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photography by anjali pinto Greg Olsen, who used to be the tight end for the Bears, about the idea. He introduced me to RJ and Jerrod Melman, and that 40-seat restaurant became the 11,000-square-foot RPM Italian. Jon, have you been a regular at RPM Italian? JH: I always call RPM Italian my home away from home. And now it's RPM Steak; it's exciting. I love Mama DePandi's bucatini—one of my favorite meals of all time. BR: The steaks are great, and that's how we came up with this idea. We got together and said, "If we can do to the steakhouse what we did with the Italian restaurant, then we've got something." Steak is a competitive market in Chicago. What makes RPM stand out? BR: Certainly where we're sourcing the meat, but we're also going to have healthier options. We're catering to women as well—amazing salads, fresh vegetables from farmers markets. We're taking a fresh approach to it; it's a bit more modern. King crab leg gratinée with lime soy glaze is served. JH: I love the sauce on this dish. I'll take five more. BR: It's light—you can have it and you're not weighed down. The way it's broiled is different than the traditional steaming of it. JH: My friend Everett Bradley, who's the bandleader of Meredith's show, f lew in to experience RPM Steak, and he was not disappointed. BR: Well, hopefully we'll be getting these steaks on The Meredith Vieira Show, Jon. Some cooking segments. JH: We would love it. [Chef Doug Psaltis] would be great. You heard it here first. Strube Ranch dry-aged tomahawk steak and hen-of-the- woods mushrooms are served. BR: I've had this [steak] a hundred times; it's always a favorite. What do you think, Jon? JH: It's like butter. The seasoning is fantastic. BR: This is a unique style of mushroom; the texture is amazing. There's a bit of crunch, which is indicative about how fresh these are. JH: To your point, they're l ight. Not overbearing. Jon, give us your pitch for Meredith's show. JH: "Feel real good" is our theme, and the goal is to really inspire and entertain. We have a lot of great human- interest stories—celebrating ordinary people who've done extraordinary things—as well as celebrities and games. What else is on the horizon for you? BR: October's a big month because it's Breast Cancer Awareness month, and Giuliana's a survivor, so we'll be on the road a lot. Giuliana is relaunching her charity Fab-U-Wish with the Breast Cancer Research Foundation in partnership with the Lauder family, and we're really excited about that. Looking toward the end of the year, what are your ultimate goals? BR: One of the things we want to do is grow our family and have a brother or a sister for Duke. And hopefully people will love RPM Steak. We really want to share it with everyone. JH: You've built it. I have no doubt that they're gonna come. For me, my goal is to be as present as possible when I'm home—to spend signifi- cant time with my family. And I'd very much like to have a successful show under my belt with a great team, where we are entertaining people every day—and they keep coming back for more. BR: And big ratings, baby, big ratings. JH: From your mouth to God's ears. MA "We goT TogeTheR and Said, 'if We can do To The STeaKhouSe WhaT We did WiTh The iTalian ReSTauRanT, Then We'Ve goT SoMeThing.'" —bill rancic Jon Harris is starting his new role as announcer on The Meredith Vieira Show, and Bill Rancic has parlayed a victory on season one of The Apprentice into a lucrative entrepreneurial and speaking career. Strube Ranch's tomahawk steak is a favorite of both Rancic and Harris. 96 michiganavemag.com taste On the town