Scott's Drive-In in WVC (particularly the unusual hot sauce)

I'd love your help on this recipe. When Katzpur sends it, let's collaborate on it and get it down to household portions. This will be fun!

You might want to post your query about the ZCMI cookies and the Kay Se Dee Ya's in a new thread. It might get more attention that way. I worked at ZCMI for a year, but don't remember those cookies.

[Katzpur]

Bratten's Shrimp Chowder:

This recipe was given to me by a friend who got it directly from a woman named "Donna" who used to make it at Bratten's. It is for 10 gallons of chowder. I'm excited to have it reduced, too. I've actually had the recipe for over 20 years and never tried it. (I'm a terrible cook and don't do well even with a very specific recipe. I just never felt I could tackle this one.) Anyway, this is verbatim from her with my friend's comments in parenthesis. I'll have to admit, it sounds like something a professional chef would have given someone just off the cuff.


Diced celery... 4 gallons cooked in shortening
Add 1 gal chopped onions... Cook celery and onions until done
5 handfuls of salt (Presumably a woman's size hands)
2 heaping tablespoons white pepper
1 heaping tablespoon of garlic
Mix and add flour until thick
Add 2 gallons HOT tomato puree
Add 1 gallon diced HOT tomatoes
Stir
Add fish stock (Donna told my friend she uses boiled fish bones?!?!)
When cool, add 1 gallon Alaska shrimp

[sayulita]

Perfect! Thank you so much katzpur. I'll be sure to send you the finalized recipe when we're done with it. I'll even walk you through it on the phone if you want! Zionide - how does this sound?

I cup celery
1/2 cup onion
2 tsp salt or to taste when soup is done
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1 clove minced garlic
1/4 cup flour????
1 large can tomato puree ?????
1 28. oz can diced tomatoes ?????
1 1/2 cups fish stock (clam juice??)
1 1/2 cup tiny cooked shrimp (maybe more???)

Do the porportions sound right? I'm so looking forward to getting it right and making it. I could have sworn there were potatoes in it too, but I guess not.

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by sayulita

Perfect! Thank you so much katzpur. I'll be sure to send you the finalized recipe when we're done with it. I'll even walk you through it on the phone if you want! Zionide - how does this sound?

I cup celery
1/2 cup onion
2 tsp salt or to taste when soup is done
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1 clove minced garlic
1/4 cup flour????
1 large can tomato puree ?????
1 28. oz can diced tomatoes ?????
1 1/2 cups fish stock (clam juice??)
1 1/2 cup tiny cooked shrimp (maybe more???)

Do the porportions sound right? I'm so looking forward to getting it right and making it. I could have sworn there were potatoes in it too, but I guess not.

The proportions are probably right, but I got confused right off the bat with the statement "diced celery - 4 gallons cooked in shortening." 4 gallons of diced celery certainly doesn't equate to 1 cup. On the other hand, she couldn't possibly have means 4 gallons of diced celery for a 10-gallon pot of chowder, so your guess is as good as mine on what she meant by that (probably better).

Also, I don't know what she could have meant by HOT tomato puree and HOT tomatoes. I didn't know there was such a thing as HOT tomato anything.

Clam juice would probably work, or if you wanted to me more authentic, you could stop by a fish market and ask them to save their leftover fish bones so you could make your stock from scratch.

I can almost remember it having potatoes in it, too, although it that may have been their clam chowder I was thinking of.

This is obviously going to require some trial and error, huh? Let me know how your first batch turns out.

[sayulita]

Originally Posted by Katzpur

The proportions are probably right, but I got confused right off the bat with the statement "diced celery - 4 gallons cooked in shortening." 4 gallons of diced celery certainly doesn't equate to 1 cup. On the other hand, she couldn't possibly have means 4 gallons of diced celery for a 10-gallon pot of chowder, so your guess is as good as mine on what she meant by that (probably better).

Also, I don't know what she could have meant by HOT tomato puree and HOT tomatoes. I didn't know there was such a thing as HOT tomato anything.

Clam juice would probably work, or if you wanted to me more authentic, you could stop by a fish market and ask them to save their leftover fish bones so you could make your stock from scratch.

I can almost remember it having potatoes in it, too, although it that may have been their clam chowder I was thinking of.

This is obviously going to require some trial and error, huh? Let me know how your first batch turns out.

I'm going to wait until ZIONIDE chimes in as she seems like she must be a professional in the field. I based my portions sort of on other recipes I have made but would have to actually make it to see if I come close. It was a very thick soup as I recall. A google search turned up a similar request (with no answers that I could find) and they called it Bratten's Coney Island Shrimp Chowder. Googled that too but no luck. I think we have a great start though with your ingredient list and I'm confident that the three of us will be having a bowl of this in the very near future!