When Brian O'Connor and Randy Kemp venture into public wearing their work shirts, heads turn and eyebrows raise. Their black T’s have a simple question emblazoned across thefrontin bold white print.
“Got Hash?”
In this case, hash doesn't refer to a cannabis product. It refers to food— as in corned-beef hash. The phrase is the slogan of O'Connor and Kemp’s North Fort Myers restaurant, The Go Go Diner. They've even trademarked “Got Hash?” proudly displaying the certificate of proof on the restaurant's cooler.
It was unintentional, but the "hash"has taken on a life of its own at this small diner on Pondella Road. When O'Connor opened in 2011, the classically trained chef wanted hash on the breakfast menu, but he couldn’t bear to serve it from a can as many diners do.
“I wanted it to resemble the stuff out of the can but taste better," he said.
After lots of experimenting, he hit gold by grinding his corned beef, adding onions, peppers, potatoes, a special spice mix and a touch of his secret weapon: heavy cream.
Never one to settle for store-bought or pre-made, O'Connor crafted a hot sauce specifically to complement his hash. And customers can't get enough. Bottles of the fiery condimentgrace the tables and are for sale at the counter with labels reading:“Put some ass in your hash.”
MORE:At Osteria Celli, a simple Italian restaurant that's anything but
ALSO:A farmers market returns to Farmers Market Restaurant in Fort Myers
O'Connor grew up in Buffalo, New York and was enamored with his mother’s collection of Time-Life cookbooks. Books he used more than she did.
“I started cooking because my mom can’t,” he said, laughing.
He didn’t simply boil water for pasta. He baked and roasted and sauteed. He even madetemperamental souffles, carefully making sure they didn't fall flat in the oven.
“Cooking is my true talent,” he said. “I know what to do with food, how it wants to be cooked.”
O'Connor had cooked professionally for 10 years before enrolling in the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, an institution that's been called the Harvard of culinary schools. He then traveled the country asa corporate chef. At a taco shop in California, he had an epiphany.
“I thought, this is all I need. A little joint with great food,” O'Connor said.
REVIEW:Is Nice Guys the best restaurant in Cape Coral? Does it matter? — JLB
AND:The 5 tacos that cinco-handedly got me through the pandemic — JLB Picks
He came to Southwest Florida with a vision, an idea for a place he wanted to callGo Go Burrito. But when he found the spot on Pondella Road he realized: “This does not say burrito, it says diner.”
O'Connor crafted a menu that included diner staplesmade from quality ingredients, alongside items inspired by his classical training.
Go Go's breakfast specials range from lentils, roasted vegetables andcauliflower grits, to omelets that may be layered with barbecued pork, macaroni and cheese, sloppy-joe meat or even burrito fixings. A popular recurring special is an omelet O'Connor makes with U-10 scallops, asparagus and Swiss.
O'Connor said people drive from all over Southwest Florida to devour Go Go's savory breakfasts and get their hash on. But the diner also has a sweet side.
For his made-to-order red-velvet pancakes,O'Connor adds a splash of carbonationto thebatter to get them extra fluffy.He also crafts classicbuttermilk pancakes that can be loaded with blueberries or chocolate chips.
Even sweeter is Go Go's chocolate-cheesecake-stuffed French toast.
“It’s like a French toast sandwich with melted chocolate chips and cheesecake for a filling,” O'Connor said with a wide grin. “Despite what you might think, it’s not too, too sweet.”
For lunch, the griddle in Go Go's open kitchen is filled with a variety of meltson marbled rye bread and beefy burgers layered with bacon, mushrooms, jalapenos, cheeses and more. Instead of a BLT, the diner serves a BTL:same ingredientsjust stacked differently. Sandwiches and burgers come with a bag of chips, fresh-cut fries or a vinegar-based three-bean salad.
Go Go is celebrating its 10-year anniversary in September. Over the last decade, the diner has developed a cult-like following with a wide cast of regulars, many of whom hold court over mugs of coffee at the counter.
From the archives:JLB Picks: Go Go Diner among5 places for crazy-good corned beef
There are only a handful of tables and, in true diner fashion, there's some booth seating, the kind that sinks deep when you slide in. Black-and-white photos of the chefs featured in O'Connor’s childhood cookbooks decorate the walls, a nod to where his career began.
Tucked into a partially vacant strip mall next to a bingo hall, Go Go's offbeat location is part of the diner’s charm. It's perhaps the last place you'd expect to find a classically trained chef. And yet, day after day, so many people do.
Gina Birch writes about food and wine for The News-Press and atthebirchbeat.blogspot.com.Follow her as@ginabirchon Twitter andfind her onFacebook.
The Go Go Diner
Address: 957 Pondella Road, North Fort Myers
Call: 239-599-8877
Hours: 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays; breakfast served 7-11 a.m. weekdays and all day Saturdays and Sundays
More:gogodiner.com
