The Battle Of The Boiler

For eight years, Barresi's Italian Restaurant in Cincinnati, Ohio, did battle with a boiler steamer. One of the weapons used was a screw driver.

"Our service man used to have to bang the water lines with a screw driver to bust through the lime deposits," says chef John Thorpe. "The build-up was so bad that water couldn't flow through the lines."

The boiler steamer, a temperamental beast, would retaliate by blasting the unwary with hot steam. "Enough to burn your face," Thorpe comments.

Even the dishwasher was involved in the fray. "Our steamer ran off the hot water and in the winter it drained all the water. Well, the dishwasher also needed hot water, and we ran into problems if both were going at the same time."

Barresi's was declared victorious when the boiler steamer finally gave up the ghost. Though the restaurant cooks 90% of its food in a steamer, not a second was spent grieving for the old unit. Instead, owner Sal Barresi purchased two Steam 'n' Hold steam cookers in September of 1997.

Today, Thorpe still smiles over the fact that his steamers have proven to be so user-friendly. "They sure are a lot more forgiving," he comments with relief.

How forgiving are they?

For starters, Barresi's no longer needs their screw driver, because the Steam 'n' Hold doesn't require water lines or drain lines. That also means the dishwasher can operate at the same time the steamer is cooking.

The most significant weight off of Thorpe's shoulders is that there is no boiler to coddle. That means no costly boiler repairs, and no downtime due to hard water.

The Steam 'n' Hold is made of stainless steel, and holds three gallons of water in a reservoir in the bottom of the unit. The heating element never comes into direct contact with any water. Operating it is as simple as pouring in three gallons of water, and setting the time and temperature. Once the cook cycle is done, the steamer automatically switches to the hold mode, keeping food in a ready-to-serve state for hours.

Today, Thorpe does all the restaurant's fish in one of the units, and keeps the second steamer on fastcook. "We also steam chicken, lasagna, and vegetables. We slow cook veal shank. I've been told it tastes just like a roast," he boasts. "You name it; We probably steam it."

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